Making birthday cards is always enjoyable because you know it is going to make someone very happy and making birthday cards specifically with the recipient in mind is great because you can include their hobbies and pastimes into the theme of the card.

This particular card is a really easy and fun card making idea that can be used for a male of any age who is interested in football.

To begin, you need to decide what size card you want to make, a tall thin DL size card, or a wider C6 size card. Here I decided that I would make a DL size card which is my usual choice when making birthday cards for my friends and family.

Use a bone tool, or if you are confident enough a scalpel to score an edge along the card to allow it to be folded in half. Depending on the size of the card to begin with you may have to remove a small amount to get the size you want.

I selected this sheet of 12×12 scrapbook paper from my card making supplies but any football themed paper will work just as well.

I was unsure what team the person the card was for supported, so I thought it best to remove the blue and keep the card as neutral as possible as the blue could symbolise a specific team. We all know what men are like when they support a certain football team and we don’t want to be getting that wrong now do we!

I used very sharp scissors, a craft knife, and ruler to remove the parts I did not need. I also cut out a few extra footballs that I thought might be handy towards the end of making this birthday card.

Because the footballs are on a white strip placing this along the edge of the card would be the most effective way of using up the space. You will need to use dry glue such as, roller glue, sticky dots or pritt stick. Using this type of glue will eliminate the risk of glue splurging out the sides of the paper.

You can use any type of image as the focal point when making birthday cards. Here I selected a paper nation boy with a football. Paper nation are well known for their decoupage sheets and this is one of many. I used 3D foam to raise each level of the decoupage.

If you do not have any paper nation decoupage sheets you can use any football themed embellishments that you can find in your card making supplies.

Place the paper nation or football themed embellishment in the bottom corner of the birthday card using a strong adhesive such as sticky dots or double sided tape. Again, I would recommend a dry glue so less mess is made.

When making birthday cards you will need to add some wording to make it clear what the card is for. As this card is a birthday card, add a happy birthday peel off sticker to some black card then matt and layer onto silver mirror card. This is a really quick and simple way to finish off your card.

Place the wording in the top corner of the card and you’re done! A really simple and easy handmade birthday card.

The great thing about making your own cards is you can completely personalize them and make some unique happy birthday cards for your friends and family.  This card is a real girly card and I had a lot of fun making it. Its one to give a girl friend or your sister and one that can be done over and over again in any colour you want.

Begin by folding a piece of pearlescent card. I used a score board for this as the card was originally A4 size and I wanted it to be a DL size card. Press firmly when running the bone tool down the score board to give you a nice neat and easy to fold line.

I found a spare piece of ribbon in my craft supplies. I thought it would work well with this card so I used extra strong double sided tape to secure the ribbon to the happy birthday cards left side edge.

I made a conscious decision to only attach the very edge of the ribbon to the card so the frilly part was left free. If you do not have this ribbon any type will do. Have a rummage in your craft supplies you will be amazed what you will find.

I found a sheet of clear basque peel off stickers and decided they would be perfect for this happy birthday card.

I then stuck the peel off sticker onto some pink paper and used sharp scissors to cut it out. After cutting out the peel off I used my cropadile to punch out the holes in the basque where the ribbon would go.

I used white ribbon to put through the holes of the basque and placed sound 3D foam pads on the rear side of the basque.

I fixed the Basque at the top of the card securing it down with 3D pads and a little extra strong double sided tape for good measure. I left a large space at the bottom of the card so that I could then add my happy birthday card message.

Using a sizzix sidekick machine I used some darker pink pearlescent card to cut out the happy birthday wording.

Although it can be fiddly to cut these words out the side kick machine makes it quite simple

I used a glue pen to adhere the happy birthday wording to the bottom of the card as the lettering was very skinny and anything else would probably have ended with glue all over the card.

Although I have chosen pink for this card, you could simply use any colors you like to make your happy birthday cards.

The sheep on the front of this handmade card has been made using scraps of cardstock that you will probably already have hanging around in your craft supplies. The outer edges of the card have been inked with a jet black ink pad to make it stand out and the eyes are made from brads.

Once the sheep was made I simply mat and layered it onto corresponding matching paper.

The backing paper on this handmade card has also been inked. I have then used a needle and black cotton to make a few stitches on each corner of the card. Using cotton gives the card a more tactile look and feel.

To create the wording you can use rub on letters. You may decide that happy birthday is more appropriate however by simply putting baa! You are making this card suitable as a happy birthday card, thank you card or any occasion you think suitable. Of course the wording you use is entirely your own choice and obviously should be fitting the event it is intended for.

The edge of the card has been embellished using decorative scissors to make it look a bit fancier and give the card some more detail.

To finish off your handmade card a small piece of ribbon with a knot and brad through the middle of it, has been placed in the corner of the card. This very simple embellishment gives the card even further detail.

A very simple and easy to make handmade card idea that is a lot of fun, and suitable for happy birthday cards and many other occasions.

Making your own happy birthday cards is great way to spend some time and you can never have enough of them, as it always seems to be someone’s birthday.

This card making idea has been made using butterfly scrapbooking paper. I began by folding an A4 piece of card, folding each side of the card into the centre.

I then cut two strips of the butterfly scrapbook paper and placed them on each side of the card leaving a small white boarder around the edge. The paper was attached to the card using double sided tape as this is really strong and creates no mess.

I used peel-off stickers around the edge of the card to not only frame it but to make it look a lot more professional. If you do not have scrapbook stickers in your scrapbook or card making supplies you could also cut the edge of the paper using decorative scissors before attaching it to the front of the card.

With the left over scrapbooking paper I then cut all the spare butterflies out using really sharp scissors as I wanted to use these to make the 3D butterflies. It is always handy to begin with two identical pieces of scrapbook paper when trying to make this sort of card so that you can 3D which ever parts you want to.

I carefully placed 3D foam onto the back of each butterfly.

Next I placed them on top of the corresponding butterfly on the card. You do not have to do every single butterfly as a random few will look less busy and more effective.

I wanted to use ribbon to hold the card shut so placing eyelets was the next step as this would stop the card from ripping. I used a pencil to mark where I wanted the eyelets to go.

And used a cropadile to make the holes where the eyelets would go.

I used plain eyelets as the paper and peel offs already looked really busy however these days you can get eyelets in all sorts of shapes, designs and sizes.

I selected a brown/gold piece of organza ribbon that I wanted to use to tie the card together.

I threaded the ribbon through the holes where the eyelets are and tied a neat bow.

If you do not have eyelets and ribbon in your craft supplies then these parts can be left out.

The finished birthday card is elegant and can be used for any occasion. If you wanted to make it more personal you could also add a theme to it by adding wording such as ‘ Happy Birthday’ or ‘Happy Anniversary’ or whatever the event may be.

I hope you enjoyed making this card and please feel free to look at some of my other happy birthday cards on the site.

Making sympathy cards can be difficult especially if the card is for someone special to you. When I am making a handmade sympathy card I generally keep the theme very simple.

To make this sympathy card use a folding board and bone tool to fold a piece of black card. I have made this card DL sized. DL is a popular size because the front of the card is not too big so you will not have to use up much of your craft supplies to decorate the front of the card.

It is also a size that you know can be posted without having to take it to a post office to have the size measured due to new postage restrictions, so it is a good size to use and you will have no problem finding envelopes to fit the card

Find a piece of paper that is not bright in color and is fitting for a sympathy cards theme. In this case I have used a floral design. The paper itself has a lignin feel rather like lace so the card will have a texture once created.

Next, cut around the flowers so the background can no longer be seen. Use very sharp cutters and remember to keep hold of any off cuts so that they can be re used for other card making ideas you may have.

Use glue or sticky dots to attach the paper to the front of your sympathy card. To avoid the glue showing take extra care and place the ink on the patterned paper rather than the front of the card before fixing it in place.

You can use peel off stickers for the sympathy card wording. Here I have placed the words onto black card then mat and layered it onto silver card. I used 3D foam to give the wording some depth. Rub ons would work just as well or even a quote that is to do with loss.

If the card is for someone close to you, you may want to make it more personal by writing your own sympathy card wording.

You can then attach the wording to the card. I used double sided tape in this instance but if you wanted to give your sympathy card wording even more depth you could add in another layer of 3D foam to make it stand out.

The idea for this card could easily be used for a happy birthday card, anniversary card or any occasion or that matte by simply changing the wording and adding some embellishments. If you change the base of the card from black to say blue, pink, white or a brighter color you can totally change the mood of the card entirely.

Hi Everyone

As promised I have now created a members gallery where I can post all your favorite cards, please feel free to send them to me vicki@vickiscardmakingideas.com

This set of cards were kindly sent in by Barrie Sabrina Giles. 'We have used the “Slice” die cutting machine (by Making Memories company) to make some of the cut outs and words'

These cards were kindly sent in by Elaine from Melbourne in Victoria, Australia

'Untied the Knot'. I thought with the rate of divorces these days a card would be appropriate. The basic card is 145 sq in smooth white. The striped paper is the Cristina Re Paris Striped reversal paper The lady I stamped and embossed with Black Opal. I cut out the image and mounted it on the card. The contract on the shopping bags is done with Chiyogami paper 'Red Flowers on Blue'. The hat was decorated it a bit of red feather and a clear crystal diamante. The flowers the black & red flowers were done with a punch and there is a seed bead in the centre.

 Es from Sale Vic. Australia sent in these stunning designs…

Making fathers day cards is great fun and something you can get the children involved in doing.

To begin making this handmade card I folded an A4 piece of card in half using a card folding board and bone tool. If you do not have these tools in your craft supplies then you can score down the middle of the card using a pair of scissors or craft knife, taking care not to press too hard and end up cutting the card completely in half.

I then selected this sheet of images from a 6 x 6 scrapbook paper pad which also contained matching papers. Although this is a really quick and easy way to find corresponding colours you will probably find if you have a rummage through your craft supplies you will find pictures and scraps of paper that will do the job just as well.

To add a personal touch when making your fathers day cards try to incorporate one of dads’ hobbies into the theme even if these means embellishing the card everyday objects from around the house.

I used a scalpel and metal edge ruler to score and cut out each of the pictures from the 6 x 6 scrapbook paper pad.

Once all the pictures have been cut out I covered each one with a clear versamark inkpad. I then poured ultra thick embossing powder over the pictures and heated them with a heat gun.

Once heated the picture has a shiny deep embossed look. You can re do this process over and over depending how thick and how embossed you require your fathers day cards to look.

From the same scrapbook paper pad I selected six different shades of paper and tore them so that the edges were showing the base white colour.

Using double sided tape I then attached the torn pieces of paper to the front of the folded card, taking care to trim of any edges that were showing around the edges of the card itself.

I then used a distress ink pad, in this case ‘faded jeans’ to ink all around the edge of the card.

Inking around the edge blends in where the paper has met the card and also gets rid of any unsightly white bits that are visible.

I then cut a small rectangle from a lighter coloured piece of card and added the words ‘To a dear father’ with peel off stickers. This wording is of course suitable for fathers day cards; however you can easily use alternative wording for your happy birthday cards, anniversary cards and so on.

Using corresponding paper and silver mirror card I then matt and layered the wording.

The wording has then been attached to the front of the card using strong double sided tape.

The deep embossed pictures have been randomly placed together in a collage and secured together using double sided tape.

I then found some string and made a coil, placing strong glue on the back of the coil and using a clip to hold it in place while the glue dried.

Both the picture collage and the string have then been attached to the card using 3D foam and strong glue.

The theme of this fathers day card was antiques and rope knots however you can easily add alternative embellishments to your fathers day cards whilst still keeping the same basic layout and design.

Sympathy cards are sometimes very difficult to make especially if you are making them for a specific reason. I feel sympathy cards are best kept simple with clean lines, and not too many embellishments.

Believe it or not I actually used a sample of wallpaper I had in my craft supplies for this particular card. The great thing about wall paper is it has a texture to it so it feels different to normal paper.

Because the wallpaper was black and white I decided to use black card for this handmade card idea.

I cut the wallpaper slightly smaller than the black card. I made sure I selected a nice piece where there was a big flower.

I then placed a piece of black organza ribbon along the back of the wall paper so that when turned over I could then make a bow.

I placed a sticky dot behind the bow to hold it in place.

I then attached the wall paper to the front of the sympathy card. As this particular wallpaper has a slightly shiny feel to the back of it I found sticky dots worked the best at holding it in place.

I wanted to add an appropriate sympathy card wording. I found a stamp that had the words ‘with sympathy’ on it.

I cut off a plain piece from what was left of the wallpaper and wiped an anti static bag across the surface. If you do not have an anti static bag in your craft supplies a small amount of talc will also do the trick. By wiping an anti static bag over the paper ensures that the embossing powder will only stick to the ink and not to any other area of the sympathy card.

After stamping the sympathy card wording I carefully poured black embossing powder onto the stamped words. Next just use a heat gun to emboss the sympathy card wording taking real care not to burn the wallpaper.

Once embossed I mounted the sympathy card wording onto black card and then onto the front of the sympathy card.

This card has a really different feel to it because of the wall paper that has been used. It is really cheap to make and can be repeated using different wallpapers.

You could also change the sympathy card wording here to a happy birthday message as this card would be fitting for many greeting card variations.

This thank you card design can also be used for making happy birthday cards, anniversary cards, or even sympathy cards. In this case I decided to make a thank you card.

After folding an A4 piece of card in half I then used a craft knife to cut a gold frame that would be attached to the front of the thank you card.

I used strong double sided tape to attach the gold frame to the front of the card. The reason I did not cover the entire front of the card is due to cost, as gold mirror card can be quite expensive.
 
It is always a good idea to only use what you need and if you are placing another piece of paper over the top you can cut the middle of the gold card out and save it for another project.

Next select a piece of scrapbook paper from your card making supplies. This piece of scrapbook paper was cut slightly smaller than the gold frame.

I then placed the green floral scrapbook paper on top of the gold frame using double sided tape to stick them together.

I then found a piece of cream ribbon with a gold edge and tied a bow at the top of the card. I used a large sticky dot to hold the bow in place. The great thing about handmade cards is that you can use up scraps and bits and pieces that you find laying around.

I then decided to use a butterfly rubber stamp as the focal piece of the card. I used a clear ink and gold embossing powder.

You will then need to use a heat gun to heat the embossing powder. You may have been told that a hair dryer or other things will work but I would always recommend using the correct tools, as these will always guarantee you the best results.

Once the stamped image is embossed I then cut it out in the shape of a square.

You can soften the edges of the embellishment by using a corner cutter to round off the edges. You can do this freehand if you do not have a corner punch in your card making supplies.

I then mat and layered the stamped image onto the same gold and patterned paper that was used for the front of the card. A mixture of 3D foam and double sided tape has been used to create the embellishment.

After attaching the embellishment to the front of the thank you card I felt it needed something extra. Another good thing about making handmade cards, is you can add additional bits and bobs to it at different stages, and personalise your cards as you go along. In this case I added a peel off sticker all the way around the edge of the card.

I then placed a ‘with love’ peel off sticker in the corner of the card.

If you decide to make this card as a happy birthday card you may want to look for verses for birthday cards  or birthday card sayings. Using the words ‘with love’ means the card can be used for many different occasions.

Here I am going to show you how to make a simple thank you card using acetate, brads and wooden stamps.

Start off by scoring a DL size card using a bone tool and card folding board.

Press down firmly with the bone tool to create the fold in the card.

Then use a paper trimmer or scalpel and metal edge ruler to remove the excess card.

Select the rubber stamp you wish to use ensuring that it is not too big for the card. Here I have used flowers because flowers are normally a symbol of thanks and so are fitting for your thank you cards. I inked the rubber stamp with purple ink.

Press the stamp firmly onto a piece of white card. Use the palms of your hands to press down firmly.

Sprinkle clear embossing powder over your stamped image. I always recommend placing a piece of paper underneath so that any excess embossing powder can be saved and tipped back into the pot.

Use a heat gun to heat the embossing powder and create a raised image.

Using a metal edge ruler and scalpel cut the embossed image into a smaller piece.

Select your thank you card wording. In this case I have used a rubber stamp with the word ‘thank you’ on it. You may have a rubber stamp that has thank you card verses, thank you card poems or thank you card quotes on it that would work just as well.

I used the same ink pad to ink the ‘thank you’ stamp.

And once again pressed firmly onto some white card and used the same embossing powder and heat gun to emboss the words.

Both the flower and wording have then been cut out. Make sure that you do not make them too big as a DL size card does not have massive amounts of room

I then mounted both images onto purple card using double sided tape.

And repeated the process of mat and layering onto white card.

Then again onto purple card using 3D foam.

I then had a rummage in my card making supplies and found some purple ribbon which I made into a bow.

Now you can start putting the card together by attaching the flower image in the right hand corner using double sided tape.

Place the thank you card wording underneath, and then use a sticky dot to secure the purple bow in place.

Then cut a piece of flower printed acetate into a strip to go down the left hand side of the card.

I used a pokey tool to make a hole in the acetate and the actual card.

Place a purple brad through the hole to secure the acetate in place. Acetate is transparent so glue and tape would be seen so it is best to use brads or eyelets to hold the acetate in place.

The design of this card is really simple and can be changed to suit just about any occasion whether you are making thank you cards or making birthday cards, by changing the wording you can easily make this card suit the occasion.