Finding Inspiration when card making

Hope everyone is having a fab week! It's been a good one for me, I turned 21 yesterday and was completely spoiled by friends and family, had a very successful shopping trip today and on Saturday I'm heading to a spa weekend to be pampered with the girls.Life is good =D

So anyway, this is my second post in a kind of blog series that I have started to help beginners get into card making. If you want to read the first post you can find it here.

This week I want to talk about inspiration. After all, you can have as much equipment, paper, card and embellishments as you want but without some kind of inspiration it can be really difficult to decide what to do with them. So how do we find inspiration if it doesn't just pop up out of nowhere? Here are a few ideas that may help.

• Sort through your craft stash- You might find something that you forgot you had and think "Ahh I can use this to..." I have done this several times and it hasn't failed me yet.
• Keep a notebook with you- If you are out and about and an idea begins to form write it down for later.
• Look at cards that you have made or received in the past- Do you like the design? How could you improve it or change it for a different occassion?
• Choose a colour scheme and try to make a card using those colours- Sometimes just choosing which colours to use can spark an idea.
• Take a break- Go for a walk, bake cakes, watch tv. When you stop looking for inspiration, ironically it can appear from nowhere.
• Tidy your work area- Normally I'm not what you would call a neat freak (my mam will definately vouch for that!) but if I find it difficult to concentrate if my desk is really cluttered and a couple of times I have gotten an idea while clearing my desk.

Tidy(ish) work area, tidy mind

Hope this helps! If you have any other suggestions then please comment below.

Bye for now!
Hayley x

An introduction to card making

Well I've been card making for several months now and it occurred to me that when I first started, I used a multitude of websites, blogs, books and magazines to learn about the craft. I had to learn about one aspect of card making from one source, another aspect from a different source and so on. It would have been handy if I could have gotten all the information I needed from one place. So I've decided that over the next few weeks I will attempt to blog about different aspects of card making, I kind of go-to guide. I'm not for one minute saying that I'm an expert because I'm not, but I hope that sharing what I have learnt about card making over the last 8 months will help someone else who is interested in taking it up. So here goes...

Essential tools

• Scissors
• Paper trimmer
• Ruler
• Craft Knife
• Pens, markers or paints

Not essential but very handy

• Hot glue gun
• Bone folder
• Paper punches
• Diecutter 

Card blanks and envelopes
  
There is a huge range of pre-cut card blanks and envelopes that you can buy from craft shops and larger department stores, that come in just about every size shape and colour you can think of. Alternatively, if you want to make your own card blanks, you can buy packs of envelopes, unless your card is an unusual shape then you may have to make your own envelope too.

Tape and Glue

When it comes to finding the right kind of glue or tape, you are spoiled for choice. Personally I find that double sided tape is essential for sticking down card, paper and sentiments. Double sided foam is extremely useful for giving a 3D effect to sentiments and card toppers. Glue pens or sticky dots are great for sticking small embellishments, while silicon glue or my personal favourite, a hot glue gun, are used to secure bulkier embellishments. A glue stick is also useful to stick lightweight objects and paper or card.

Paper

Craft shops, stationery shops and department stores offer a massive range of plain and patterned paper and card. Below is my list of different types of paper and their uses.

• Patterned paper- Comes in all colours and patterns, used to create a background on your card blank.
• Textured paper- Either handmade or embossed with a pattern. Adds texture and dimension to cards.
• Glittered paper- Popular on female and childrens cards.
• Holographic/mirror card- Popular on childrens cards. (Bare in mind that if you need to photograph your cards, holographic card shines and can make it difficult to take a clear photo)
• Accetate- Not really a paper but is transparent and used to create windows or is stamped on to give a "floating" effect.

 Embellishments

An embellishment is an item that you attach to your card and there is a vast amount to choose from. For example:

• Card toppers
• Paper/card flowers
• Ribbon
• Stick on gems
• Chipboard shapes or characters
• Sequins

Stamping and decoupage

Stamping and decoupage are both very popular techniques for decorating cards. Stamping requires ink, some stamps and a medium such as markers, pencils or watercolours to colour them in (I use Promarkers). Decoupage is the technique of layering numbered pictures on top of each other with foam pads or hot glue to give a 3D effect. Decoupage sheets are used for this technique and can be found at your local craft shop.

Well I think thats the basics covered! Hopefully it makes sense and I haven't missed out something important. Feel free to leave a comment, letting me know what you think! Also check back in a few days for the next installment =)

Thanks for dropping by!
Hayley x