Creative ways for combining a handmade card with a gift are endless. Sometimes one wants to give a bit more than just a greeting card or needs to find an interesting way to present a small gift. It also creates possibilities for merging another craft with cardmaking to create cheap gifts with a touch of class.
Ideas for Small Gifts to Use on Cards
With a bit of imagination you can source suitable gifts to use on cards in all price ranges, or you can make them yourself. The only conditions are that the gift should be fairly flat, not more than ¼ inch (½ cm) high, and not too heavy.
Handcrafted possibilities include molded chocolates (such as a heart shape for Valentine); small molded melt-and-pour guest soaps; herb sachets for the bath or fragrance in drawers; magnets; bookmarks and christmas decorations.
Ideas for gifts that can be bought range from low-cost magnets, key-rings, and pretty notebooks to exclusive jewellery like brooches or pendants.
Designing and Making the Cards
Use firm card stock or handmade paper for the base of the card. Plan how you will decorate the card using the gift as the central element of the card design. You can then add any of the usual embellishments for making cards - like layers of different colors and textures of paper, cut-outs, stamping, ribbons, and pressed or paper flowers. Ideally, design the card in such a way that it can stand on its own even when the gift is removed.
Glue the design elements on the card and attach the gift in a suitable way. Double sided tape works well for most objects. Keyrings or pendant chains can be hooked over the top of the card and photo corners can be used to hold a flat object like a bookmark in place. A slit can be made in the card to, for example, put the back of a notebook or a pendant chain through to be held in place with tape on the inside of the card. Here you may want to hide the tape by pasting a plain paper insert into the centre of the card for the wording.
Uses for Greeting Cards Decorated with a Gift
Because an inexpensive small gift becomes more special when it is incorporated as a decoration on a greeting card this idea is especially suitable for teachers' gifts, corporate and business gifts, thank you gifts, wedding favors, as well as holiday and birthday gifts for co-workers and your children's class friends.
These gift cards can also be created for x-mas and valentine's and be personalised for friendship cards, get-well cards and and other special occasions.
Crafters making money from handmade cards will find that there is a good market for these unusual cards and should stock up for holiday buying.
Frieda Paton - A published nurse author, Frieda has variety in her life being a part-time nurse, business owner and craft producer.
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