Last week I shared with you about my sisters’ visit and our card making activities. My east sister got to stay longer, and the card creating adventures have continued. We’ve been doing lots of experimenting with different methods and materials. It’s been loads of fun. But when she goes home and takes the supplies she brought, we mail back the supplies west sister left for us to play with, and we give back the Cuddle Bug embosser/die cutter that we borrowed from a friend of mom’s, Melinda and I will be left with very little card making equipment.

We realized that it can be rather overwhelming for someone who wants to make their own cards to figure out how to get started. You walk down the isles of the craft store and know you only have a few dollars to spend, but the shelves are packed with so many options you don’t know where to start– even if you knew what half that stuff was! So we decided to simplify it for you. You don’t need a lot to start.

Basic supplies that would help you start making cards:
• Pair of small sharp scissors
• Paper*- white card stock and a few pieces of colored card stock
• Adhesive- glue stick, or refillable double-sided tape dispenser
• Small cutting board- makes cutting straight lines so much easier
• Basic Stamps and ink pad- Happy Birthday, Thank You, Thinking of You, and Congratulations stamps are good ones to start with. Look for stamps sets or stamps in the bargain bins at the craft store.
• Embellishments- buttons, ribbons, silk flowers- many items you can find already in your home if you have done any kind of crafting.
• Invitation size envelopes for your cards

*Standard card size is 5 1/2 x 4 1/4in (basically, cut a 8 1/2 x 11in paper on the 11in side so that each half is 5 1/2 inches tall, and when you fold the card, the width will be 4 1/4).

Keep your eyes open for bargain bin items and be sure to use coupons for some of the higher priced items as you add to your supplies. With just a few simple items, you can let your creativity go to work making cards for your loved ones and friends. If you need inspiration, just type in “card making ideas” online, and you will find more ideas than you could ever begin to make. Because there are so many to look at, just spend a few minutes to get your creative juices flowing then step away from the computer and start creating!

To show you that you really don’t need any special equipment or supplies to make cards, besides what you probably already have at your house, I gave my sister and Melinda a challenge to each create a card using the following simple items: brown grocery bag, glue, pen, white copy paper, a magazine.

(Melinda’s college roommate used to give cards like this all the time using construction paper and stuff cut out of magazines. She had a shoebox filled with magazine cut outs. Anytime she got a magazine she would cut out words and phrases or pictures that she liked and save them for card making).

Here is what they came up with:

The cards may not be fancy, but they definitely are creative and one of a kind. And they did not require a lot of fancy, expensive equipment, just some time and a little love!