The season of Advent has begun, and every year at this time I try to come up with something special to do for people. One of my favorite things to do in years past was to ship care packages to any of my friends that wanted one. I would fill the packages with homemade cookies, candies and fudge. I would then add packets of hot chocolate and apple cider to complete the package. I would then pay to ship these care packages to everyone that had requested one. This was one of the many ways that I would try to bless others during the Christmas season. However, the cost of shipping these care parkages has continued to increase until it has gotten to be too much. So this year I wanted to try something different that would still be from my heart as well as being creative, but wouldn’t cost quite so much. After a lot of thought I decided on making my own Christmas cards to mail out to anyone that requested one. Making them was fun, but more importantly was the joy I felt by knowing that I was blessing others by giving something of myself. And now I would like to bless each of you this Christmas season by sharing this great craft idea with you. The key to this project is to be creative and use your imagination in the design of your cards and the items you use to make them. I hope you will give this craft project a try yourself and share it with others.
- Scissors
- Craft glue or glue stick
- Pens in assorted colors
- Pencil
- 8.5 in x 11 in card stock in a variety of colors
- A9 size greeting card envelopes (5.75 in x 8.75 in)
- Ribbon in assorted colors and patterns
- Paper in a variety of colors and patterns (craft paper, wrapping paper, color and printed scrap booking pages, etc.)
- Buttons, holiday-themed craft embelishments, etc.
- Begin by folding a piece of card stock in half to make a 8.5 in x 5.5 in card.
- Next, plan out the design of your card and the items you will use for it. For example, you can use buttons at tree ornaments and a pen to draw a wire hanger, or cut out wrapping paper in the shape of a Christmas tree or tree ornaments. You can also use pieces of ribbon to make shapes or craft embellishments to add a three dimensional effect. The most important thing is to be creative in the design and the items you use to make your card. Also, remember that your card can either open up (top fold) or to the left (left fold).
- Once you have decided on the design for your card, begin cutting the ribbon and paper needed for your design.
- Glue the ribbon, paper, buttons, and craft items onto one side of the card you folded in the first step.
- Last, add any drawings and wording by first adding them using pencil so that you can easily erase any mistakes. Once you are satisfied with them trace over the pencil marks with a pen.
I wish you and your families a merry and blessed Christmas.
