Happy Independence Day card

This complicated-looking card is actually quite simple to make. It is a tri-shutter card (Thanks, Bonnie)



Materials:
     • Neutral colored card-stock 
 5 1/2” x 12”
     • Decorative paper or light card-stock (red, white, blue) 
 5 1/4 x 10”
     • Punched stars or other decorative elements
     • Small ribbon bow to coordinate with decorative paper
     • Stamp with patriotic saying.
     • Fireworks stamp (optional)
     • Dark blue ink pad
     • Marker in coordinating color (optional)
     • Fiskars cutting tool or ruler and cutting knife
     • Adhesive of choice

Instructions
     • Use the following cutting guide to cut the decorative card-stock for the decorative layer.



     • On the large neutral card stock in the portrait orientation, make a long slit starting at 2” and extending to 10” at 1 1/2” from each of the two edges.



     • In landscape orientation, score from the top edge to the top slit at 2” and 10”. Repeat from the bottom slit to the bottom edge. Score from top edge to bottom edge at 4” and 8”.

     • On the front of the card mountain fold at the first three score lines from top to bottom. Valley fold at the next set of score lines, then Mountain, etc. all the way across the card. The top and bottom portions of the card will have four folds total, while the center portion will have two.



     • Glue one of the “T” decorative panels to the front of the card. Glue the other to the front (inside) of the back panel of the card. Glue one of the smallest decorative panels to each of the smallest panels. Glue one of the long, thin decorative panels to the long panels on the top and bottom of the card.

     • Stamp the saying on the larger central area of the card to which no decorative panel has been affixed using blue ink. Randomly stamp the fireworks stamp all over the card, as desired.

     • Decorate the front of the card with stars or other embellishments. Allow some of the items to extend beyond the front panel, but take care that the adhesive is only on the portions to be affixed to the front panel.

     • Add a bow to finish the card.



     • The finished folded card size is 4” x 5 1/2”, which will fit into a standard A2 envelope.

Penny Spinner Card

     I have always loved paper engineered books and cards. There is nothing that makes me feel more like a child than the surprise of opening a page and having things popup or spin. I love being able to lift flaps or pull levers and have magical things happen as a result.

     It seems natural, then, that I would love to make cards that "do something." This passion has led me to search high and low for ideas for interactive cards, and to adapt techniques used by paper engineers to card making.

     One of my favorite simple interactive cards is a penny spinner card.

     

Materials:
     • 5 1/2” x 4 1/4” Standard card
     • 5” x 3 3/4” rectangle of black card-stock
     • 3 1/2” x 4 3/4” rectangle of black and white, decorative paper
     • 2” x 2” square of white card-stock
     • 2 1/4” x 2 1/4” square of black card-stock
     • Scrap of heavy white card-stock for spinner.
     • Small saying stamp, about 1 3/4” square
     • Small Flower stamp, about 1” in diameter
     • Tiny word stamp
     • Black ink
     • Black marker
     • 10 round pop-dots, 1/4” diameter, 1/8” thick.
     • 2 pennies (Nickels will also work.)
     • Adhesive
     • Ruler
     • Craft knife:

Instructions:

     • Stamp the saying stamp in center of 2”x2” square. Affix to the black 2 1/4” square. Set aside.
     • Stamp the flower stamp on the heavy card stock scrap. Cut out and set aside.
     • Glue the striped decorative paper to the rectangular piece of black card-stock.
     • Turn the black rectangle of card-stock over and mark a rectangle, 1/2” up from the bottom, 1/2” from each side, and 3/8” high



     • Cut a slot by cutting along each of the edges of the marked rectangle.
     • Place this panel with the slot centered onto the front of the card.



     • With a pencil, lightly trace the rectangular slot onto the card front. In the rectangle you’ve drawn.

     • Stamp a word stamp repeatedly, then, using the black marker, scribble a pattern just barely extending past the pencil lines.



     •Carefully erase the pencil marks.

     •Attach a pop dot to the center of a penny.

     

     •Place the penny under the card stock with the slot, so that the pop dot is within the slot.

     

     • Remove the paper from the pop dot, and then carefully line up the second penny over the first penny, making a penny sandwich, with the pennies on either side of the card-stock.

     

     • Add pop dots to the back of the card-stock in each of the corners, in the center of each of the long sides, and centered between these to support the middle of the card.

     

     • Peel off the paper from the dots and flip the card stock over. Place centered on the card and press down firmly.

     

     • Attach the Spinner to the top penny with a pop dot. Add the stamped square with standard adhesive.

     


     Here are a couple more examples of simple spinner cards.