any ideas on how to make homemade christmas cards? this is the first christmas where i have a major inkling to do things by hand, except i'm not exactly sure how. any websites about christmas crafting that you can recommend, or ideas of your own? please help this creativeless crafter.

roxy

Just like any other card but with a x-mas theme. I haven't done my own in a few years, but I've used materials as diverse as wood veneer, watercolor and origami paper. There's a book called Instant Gratification: Cards that i like. Also I just go to Kate's Paperie and see whose ideas I can steal...

if you can get your hands on piles of old christmas cards: i used to cut them up and collage new cards out of bits of old cards. i would stick them all on to a background of christmas wrapping paper (which was stuck on card to make the actual 'card' bit)

One of my favorites is to cut out three harts each one slightly smaller than the first,make them like a tree by putting them up side down-points up,glue onto card,decorate with buttons,ribbons,glitter,whatever comes to mind.

I make really slapdash cards, b/c I make like 100 of them each year.

Usually I buy large sheets of interesting paper, cut it to card size and fold in half. On the front I'll paste something - weird pictures, cut outs from wrapping paper, color photocopies of a photo, etc. last year, I got crazy technical and used rubber stamps and vellum - I embossed snowflakes on a piece of vellum, stamped it with a dove, and pasted the vellum onto a piece of red paper with silk strands through it.

then on the inside, I'm punkrock, I just write "happy holidays!" with a sharpie, or something.

I forget the book but I got a great idea from one book, take a glass and trace a circle on the front of your card, then glue on pieces of evergreen tree in the shape of a wreath, finish with a raffia bow. Gorgeous. They also had a cool one with those little whirly seed helicopters that fall off of maple trees, just put three or 5 seeds in a row. very simple, tres chic
jt

there are really cool books and really coll ideas allover the net. i personally for the past 3 years have been printmaking my cards. :) this year im doing three colours, most years it was just monochromatic. have fun

last year i made all mine ... each one was unique, but my favorite was very simple. i'd take a piece of cardstock, fold it into a card shape, then cut out a small slit in the fold. then i would use ribbon (i used mostly red) and wrap the front of the card as though it were a present. finish off with a sweet bow. very simple and nice.

i also got tons of little foil stars, and would stick them onto a card to make a christmas tree out of them, or a wreath, or whatever.

not sure where you live, but if you can get your hands on any shiny sticky paper you can collage quite easily with that too.

not sure what i'm going to do this year. i have a bunch of vintage christmas cards, so maybe i can scan those in and do something fun with them.

good luck

you can do so many different things!

growing up, each year my father would do a new linoleum block print of a mother and child theme. His first was a copy of a stained glass window. Most were copies of art works but he one year he based his block print on a picture of me and my mom. Another year it was a man holding a baby chick.

The whole family would get together and print these on really rough paper (usually brown) and my mom (who had the worlds most perfect handwriting!) would write the greeting inside.

Until my dad moved, the prints were all mounted to the wall right by our front door after each year. I have them now and am not sure what I'll do with them.

whew, a long story huh?

For last year's christmas card, my husband and daughter and I took our photo in a photo booth. I applied little sticker santa hats to the photos and then I scanned the pic and printed them out at Kinkos. Then I mounted the strips of photos on green paper. I used regular paper because Kinko's didn't have any green cardstock that wasn't neon. bleeh. I put the cards in regular sized envelopes which I thought was fun, because I thought people might think "oh, just another bill" but be surprised when it was a card.

whew!

i collect hundreds of thousnds of paint sample cards throughout the year (all colours) and get my decorative hole punches of stars and angels and my christmas tree one and just punch like crazy and then arrange my punched out paint samples into christmassy things on blank cardboard cards, sort of matisse inspired christmas cards, and also I never use the red white and green colour scheme (i hate it) i like my purples, turquoises and golds (the un-official colours of christmas 2002)

I rubber stamp my christmas cards every year, and to find ideas, whenever i'm bored, i just look around the internet for ideas, save the pictures of the cards, and then use them as a pattern later. I've uploaded three that i've collected for possibly doing this year that you can do without rubberstamps. My favorite being the apron one. So, these might give you some ideas.
I have a rubber stamp of a gingerbread boy that
shrinks down to perfect size on poly shrink, so that's how i'm going to do the gingerbread boy in the apron, and i think i'm going to either glue a pinback or a magnet to it, so the recipients have a special gift along with the card.

mitten card: http://home.maine.rr.com/polkadottedcows/mittenscard.jpg

star card:>http://home.maine.rr.com/polkadottedcows/starcard.jpg

apron card:>http://home.maine.rr.com/polkadottedcows/aproncard.jpg

hope these help a bit.
-Meagan

This year I am making some purple snowflake cards. I have some purple sparkly cotton and some snowflake confetti which I am going to paint with iridescent glitter. Then I'll stick them onto the cotton. I make purpley themed cards every year. Last year I made cross stitched snowflakes in lilac on to sparkly paper.
Making your own christmas cards is so much fun - I love it! I always buy a few for people who I know wouldnt appreciate a hand made card - is that mean? Some people ask me why I do it too! Oh well! Ilove Christmas more than anyone I know!

Yay, vespabelle! I love that your family did that every year. I also LOVE your photo booth idea... I may just steal that for myself! :o)

Check out this website.
>http://www.impressrubberstamps.com

They have some really cute card ideas for all seasons. Check under the "Impressive Ideas" page. :)

Al