Cardmaking Tips for Beginners

When it comes to making your own handcrafted greeting cards, note cards and gift enclosure cards at home, you will need to go out and purchase some supplies and tools and this handy shopping checklist will help you get started. Some of the items listed on the checklist are "must haves" and others are "optional". When shopping, purchase what most important items first and then stock up on supplies when your craft store is running a good sale.

Cardmaking Tools:

Paper Trimmer or (Exacto Knife and Cutting Pad, made for scrapbooking)
Straight Edge Scissors (made for paper crafting)
Decorative Edge Scissors (we recommend at least two)
Eyelet Setter
1/8" and 1/4" Hole Punchers
Metal Edge Clear Ruler

Cardmaking Supplies:

* Blank Cardstock Cards w/envelopes (or make your own from cardstock)
* Self-Adhesive Stickers
* Adhesive (glue dots, glue sticks, self-adhesive foam dots & squares)
* (optional) Glitter Glue w/Fine Tip Nozzle (great for adding sparkle accents to your designs)
* Scrapbooking Paper and Cardstock (solids and prints)
* Ribbons, Ric Rac Trim and Fibers (various colors and prints)
* 3-Dimensional Embellishments (tiny charms, beads, sequins, tiny buttons, silk & paper flowers, etc.)
* Brads and Eyelets (if using eyelets you will need to purchase an eyelet setter tool)
* Rub-On or Self-Adhesive Wording, Phrases and Letters
* Rubber Stamps, Clear Stamps and Ink Pads (if you can afford it, purchase rubber stamp cleaner too)
* Scrapbooking Chalks: Primary Colors, Pastel Colors and Applicators
* Multi-Pack of Fine Tip and Medium Tip Scrapbooking Markers and Pens

Once you purchase your supplies, you will want to organize them and store them in plastic bins or on shelves in your designated crafting area. As you get more involved in cardmaking you should consider purchasing a die-cut machine so that you can make and cut out your own words, letters and embellishments. Purchasing a die-cut machine is a big investment and the decision to purchase one shouldn't be made lightly. However, if you stick to this crafting medium and want to expand your cardmaking abilities, we feel it is a good investment to make.

When you first start to make your own greeting cards, you will want to start off with quick and easy designs. As you get more experience you can try making harder and more time consuming designs. The more cards you make the better you get at making them. You can look through books and magazines for inspiration on design styles or check out the internet online. Happy Cardmaking!