I love beautiful images on greeting cards, and it’s very satisfying finding ways to get more use out of the card images when the special occasion is over. My Dad also gets a lot of unused greeting cards in the mail for marketing purposes. We don’t like to waste things if we can help it so I make a lot of paper craft projects that make use of upcycled greeting cards.
One of the easiest things to make out of a nice greeting card is a bookmark. In this tutorial I’ll show you how to make beautiful bookmarks while learning a number of paper crafting skills you can use in all kinds of future paper craft projects.
Tools and Materials
Paper cutter Scissors Pencil or pen Corner rounder (optional) Scrap cardstock Scrap chipboard Craft knife Self-healing cutting mat Bookmark template diagrams: Page 1Page 2 Glue sticks Squeegee or bone folder for burnishing glued paper Assortment of greeting cards to recycle Decorative papers and found images for collaging Scrap paper for your surface while gluing and painting Hole punch White gesso or paint Metallic paint Painting supplies: small brushes, palette knife, water container, mixing surface, rags, etc. Thread or ribbon for the top Optional embellishments: rub-ons, rubber stamps, stickers
To start out I’ll show you two ways to make rounded corners for your bookmarks.
Make a window template – Method 1
If you have a corner rounder, try this. Use your paper cutter to cut scrap cardstock into rectangles of different sizes and shapes.
Round the corners with a corner rounder decorative paper punch.
Cut out rectangles then round the corners with a corner rounder punch
Trace around the rounded rectangles onto scrap chipboard.
Place the template onto a self-healing cutting mat and cut out the bookmark shapes to make windows.
Make a window template – Method 2
If you don’t have a corner rounder punch, try this. Download and print out the bookmark template diagrams I made (Page 1Page 2). Cut out and paste the bookmark shapes onto scrap chipboard, then cut out with a craft knife.
Next, trace the bookmark outlines onto the greeting cards where you see an image or design that you like, then cut the bookmarks out.
On the left, bookmarks ready to start partially covering with collaged paper pieces.
Add collaged paper pieces
Cover the parts you don’t want showing, like text from when it was a greeting card, with torn or cut papers. If you’re not sure where to start, tearing out paper for backgrounds and cutting out images for the foreground helps me get started if I don’t have any other ideas.
Tearing paper scraps to size to cover up writing from the greeting card.
Add embellishments
If you have any further embellishments you want to add, place them now. For example this image shows a rub-on being applied over the collaged paper.
Applying a rub-on image to a collaged bookmark
Some other embellishment suggestions: Stickers Rubber stamps Sentiments and words either stamped onto paper or cut from other cards Postage stamps Small images stamped in black ink and either cut or torn out Punched paper shapes
Painting the edges with gesso and paint
Paint the edges
To give the bookmarks a finishing touch, paint the edges with your favorite metallic paint.
On some of my bookmarks I brushed a slightly wider edge first with white paint mixed with clear gesso. I wanted a bit more transparency than I was getting from white gesso straight out of the jar. You can experiment with what you have to get an effect that you like.
Add ribbon or thread to the top
Thread ribbon, twine or thread through the top hole
Mini book envelope template Paper cutter Stapler Scissors Glue stick Card stock Scrap chipboard Marker Pen Pencil Assorted text weight paper Craft knife Cutting mat Metal ruler Needle and thread Buttons Twine Needle tool or awl for poking holes for sewing (optional) Circular hole punch (optional)
Instructions
Download and print out the mini book envelope template. Roughly cut it out and glue it to card stock with a glue stick. Cut it out along the edges. Now it’s durable for repeated use.
Glue the printed out template onto scrap cardstock for durability, then trim.
Get an assortment of text weight paper, like typing or copy paper, and cut it into 4 inch by 2 inch pieces.
Fold three or four of these 4 x 2 inch pieces in half.
Cut some assorted card stock also into 4 x 2 inch pieces. Fold one in half for a cover for each book you want to make, over the folded text weight pieces.
Staple each book at the spine.
If needed to make the pages and cover even, trim the fore edge of each book with a utility knife and ruler, or a paper cutter.
Now you can doodle, color and collage on the tiny book pages whenever you have a little time. You can freehand draw or use a stencil to help you get started.
I made a stencil out of some scrap chipboard of some of my favorite doodle shapes to trace and help jump start some doodle pages.Doodling and collaging using my stencil shapes as a starting point.
To make an envelope for your book, trace the mini book envelope template onto the reverse side of some card stock.
Fold the envelope at the dotted line, then sew buttons on the flaps. If you want, you can cut some circles out of cardstock with a punch to set off the buttons. Tie a piece of twine to one of the buttons to make the envelope closure. You’re done!
Sew buttons to the top and bottom flaps so you can wind twine around them for a closure when the envelope is closed.Tie twine to one of the buttons to make a wind around closure.
Here is a link to a similar project I made several years ago, this time with mini accordion books:
… is a presentation I’m giving tonight at Thomas Dunn Learning Center.
Following is the text on the handout I’m giving out. It consists of links to get more information, my contact information, Works Cited and resources for learning more.
Schnarr’s Hardware Blog Planting Calendar https://schnarrsblog.com/calendar/ – I made this when I worked for Schnarr’s Hardware using data for the St. Louis are from the When to Plant App published by Mother Earth News. I don’t edit it any more but I set the planting times to reoccur every year for as long as the site lasts, I hope.
Bulletin, Missouri Botannical Garden. — “Garden With A Purpose.” Bulletin, Summer 2018, pp. 10-13. — “Nature for All. Nature Forever.” Bulletin, Spring 2025, pp. 6-12. — “Protecting Native Plant Species in Missouri.” Bulletin, Summer 2018, p. 6. — “Restoring Nature.” Bulletin, Winter 2017-2018, pp. 14-15.
Burton, Robert and Stephen W. Kress. The Audubon Backyard Birdwatcher. Thunder Bay Press, 1999.
Conservation Federation. — Eagan, Elizabeth. “Royal Voyagers of the Sky.” Conservation Federation, May 2021, pp. 34-35. — Jenkins, Jason. “All Efforts Great and Small.” Conservation Federation, July 2017, p. 40. — Missouri State Parks. “State Parks Encourage Pollinator Populations.” Conservation Federation, July 2017, pp. 50-51. — Nemecek, Mary. “Missouri Native Bees: Important Pollinators.” Conservation Federation, July 2017, pp. 42-43.
Feltwell, John. The Naturalists Garden. Templar Publishing, 1987.
Houdret, Jessica. Practical Herb Garden: A comprehensive A-Z directory and gardener’s guide to growing herbs successfully. Hermes House, 1999, 2003.
Marlos, Daniel (Bugman). WhatsThatBug.com, 2024, whatsthatbug.com. Accessed 22 April, 2025.
Missouri Conservationist. — Archer, Larry. “Prairie on the Patio.” Missouri Conservationist, February 2024, pp. 16-21. — “Ask MDC.” Missouri Conservationist, March 2025, p. 7. — “Ask MDC.” Missouri Conservationist, January 2021, p. 6. — “Ask MDC.” Missouri Conservationist, July 2018, p. 6. — “Ask MDC.” Missouri Conservationist, July 2020, p. 6. — “Ask MDC.” Missouri Conservationist, September 2017, p. 7. — Briggler, Malissa. “Violets of Missouri.” Missouri Conservationist, March 2025, pp. 16-21. — Brunette, Lisa. “Garden of Eatin’.” Missouri Conservationist, April 2025, pp. 16-21. — Buback, Steve and Alex Morphew. “Chasing the Buzz.” Missouri Conservationist, February 2024, pp. 10-15. — Chasteen, Bonnie. “Insects in Need.” Missouri Conservationist, May 2021, pp. 22-27. — Chasteen, Bonnie. “Mead’s Milkweed Recovery”. Missouri Conservationist, July 2021, p. 4. — Dentner, Holly. “1 Bought Native Plants… Now What?” Missouri Conservationist, September 2022, pp. 10-16. — “Get Outside in April.” Missouri Conservationist, April 2025, pp. 22-27. — “Get Outside in January.” Missouri Conservationist, January 2025, p. 4. — “Get Outside in June.” Missouri Conservationist, June 2024, pp. 28-29. — “Missouri’s Least Wanted.” Missouri Conservationist, April 2020, p. 8. — Paothong, Noppadol, “Black Swallowtail Butterflies.” Missouri Conservationist, June 2018, pp. 10-17. — Paothong, Noppadol, “From Big-Eyed to Beautiful.” Missouri Conservationist, July 2020, pp. 10-21. — Paothong, Noppadol. “Giant Swallowtail Approaches Prairie Blazing Star.” Missouri Conservationist, June 2024, p. 25. — Paothong, Noppadol. “Hummingbird.” Missouri Conservationist, February 2020, p. 11. — Paothong, Noppadol. “Spring Beauty.” Missouri Conservationist, March 2025, p. 26. — Paothong, Noppadol and Chris Barnhart. “Regal Fritallary: Tending to the Queen of the Prairie.” Missouri Conservationist, March 2025, pp. 17-27. — Seek, Matt. “The Butterfly Effect.” Missouri Conservationist, September 2017, pp. 10-16. — “The Birds and the Bees.” Missouri Conservationist, February 2020, pp. 10-27. — “The Mints: Fresh Breath for Pollinators.” Missouri Conservationist, March 2024, pp. 28-29. — Van Dien, Dianne. “Marvelous Mosses.” Missouri Conservationist, April 2025, pp. 22-27. — Van Dien, Dianne. “Nature’s Monetary Ripples.” Missouri Conservationist, January 2025, p. 4. — “Wild Guide.” Missouri Conservationist, April 2025, p. 32. — Zarlenga, Dan. “Spreading Life in the Darkness.” Missouri Conservationist, May 2020, pp. 10-15.
The Gateway Gardener. — “Bird/Plant Matchmaker.” Gateway Gardener, October 2017, p. 17. — Woodbury, Scott. “A Spoonful of Sugar May Help the Honeysuckle Go Down.” Gateway Gardener, October 2017, p. 18. — Woodbury, Scott. “Gardens with Environmental Benefits.” Gateway Gardener, Summer 2020, pp. 10-11. — Woodbury, Scott. “Wild Vines I Have Loved.” Gateway Gardener, Winter 23-24, pp. 12-13
Scrap chipboard Ball point pen Pencil Paper cutter Scissors Metal ruler or straightedge for tearing Glue sticks Squeegee or bone folder Old greeting cards Cardstock scraps Assorted decorative papers with floral and garden themes Assorted light colored text-weight papers Paper scraps with text Commerical ATCs (optional) Clean scrap paper for gluing Gesso – white and matte clear Paintbrush Water container Decorative scissors with faux stamp perforation pattern Rubber stamps with greetings and sentiments Floral, botanical and garden theme rubber stamps Rubber stamping ink Metallic gold or bronze paint Optional – stickers, stencils, rub-ons, die cuts and other embellishments from your stash
I was looking through some old greeting cards to recycle recently, and made an observation. Delightful sights from nature are used for almost any kind of greeting card. Condolence, birthday, get well, Valentine, Easter, Mother’s Day, and many more. There are biological reasons for humans being cheered by images of nature. Whether or not we have studied the science behind how that works, it’s something we all instinctively seem to know. So here for you is the first of two parts of a tutorial on making Artist Trading Cards, or ATCs, from recycled greeting cards and nature-based imagery.
Instructions
Make yourself two templates from scrap chipboard. One 4 x 3 inches, another 3.5 x 2.5 inches. These are some standard sizes that commercial ATCs come in.
Tracing onto parts of old greeting cards to make ATCs.
Use your templates to find spots on the cards that you want to use. Trace around them with ball point pen. Then cut them out. If the cards are on matte finish paper, and not slick, you could also do your tracing with pencil.
Commercial ATC cards by Tim Holtz and P13.
Sometimes when you buy a pad of decorative paper there is a sheet or two of cardstock imagery you can cut out. ATC sized rectangles are frequently included. Leftover cards from pocket scrapbooking kits can also make good bases for ATCs. When working on ATCs you’ll probably want to do several at a time, so go ahead and mix commercial and homemade ATC base cards if you want. Seeing all the imagery together could inspire you. That’s one reason I enjoy working with paper scraps and leftovers so much – the mixture encourages extra creativity.
Cover the parts of the card that you don’t want showing with decorative papers. I used mainly papers with a gardening and floral theme. Decorative papers with text and text torn from old books and magazines also work really well with this type of collage.
Covering with torn paper the parts I don’t want showing
Cover the cards with solid pieces of paper, torn strips or free-form torn pieces.
If the backs of the cards are blank, you might want to cover the whole surface. Most of cards in this photo are covered with sections of greeting card envelopes with floral designs in the corner. That leaves a lot of room on the card for adding design elements.
Accent the cards with some brushed white gesso. If the gesso is too opaque, you can mix in some clear matte finish gesso.
ATC cards from paper stacks by American Crafts (left) and Tim Holtz (right).
Part 2 – Prepare Some Embellishments
Cut flowers, butterflies, birds and other garden theme items from old cards and decorative papers.
Butterflies and flowers are good for hiding an awkward joining of torn papers.
With a decorative scissors that simulates stamp perforations, it’s easy to make small stamp-like embellishments. Trim real stamps from envelopes, cut out small square images, or stamp small square designs.
Stamp out some sentiments on strips of paper torn with a metal ruler. I’ve painted some of the papers with white gesso for texture. I stamped assorted sentiments in black.
Part 3 – Embellishing the Cards
Tear out some of the stamped words and glue them to the cards.
Add postal images and cut out images of flowers, birds and butterflies.
Enhance with various rubber stamps until the cards look finished to you.
Sometimes when I’m stuck for ideas I’ll make a themed collage out of rubber stamped images combined with other images on paper scraps. My approach is more like an all-over pattern in the manner of a fabric print or wrapping paper rather than a fine art collage with a focal point. This all-over pattern collage is easy and I can almost do it on autopilot. When the collage is finished I usually get inspired with ideas for how to use it. If not, I scan it, put it in a folder, and I know it will be there for later when I need it.
To begin select some stamps that fit a theme of your choice and stamp them in black ink on different colors of paper.
Stamp credits: Art strip CarolynHDesign, paintbrush by Stampa Rosa, Art from Dream Slab by Postmodern Design, paint tube by Tin Can Mail, Art Capital A by Hampton Art Stamps, Limbert’s Arts and Crafts stamp unknown.
Tear out the images you just stamped into small pieces, then do the same to some decorative paper and found images from your stash. To go with my art and art tools theme, I picked some black and white papers.
Black and white decorative papers by CanvasCorp.
I start gluing down paper pieces in the middle of a piece of backing paper, then work my way gradually out to the edge.
There are usually a few gaps left here and there after the paper is nearly full, so I cut or tear some pieces to size to fill in the last few spots.
I usually end up cutting the resulting collage into smaller pieces to use in paper crafting projects such as cards. But before I do that I scan the image so I have a digital file of it that I can use in graphic design projects.
Try inverting the colors in some graphic editing software such as Photoshop for unexpected color combinations.
After inverting, I slid the HSB (Hue Saturation Brightness) tool to get additional fresh color combinations. I stopped on this, my favorite, to export a sample I want to use right away. I think after this article goes live I will use it for awhile as a Facebook cover graphic.
Here are some crafted and digital projects I’ve made in the past that make use of themed collages using the same process.
Rubber stamped paper frame around a collage on an art journal page.I made the collage based on an activity prompt by Somerset Studio Magazine. The stencils for the collage are by The Crafter’s Worshop and Tim Holtz. The rubber stamps in black making up the frame are of my own design. The background paper is by p13.
I made this rubber stamped paper frame for an art journal page. You can make one like it for that purpose or other projects such as scrapbooks, greeting cards, photo displays and more.
When I placed my collage on this piece of decorative paper for my art journal, I thought it needed a little more so I decided to make a frame for it. I used tracing paper to draw out the size and shape I wanted. Then I transferred my drawing to scrap card stock and cut a template to use for tracing.
I traced around and cut out four frame pieces.
I wanted black and near-white rubber stamped images to glue to the frames, so I got a bunch of stamps out that are of my own design and stamped them in black stamping ink on cream color card stock. Some of these stamp designs are available in my Etsy shop, and some only exist as hand carved stamps.
Tearing the stamped cardstock into strips for making smaller mosaic pieces
I tore the stamped images into small pieces, and glued them to the frames.
After trimming the frames were done and ready to mount in my art journal.
I’m working on a lesson plan to possibly teach at Thomas Dunn Learning Center. I plan to make another, more polished sample. You might enjoy seeing the steps I took to make my prototype.
I took a piece of paper and drew lines in pencil to roughly divide it into 7 vertical sections – one for each letter in ROYGBIV, the way were taught to memorize the colors of the rainbow when I was young – Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet.
I made each divider line a double line, then hand drew some overlapping bird silhouettes in pencil. I treated the birds as negative space and the sections above and below as the positive space. I outlined and then filled in with black pen doodles the top and bottom sections above and below each bird. I erased the pencil lines.
ROYGBIV starts with Red, but I wanted Red to be toward the middle and not the end since the warm colors draw the eye more. I started outlining the negative space on the inside edge with red colored pencil starting with the fourth line from the left. I outlined each divider line in the successive rainbow colors in both directions and for about half the bird shape on outline on either side. I gave the outlining a soft graded treatment so that the white birds would have a “glow” to them and come forward visually when the background was filled in and darkened.
I colored in a mosaic of color patches in colored pencil roughly following the rainbow progression. For example where it’s supposed to be violet, I colored with violet and analagous colors such as purple and pink. The only thing I left white was the middle of the bird shapes.
Colored pencil leaves kind of a waxy surface that doesn’t take pen or marker ink well sometimes, so I sprayed the piece with Workable Fixatif to treat the surface to accept marker and pen.
Here is how it looked with the background textures partially filled in.
I wanted a darker background so the birds would stand out. Some of the doodles I drew lended themselves to filling in the negative space in solid black. Other patterns I had to get a little creative with to find a way to make them darker. I looked for ways to add solid black areas to those patterns.
Here it is all filled in. I’m going to make a neater sample on sturdier paper as a sample then schedule the class. This was a test to see if the concept would work, and I think it will! Do you have an suggestions? Please comment if so!
Here is Dad in Open Art Studio with me at Thomas Dunn Learning Center a couple of days ago. He’s coloring in a black and white doodle he did last year.
Do you have a summer event coming up that could incorporate a garden theme? If so, here is an idea for combining my last two published projects, Make a Seed Packet Bouquet and Make Gift Tags Into Recycled Greeting Cards. Presented in a terra cotta plant pot, these “bouquets” could be a garden themed gift, party favor or table decoration. I made these samples because I needed Mother’s Day gifts in a hurry, but variations could be made for garden parties, weddings, tea parties, picnics and more.
In my project Make a Seed Packet Bouquet, I experimented with different embellishments for the corners of the seed packet holders. For this group I punched out a whole bunch of circles with a circle craft punch. Then I stamped a flower stamp on many pieces of colorful scrap paper. I cut the flowers out then glued each to a circle.
Flower stamp credt: 7Gypsies.
I then used the circles on the corners of the seed packet holders by punching a hole in the middle and attaching them with metal brads.
Stamp credits: Flower inside circle, realistic butterflies, bird egg, “Crazy Love” by7Gypsies. “Seeds”, brackets, “love” by CarolynHDesign. “Celebrate” by Making Memories. Scribble flowers and butterfly by Fiskars.
I selected two tags for each seed packet assembly, one smaller and decorative and the other larger and functional with “To” and “From” on the back.
I went to Schnarr’s Hardware to buy terra cotta plant pots and packets of lettuce seeds, then to JoAnn Fabrics and Crafts to buy a bag of natural moss. You can buy florists foam to stick the skewers into, but I had some chunks of scrap styrfoam on hand so I cut them apart with a hand miter saw and stuck a piece in each plant pot.
I wrapped each pot with tissue paper gift wrap that I had on hand, then placed some of the moss on top. I pushed each skewer in through the moss and tissue into the foam, then tied the tags around each “stem” with twine.
How did I decide which seeds to include? I chose a lettuce mix because it can be grown in a small container and harvested as micro greens. I bought two packets and divided the seeds up among the five smaller packets that I made. In order that the recipients would know what the seeds are and how to grow them, I scanned information from the back of the packet into the computer and used graphics software to make this graphic, which I then printed out.
These graphics came from the back of the Botanical Interests brand seed packets that I purchased.
After printing the above graphic I cut out the informational graphics out and glued one to the back of each homemade seed packet.
This project is adaptable to many varieties of seeds and many different themes. I hope you enjoy the ideas!
Two ways of making gift tags from paper scraps and free downloadable files that I’ve prepared. Rubber stamp credits for left image: “Love” and tiny heart by CarolynHDesign, butterfly and notebook texture by 7Gypsies, “celebrate” by Making Memories. Right image: “You are loved”, flower and butterfly by Fiskars, decorative border by CarolynHDesign.
Here is another entry in a series of articles I’m working on about things you can make from old greeting cards and paper scraps. Tags are a useful thing to make and keep on hand for gift giving and gift presentation. Great presentation is one of the best parts of getting a gift – some thought and care makes a gift personal and special.
Download and print out the template Gift Tags Set 1. Loosely cut out the tag shapes from the template and with the glue stick glue them down to the backs of parts of old greeting cards. Burnish well with a bone folder for a tight seal. To keep surfaces clean and to prevent ink and toner from getting onto surfaces, place the pieces you burnish between two pieces of clean scrap paper.
Trim around the outer edge of the tags to cut out. Now you have a tag with To: and From: printed on one side and a design or a plain color on the other, depending on what was on the recycled card.
After trimming. Some of the tags are interesting as they are. Most will need some more decoration.
Add strips of decorative paper to the sides of the the tags that need more decoration.
Give the edges of both sides of the tags a decorative treatment, with rubber stamps and/or paint markers.
Now they are done and you can write them out and tie them to the package with ribbon or twine.
Instructions – Method 2
Cut a bunch of tag shapes out of scrap cardstock and greeting card parts. If you think you will make a lot of tags, you might find it helpful to make yourself a set of templates for tracing tag shapes out of scrap chipboard or other thick paper scraps.
Here are tag templates I made for myself. Whenever I want to make tags, I trace around these onto scrap cardstock and old greeting cards. That gives me a supply of bases for adding embellishments.
Tear the To and From sections out, using a straight edge like a metal ruler as a guide.
Glue the To and From sections torn from the printed paper onto the backs of the tags.
Add decorative paper scraps around the To and From and trim with a scissors.
Decorate the other side of the tag if needed.
Stamping can be kind of time-consuming. A good shortcut to try when adding visual textureand interest is to stamp the edges of several tags at once by placing them next to each other on the work surface.If either side of the tags looked too bare, I added rubber stamp markings where I thought they were needed.Here are some tags with a Christmas theme.
Here is a new and improved and combined version of a couple of tutorials I wrote in 2016. Enjoy!
Tools and Materials
Seeds, either purchased or home harvested Template for a 2.5 x 3.5 inch envelope, and Seed packet holder template for 2.5 x 3.5″ packet Decorative paper Cardstock Squeegee tool or bone folder Glue stick Scrap cardstock, chipboard, or file folders for backing templates for tracing Clean scrap paper for gluing surface Rubber stamps Stamping ink Punches, stencils or templates for flower, center hole of flower, and leaf. Scissors Cutting mat X-acto or craft knife Metal ruler Pencil Double-sided tape Small hole punch Wood skewers (available in grocery stores) Tape Decorative paper flowers Needle tool or awl – if using brads to attach embellishments Brads Adhesive dots Glue for attaching embellishments Small floral theme embellishments
Instructions
First make the seed packets.
Template for Seed Packet Envelope Small
Download and print out the Seed Packet Template Small. Cut out the template and glue it to scrap chipboard or cardstock for durability with a glue stick. Trim around it with scissors.
Stamping on plain paper. Stamp credits from left to right: handwrting background stamp by Inkadinkado, newsprint by Posh Impressions, Da Vinci frontispiece might be Stampington, Pennsylvania Dutch Border Rubber Stamp by me, and arts and crafts botanical tile pattern at the far right by me.
Take some plain paper or decorative paper with a subtle pattern on it and stamp some background stamps on it in complementary ink colors to make it more interesting. If your paper is interesting enough without this step you can skip it.
I own a lot of rubber stamping ink pads, but I don’t have one for every re-inker in my studio. If you want to save money and/or space, you can just buy a re-inker instead of a pad and apply the ink to a palette with a brayer. Then you can roll the ink onto the stamp, or for small stamps just press it on the inked palette. This works best when you want to do a lot of stamping with the same color – when you only want to do a little bit of stamping a pad is much more convenient. When you’re done stamping, if there is any ink left on the palette you can sprinkle a little water on it, lay down a piece of plain paper and burnish it. It’s a fun way to make interesting backgrounds. You can even draw or stamp or make marks into the ink to do a form of monoprinting. When I first took printmaking class, I got into what I could do with the palette at least as much as the printing blocks that I carved.The picture shows a piece of plexiglass as a palette, I’ve also used at various time palette paper, waxed paper, and the shiny side of freezer paper.
Place decorative paper back side up on your work surface. Place the Seed Packet Template Small that you printed out on the paper and trace around with pencil. Cut out envelope and fold in tabs. A thin ruler or straight edge is a good helper for making folds. Go over the folds with a squeegee tool or bone folder.
Envelpoes cut out before they are folded
With a glue stick, glue all the tabs on the envelope except the top tab. Leave that one open so you can add seeds later.
Fronts and back of assembled envelopes.
Once the envelope is assembled, if the front looks a little plain add some texture stamping along an edge or two. That’s really effective for adding interest.
I added stamping to the edges with some favorite texture stamps.The notebook page border stamp is by 7Gypsies, and the texture at the upper right is by Judikins.
Cut out a narrow strip of paper with a decorative scissors and stamp on it the word “Seeds” surrounded by small brackets. If you don’t have similar stamps in your collection you can use whatever stamps you have that fit the theme. Accent the strip with rubber stamping in lighter colors along the edges.
The Seeds stamp and the brackets are both from my own collection.
Glue the strip across the top of the envelope about a quarter of the way down or whatever looks right to your eye. Trim the ends after gluing if needed.
I glued on the strip that says “Seeds”, trimmed the strips to the edges of the envelopes, and got flower and leaf pieces in place to glue on.
Punch out a flower shaped piece of decorative paper and punch out a paper circle for the middle. Glue circle on flower and glue flower to the front of the envelope. An alternate idea is to cut out a leaf shape and a stem piece to make a leaf design for the front. I used a commercial punch for the flower and a pattern from a paper stack for the leaf. You can use whatever patterns and punches you have that you like if you don’t have these exact designs.
Stamp large brackets around the flower. I used unmounted bracket stamps, so the clear block you see is an acrylic block for temporarily mounting stamps with double sided tape or adhesive bits.
Pictured upper left: bracket stamps on an acrylic block. Upper right: stamping on a seed packet. Even though the clear acrylic block is a bit smudged from use you can still see through it to see where to stamp. The brackets stamps are temporarily attached with adhesive squares. Bottom: Finished seed packets.
Fill the packet with seeds, and write the name of the seeds and if you like growing information on the back of the envelope. You can obtain seeds by buying them in a garden center. This is also a charming way to package seeds you’ve harvested yourself to make a special and personal handmade gift for someone.
Next are holders for the packets
Next make holders so you can suspend the finished seed packets on skewer sticks to display them in a container of some kind. Perhaps a vase as in my example, or maybe a table centerpiece, a gift basket, a plant pot with garden tools or some other special container.
Download the template Seed Packet Holder Template for 2.5″ packet x 3.5″. You might only need to look at it for reference, but if it’s helpful as a cutting guide, cut out and mount the parts on scrap chipboard for durability.
Cut out a piece of card stock of a color that is harmonious with your seed packet, 3.5 x 9 inches. Fold it in half.
Lay the holder piece flat and unfolded on your cutting mat. Cut four diagonal slits through the front of the seed packet holder toward the corners using a craft knife and a metal ruler as a guide.
Punch small holes where indicated on the back of the seed packet.
Push a wooden skewer through the back of the holder so that the blunt end of the skewer ends up inside the holder butted up against the fold. Tape in place.
Slip your seed packet into the front of the holder.
Take four small flower embellishments in colors that go well with your seed packet and attach them to the corners. Depending on what kind of embellishement it is, you could use glue, adhesive dots or brads to attach.
Put double sided tape or adhesive dots along the sides and bottom inside your holder. Fold the front down and press halves together.
Arrange your packets in a vase or other container. You’re done!
