Embossing Christmas Cards

Handmade Christmas Cards

© Mary Welling-Bonney

santa painting, denise van patten

Christmas cards are so special to many of us. They bring back childhood memories that trigger the smells and sounds of the season.

At Thanksgiving time my family would develop an assembly line process for getting out the Christmas cards. With four children, one would give the card to mom to sign, the second would take the signed card and put it in the envelope, the third child would seal the envelope and hand it to dad to address and the last child would stamp the envelope. It became one of those traditions that were a large part of the holiday because it signaled the beginning of the Christmas season.

It didn’t end there. I loved when the Christmas cards began arriving. Everyday we would look to see who sent us a card and jockey to see who got to tape it to the molding. We would compare the cards and marvel at their beauty or laugh at the humor.

Let’s bring back those traditions for our children. I makes me smile now but one of the things I loved the best were the embossed cards. I was convinced that anyone that sent us an embossed card must be very rich. Thinking back I remember those ones were, in my mind, the most fancy cards to arrive.

Here’s your chance to impress your friends or at least their children.

The definition of embossing is:

  1. To raise or represent (surface designs) in relief.
  2. To decorate (a surface) with raised ornament.
  3. To raise a design on (a blank) with dies of similar pattern, one the negative of the other.
  4. To cause to bulge out; make protuberant.

According to the Random House Unabridged Dictionary.

There are a number of ways we can emboss cards. The results will be very different but all share the fact that they are in 3 dimension.

The first way to emboss cards is the Stamp and Heat Gun method.

Pros:

You can use a variety of stamps

You can vary the color

Pretty inexpensive

You can produce multiples of the same card

You can personalize

Cons:

Time prohibitive

Click here to learn how to emboss with this method

The second method is to use an embossing stylus and stencils

Pros:

Ease to produce multiples of same card

You can use different color paper

Pretty inexpensive

You can personalize

Cons:

Time prohibitive

Limited to what stencils you own

The third method is the purchased embellishment method

Pros:

Ease of mass production

Can vary color by paper

Can vary embellishment

Least time required

Cons:

Most costly

Least personalized

Limited to embellishments available

The fourth is to create your own embellishments

Pros:

Most personalized

Variety of styles and colors

Not limited to purchased items

Allows most creativity and originality

Does not have to be expensive.

Cons:

Biggest time investment

Not useful for mass producing

The fifth method is a combination of any of the above

Pros:

Allows for much originality

Allows for much variety

Allows for much creativity

Allows for ease in parts being purchased

Cons:

For some it is too many options

You must do all of the designing

Not great for mass production

This week we will be doing all of these and more. No matter which method you choose, remember to always, just have fun.

related sites:

Christmas Cards

Scrapbooking newspaper clippings

How to emboss

Papermaking

Make your own stencil

customized rubber stamps

Scrapbook collages

customized scrapbook lettering

Christmas Cards

Embossing with Stencil and stylus

Embossing with embellishments

Making Envelopes

Card making without a card

History of Christmas Ornaments

Christmas ornaments to make

Chair decorations for the holiday

Easy Christmas ornaments

Ornaments to use or give as gifts

papercasting

wrap your package with flair

gift wrap

how to make bows

gift bags for the kids to make

unique gift wrap ideas

inexpensive gift wrap ideas

E-Mail Me with your ideas. I will be glad to print them.

"Copyright 2006, Mary Welling-Bonney & Suite 101. All rights reserved. Any unauthorized use will constitute an infringement of copyright."


The copyright of the article Embossing Christmas Cards in Scrapbooking & Paper Crafts is owned by Mary Welling-Bonney. Permission to republish Embossing Christmas Cards must be granted by the author in writing.




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