Bold Graphic GRAD card

I just love bold graphics - whether on cards, home decor or fashion. My sweetie and I went to Philadelphia last year as part of our vacation (if you ever go you HAVE to see The Magic Gardens at 1020 South Street. Oh my goodness!!! http://www.phillymagicgardens.org/) We saw the iconic LOVE graphic art at the fountains downtown, and I saw a little girl wearing a T-shirt with the graphic on GMA the other day, and it hit me that I could make a few cool graduation cards pretty quickly with this graphic. Hope you can use it. It fits perfectly on the front of a 5x5" square card, and I have already posted directions for making an envelope to fit this size card, as well as a recipe for homemade envelope glue.

The svg can be downloaded for free here.

A2 Envelobox for Embellished Cards Using The Martha Stewart Score Board

 

I have seen the directions for these before, but I have never had one turn out for me - always too skimpy in the gluing area - so I reinvented the wheel.

NOTE: I have marked the 6" line on my score board with a fine-tipped permanent marker, from top to bottom. This makes it so much easier to line things up. You will need to do this for this envelobox.

Materials:
Heavy paper or cardstock, double-sided if you want a lined-envelobox look
Double Stick tape
Homemade envelope glue - see this blog for recipe

1. Cut paper to an 8½" square.
2. Align top & bottom points at the 6" mark. Score at: 2 7/8", 3 1/8", 8 7/8", & 9 1/8".
3. Turn the paper 90 degrees, aligning the top and bottom points at the 6" mark, and score at: 3½", 3¾", 8½", 8¾", and 11 5/8". This last score is on the bottom flap. It will fold over to the inside of the box.
4. Cut out the triangles that were formed where the scores intersected, cutting to the inner scoreline, and cutting on the outside of the score lines. 
5. Fold on the scorelines. Apply double-stick tape along the outside edges of the bottom flap, going all the way to the tip. Lay the envelobox on your work surface, and while carefully holding the sides in place, fold the bottom flap up over the sides and gently press into place without pressing down on the taped tuck-in flap. Fold this tuck-in to the inside and press, adhering it to itself. 
6. Apply homemade envelope glue or double-stick tape to the edges of the top flap, and allow to dry if using glue. I'm not sure how well this glue holds, so you may need to test it, especially if you're mailing this envelobox.

How to Make a Lined Envelope for a 5x5" Card Using the MS Score Board

*These instructions make a nice lined envelope, but a quicker way to make one is to simply use a thin, decorative paper with  white on the reverse side from which to cut your envelope, using the white side for the outside of the envelope. Not as thick as a lined one, but still a nice touch.

Note: For ease of use, I have drawn a line from top to bottom on the 6" mark of my Score Board, using a fine-tipped permanent marker. I use this line all the time to line up parts of boxes that need to be scored, but are unable to fit square up against the side because of different sized pieces sticking out on the sides. Highly recommended. You will be using this line to make this envelope.

These instructions will produce a 5¼"x5¼" envelope that nicely fits a 5x5" card.

1. Cut an 8¼"x8¼" square of paper for the envelope.

2. Turn the paper wrong side up on the diagonal, and center the top and bottom points on

the 6" marked line. Score at 3⅜" and again at 8⅝". Rotate paper 90° and repeat scoring on the same numbers. Remove triangles where lines intersect, and fold all sides in on score lines.

3. I like to remove the overlap where the sides meet in the center of the envelope, but it isn't necessary. If you'd like to do this, open out the top and bottom flaps (all flaps are equal at this point, so choose which is top and bottom according to your paper if there's a pattern on it), and if your right handed, hold the tip of the right flap tightly in place over the left flap, insert a small sharp pair of scissors between the flaps and the inside of the envelope, and line up the blades with the 'V' where the two pieces meet and cut a straight, vertical line. Trim if necessary (it usually is.)

4. Fold up the bottom flap and adhere, being careful not get adhesive where it will stick to your card. I hold the envelope up to the light to see where my gluing area is. If you do go out of bounds with the adhesive, brush the offending sticky area lightly with cornstarch after sticking the bottom flap in place.

5. Brush a line of my Homemade Envelope Adhesive (see recipe on this blog), and allow to dry.

To fully line the envelope:

1. Choose a paper that complements your card, and lay it face up on your work surface. 

2. Lay your envelope back-side up on top of it so that the top corners match, and very lightly mark along the bottom edge of the envelope with a pencil. 

3. Slide envelope up 1" from this line toward the top corner, and draw a second line along the bottom edge of the envelope, and up each side. 

4. Cut out liner along these lines, trimming about 1/16 inch from the sides so the the liner is 1/8" narrower than your envelope. 

5. Slip the liner all the way inside the envelope and score, aligning the score line with that of the envelope. 

6. Fold the flap of the liner down so that it's back side is exposed. Apply double sided tape to the back side of the liner.  Fold envelope flap down and press to adhere. Adhesive should be applied only to the flap.

A partial lining can be done the same way by cutting it so that it ends an inch below the 'V' opening, but make sure the card doesn't show through your envelope where the lining stops. Learned this the hard way. Tacky, tacky, tacky.

Homemade Envelope Glue

Here's the recipe for the envelope glue I used in the Daisy card gift set. It smells pretty bad when you're making it, but has no scent other than a slight hint of the "flavoring" you use. I was amazed at how fast it dried. It dries shiny, so it still looks wet, even though it isn't.Took about 5 minutes to dry. I was a little worried about how ripple-y the glued edge was, but I stacked them on top of each other and put them under a couple of HEAVY books (Strong's Concordance was one, for those of you who know what that is - HUGE!) In the morning they were flat and crisp. 

Envelope Glue

6 T. white vinegar

4 packets Knox unflavored gelatin

1 T. extract of choice: vanilla, peppermint or cinnamon are good choices

Put vinegar into a small saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle gelatin evenly over the surface. Stir with a wooden spoon until the gelatin is fully dissolved and the mixture comes to a boil, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in extract. Cool slightly before brushing a thin, even layer onto your envelope, being careful not to extend it past the area where the flap overlaps the envelope. Allow to dry. Clean brush well with warm water & dish soap.

Keep unused portion in an airtight, leak-proof container. It will "gel", so you will need to reheat gently in warm water to melt for reuse. (You could probably microwave it on a low power, too.)

Onesie Card with Lined Envelope

I loved making this onesie card. Got the svg from http://thealliancetrader.blogspot.com. She has some really cute stuff over there. She has made favor boxes from these onesies...so cute! I made a 3½" lined envelope to go with it, which is included in the svg file, along with the flowers (a couple different kinds.) I made the digi paper I used to line the envelope, and doctored the color in Photoshop, adding the black centers for the flowers. There's a nice 1½-inch circle left when the neck opening is cut. I used it to make the envelope embellishment. The little outfit this card will accompany is pictured below. It says, "You are my sunshine". Adorable.

Good old Walmart! This is a new line they're carrying. The quality is very good (retired dressmaker making this comment, so...). The fabrics are very nice and the details are perfect. Wishes & Hugs is the name of the line. Hope you like my card! If you download the svg, please leave a comment...I'd love to have some feedback! Is anyone out there???????

The svg file is here.

Valentine Easel Card with Envelope

I had so much fun making this little 4x4" card for my best friend, Lori, for Valentine's Day. She loves cherries. I used some of the packaging from some Mary Engelbreit stickers, as well as one of the stickers for the focal point. I'm still trying to figure out how to make an envelope for a 4x4 card using the Martha Stewart scoring tool (which I absolutely LOVE!) I'll try and get that worked out to go with this card. The one I made is a tad on the skimpy side.

 

If you can't make out what it says...

"It's not so much what's on the table that matters, as much as what's on the chairs."

 

Love that ; ) After I took this picture, I changed the hair on the woman on the right to look like my wild auburn 'do, and drew on my black glasses. Looks just like us!