Valentine's Day Collage Card and Park Slope Pop-Up Shop!

Hello All! I hope you are enjoying making cards and gifts for you loved ones! If you are looking for ideas or inspiration, here is a quick how to make a Valentine's day card out of paper and pieces you have in your house.

Step 1: First collect your favorite bits and pieces of paper and ribbon, I love working with various textures and colors for collage pieces. You will want to chose a good structural backbone for the
piece, something you can use to build the collage on, I suggest using a postcard, they tend to be sturdier then magazine or ribbon elements, and are pre cut to a card size.




Step 2: Next select various pieces of imagery and paper to apply to the front and back of you postcard. Glue and past those elements to the postcard till you build up a strong, glamorous image.




Step 3: Next, I add glitter and other non paper items to the card to add personal touches your loved one will adore.




Step 4: After I have added all the non paper elements, I do the ink work. Its important when scripting your message, if you use ink, to leave it for the end since its easy to accidentally smudge. You can make the message to your valentine out of collage elements or other mediums, the more the card reflects your asthmatic, the better!




Step 5: While the card is drying from the glue and ink, you can decide how you want it to be opened. I love how you can use the qualities of paper to create a ceremony of romance by layering, concealing and relieving pieces of the card! I chose a semi-transparent gold and blue
paper as the cover, and allowed some of the writing to be read while other words where partially hidden until you open it.




Step 6: After you decide how you want the card opened, pick a binding technique that works for your card. There are many different binding techniques, I used a modified Japanese bind tied with a half bow. Wrapping the card with a ribbon, making a cut closure, or using wax are a few other binding examples that add to the ceremony of opening.




Step 7: For a sweet touch on the out side of your card, you can add some college elements to the envelope, I added a red glittery heart.




Also, if you are looking to pick something up, I am participating in a Valentines Day pop-up shop with some very talented artist this weekend the 11th in Park Slope, DESiGNERiCA, Rebecca Shepherd Floral Design and Adornments, Lulu's Confections, and Koalas Are Small Bears are among a few of the artist selling. I hope to see you there!



Have fun card making, and I would love to see what you have created for your loved one!

Cheers,
-R