Greetings Cards to Make & Treasure

Issue 65

Contains all kinds of different techniques to teach and inspire cardmakers. Seven experienced craft authors show you how to make simple yet stunning greetings cards in a broad variety of themes, including fairy, Celtic, art nouveau, oriental, rustic and paper pieced designs, to name just a few. There's also a huge selection of different techniques demonstrated within the pages such as decoupage, glass painting, metal embossing and using pressed flowers, embossing powder or polymer clay. Clear step-by-step photographs, templates for the designs and simple instructions make all the projects achievable for crafters of every level of experience.

Dec 09

Making your own greetings cards has become such a popular hobby in the past few years, and even some of the most unlikely places are selling supplies for this fascinating craft. Perhaps one of the best things about it-apart from seeing the looks on loved ones' faces when they see your creation-is that it is not one craft, but many. Buying books on all the different techniques costs a lot, so it is just as well that there are some compendiums on the market like this one. This book is filled with projects taken from several other books, mainly from the Simple and Stunning series. Several authors have contributed, and thus you can learn how to make cards not only using many methods and materials, but also in a range of styles. Art Nouveau, Oriental, Victorian, naive rustic art, fairies and florals are all covered, which ought to satisfy a large range of people, including some men and teenagers. You can learn through photographed and captioned staged projects how to come to grips with crafts such as paper piercing, paper tole, embossing on metal, working with polymer clays, painting and using computer clipart, to name a few. These cards are almost exclusively of the type aimed at general occasions such as birthdays, thank you, get well soon, etc, rather than specific festivals, and I only found one definite Christmas card. Given the date of this review and the book's publishing date too, I think that perhaps the best way to use this book is like the primer that it is. There are some excellent instructions in here and these ought to give even a comparative beginner the necessary skills to set to work on some more seasonal work. Of course, it would also make an excellent gift for any crafters on your shopping list.

Jan 2010

Greetings Cards to Make and Treasure is an excellent card making book. It is perfect for the rubber stamper who wants to learn more cardmaking techniques and, correspondingly, it is great for a cardmaker who wants to try new things. With such a wide range of projects and styles, it is unlikely that a reader will love every project in Greetings Cards to Make and Treasure, and with such a range of authors comes a diverse range of styles. If, however, a reader can see through any designs that are not to their taste and look for the potential in a technique then there is something to interest a keen crafter on every page. I think that this would be a great book and an eyeopener for someone who believes that 'cardmaking is boring'. While some of the techniques are suitable for beginners, I believe that the people who will get the most from Greetings Cards to Make and Treasure will be stampers and crafters with at least a little card making experience.

Jan 10

This colourful title gathers together some of the best card projects from the 'Simple & Stunning' craft book series. With top designers including Barbara Grey, Joanna Sheen and Judy Balchin, you know you'll find a gorgeous card for every occasion. Card themes include Art Nouveau, Oriental, Celtic and Fairies, and there are designs for beginners and experienced crafters. Whether you fancy stamping, paper piercing or stitching, there's a project for you, with templates to help too.

Dec 09

With a seemingly endless array of card designs and techniques, this book is a papercrafter's delight. There's always a reason to send a card, and this book will help break you out of the humdrum with 15 techniques to choose from, plus 17 step-by-step projects with dozens of variations inspired by art nouveau, oriental, Victorian and other styles. For example:

Discover how to use paper piercing designs, rub-on transfers and beads to add a bit of sparkle to a whimsical fairy princess card, as well as a wealth of ornate Valentines embroidered with gold thread

Easy to trace templates make it a snap to paint sweet-as-can-be patchwork cards brimming with country charm

Or try your hand at glass painting, quilling, origami, decoupage and even polymer clay to make something totally frameworthy

There's even a complete chapter devoted to Celtic artwork, with cards featuring gold leaf, metal embossing and other special touches

There are also fun ideas for working with rubber stamps, stencil and paper lace, plus all the templates, material lists, step-by-step instructions you'll need to make the kinds of cards sure to be treasured for years to come.