Springtime Hello Card

Looking for a way to beat the late winter blues?  Let’s break out the bright colors and shiny metallics and create a fun springtime hello card!  I don’t really send cards out for St. Patrick’s Day, but I love any reason to celebrate so why not say hello to a friend with lots of spring greens and a fun leprechaun image?

I started by printing a cute digital stamp onto Curious Metallic Cryogen White Cardstock and coloring the image with Copic markers.  Alcohol markers blend beautifully on this cardstock and there is a subtle shimmer that shines through the ink when you’ve finished (which is unfortunately difficult to photograph, but pure magic in person).

Next, cut some patterned paper to 3″ x 4.25″.  To create a frame for my image, I die-cut the center out of a dark woodgrain patterned paper cut to the same size.

When I’m not matting my patterned paper panels, I like to lightly ink the edges of them with a similar color.  This makes them look just a bit more polished.

The die I wanted to use for my card front panel was sized for an A2 card and I wanted to make it larger, so I first trimmed a piece of Savanna White Limba Woodgrain Cardstock to about 5.5″ x 7.5″.  Then, I partially die-cut one side of this panel with the die turned sideways, stopping just short of the other edge of the die as shown.

Repeat this process on the other side of the panel and use scissors to connect the two cuts.  This will leave you with a card front that is almost double the size of the die (about 5.25″ x 7.25″).

These diecuts allow you to wrap twine or ribbon around the edges of your panel for fun texture and dimension, so I wrapped it with some bright twine from my stash and secured the ends on the back with a bit of washi tape (you could also tie a bow on the front or a knot at the back).

Die-cut a sentiment from Gold Bright Foil Cardstock and die-cut a shadow layer and trim a card front mat (5.5″ x 7.5″) from Curious Metallic Botanic Cardstock.  Trim a piece of Neenah Classic Crest Solar White Cardstock (110 lb) to 7.5″ x 11″ and score down the center to create a card base.

Place the Curious Metallic Botanic mat directly onto the card base with tape runner, add foam tabs to the twine-wrapped panel and adhere on top, and then arrange the patterned paper panels in the top center of the card front.

Add your framed, colored image to the card with foam tabs and adhere the matted sentiment to the lower right corner with liquid glue.

I hope you enjoyed this bright and cheery springtime card project and thanks so much for stopping by today.  Be sure to visit the CutCardStock store to purchase any of the supplies showcased today and if you like this project, please leave a comment below!