Designing Cards

Last year during a burst of energy, I began to design cards for friends.  I created about twelve different templates that could be varied in terms of pop-ups and cutouts, and I went to Pearl Arts & Crafts and stocked up on handmade papers with varied colored and textures to play around with in the design.  I also bought new brushes and watercolors.  The work actually began the August before when I designed the lovebird card for my friend's wedding shower.  Their wedding colors were burgundy and gold, and I created an interlocking spiral that had a pair of lovebirds that twirled on a piece of thread in the center.  I also created all of the envelopes to go with the cards, and I worked up about four templates (eight total) in two sizes to accommodate all of the card styles.

 

                    

                          Joe & Dani's Lovebirds Wedding Card

 

       

                         Harriet's Penguin Birthday Card

In January, I started working on the cards with more involvement, and I did an origami penguin with a handpainted watercolored card on art paper; the penguin sitting on an ice floe, and I painted the envelope to carry over from the card design.  This went on all spring, then I got busy with...I don't know..life, and I dropped it all, right in the middle of a new design involving pop-up sailboats for a friend in Annapolis.  I want to get back to this as I felt I was accomplishing something interesting with my designs.