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Mother’s Day from Scratch: Card-Making Edition


Are you strapped for cash this Mother’s Day?

If , like me, you’re not making big bucks blogging this spring, then the card below can be made from paper and fabric scraps some might consider more trash than art supplies.  This potential trash can be assembled into a card your mother will treasure this coming Sunday.

I promise, if you can cut and paste, you can make the card below.  Sasha and Malia Obama are competing to see which first daughter can make the best Mother’s Day card.  If they can do, so can you.

What you will need:

scissors
bottle of white glue (I use Elmer’s.)
ruler
glue stick
pencil
black pen
circle stencil
1 white cardstock rectangle—8 inch by 5 ½ inch (folded in half)
1 orange paper rectangle—3 inch by 4 and 5/8 inch
1 pink paper rectangle—3 inch by 1 ½ inch
2 white paper oblongs—2 ¼ inch by ¾ inch
1 pink paper oblong—2 inch by ½ inch
1 pink paper oblong—1 and 5/8 inch by ½ inch
1 white paper rectangle—1 and 7/8 inch by 2 ¼ inch
1 fabric rectangle—1 ½ inch by 1 and 7/8 inch
1 white paper circle—1 ¼ inch
1 orange paper circle—1 inch
1 pink paper circle—1 and 5/8 inch
1 white paper flower—¼ inch

Optional Tools:

Step 1

Glue small rectangle of scrap fabric to a piece of paper.  Allow glue to dry.  Cut fabric to 1 and 1/2 by 1 and 7/8 inch rectangle.  Attach fabric rectangle to slightly larger white paper rectangle (1 and 7/8 inch by 2 and 1/4 inch).

Step 2

Attach small quarter-inch white flower to assembled white, orange, and pink circles.  I use paper punches to create these pieces, but a small circle stencil would work just as well.  If you don’t  have a punch to create the small white flower, use a quarter-inch, white, paper circle instead.  If you don’t have a punch to create the large white circle with the zig-zag edge, you can cut them into the circle, or you can simply use the white, paper circle without the special edge.  You don’t need it.   You mother will like the card just as well without that detail.

Step 3

Attach the circle assemblage from step 2 to the rectangle assemblage from step 1.

Step 4

Attach completed assemblage from step 3 to a pink, paper rectangle that is 1 and 1/2 by 3 inches.

Step 5

Attach assemblage from step 4 to an orange, paper rectangle that is 3 inches by 4 and 5/8 inches.

Step 6

Assemble “Happy Mother’s Day” labels.  I use a label-maker to print out “Happy” and “Mother’s Day,” and then I attach the words to two, pink, paper oblongs.  If you don’t have a label-maker simply write the text on the pink oblongs with a black pen or marker.  Then glue the  pink oblongs to the white, paper oblongs.

Step 7

Attach the text oblongs created in step 6 to the rectangle assemblage completed in step 5.

Step 8

Fold a large, piece of white cardstock (8 inches by 5 and 1/2 inches) in half to form the body of your card.  Then glue the orange rectangle assemblage completed in step 7 to the front of your card.

Step 9

Personalize the inside of the card with a note your mom will appreciate.  Tell her how much she means to you, or, perhaps, share your fondest memory of her when you were a child.

When’s the last time you created a home-made card?  How will you celebrate Mother’s Day on Sunday?

Note:  I hope you will stop back by on Friday, when I’ll share the link to a guest post I’m doing for Deb Bryan’s (“A Monster in Your Closet“) series “For this I am Thankful.” My piece, called “The Far Side of Sanity and Back Again: An Evolution in Thank You,” shares my long-time struggle with bipolar disorder and is written in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month.

Happy Mother’s Day!

63 thoughts on “Mother’s Day from Scratch: Card-Making Edition”

  3. Crafty Lady! 🙂 one of the fun things about looking through Sara’s Blipfotos has been the views of YOU in action–I’m thinking in particular of your gift-wrapping for the Bloggy Wedding. 😉
    Thank you for the how-to… And I’m very much looking forward to Friday’s post!
    Hugs from Idaho,
    Kana

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    • I’m excited to know you are enjoying Sara’s blips. It seems images of our dogs and me keep reappearing, and I DO love arts and crafts. Great to hear from you today, dear Kana. See you Friday–if not sooner over at your place. Hugs———-

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  8. Love the easy to follow, step-by-step instruction — with photographs for goodness sakes! In stature, my mother was a tiny woman. If she were alive, on mother’s day I’d pick her up, twirl her around, and sit down with her over a cuppa tea and enjoy a talking fest with her — each trying to get a word in edgewise 🙂

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  9. So very sweet and touching — I am not a craft-y person but you make me wanna be … just really love your energy, and the time you take to share with me & all your followers, Kathryn!!!

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  11. You know what I like most about posts like these that you write? You are able to see things in paper and fabric that I don’t. I like to create things out of fabric but when it comes to things like cards and scrapbooking (which you would totally ROCK at) I turn into a rock mentally. All creativity takes a vacation. I love these posts so, so much.

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    • Thanks, Sista. So glad you enjoy these playfully creative post. I always have fun doing these kinds of projects. I think it’s cool that you can be creative with fabric. I truly can not! Do you sew clothes?

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      • It depends on the clothes thing. I am not as good at clothes as I am at quilts and ……drumroll…… bags! I’ve made Halloween costumes for parties and whatnot. But that has been the extent of my foray into clothing.

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  12. Yay– I always love it when you post an entry about your crafty projects! You’re so creative and talented, Kathy!

    I won’t be making a handmade card this Mother’s Day, but I *did* support a local artisan by buying my ma a little something for the special day. (As long as it comes back to the arts somehow, we’re all good, right?)

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    • Yes, yes, we can all create. It’s just that some adults have forgotten that they can. So happy to hear you like these kinds of posts. It’s fun to do them. Thanks for taking a look, my friend.

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  13. I love this! It makes me want to dig out all my old crafty stuff… Oh wait! That’s all back east. Hmmm… I think I’ll write something about what I remember about making things like this when my boys were little and how special it was when they would sneak into their rooms and make something to surprise me. Another great post Kathy! Thank you 🙂

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    • What? Can’t take everything with you on the road? Darn, that sounds familiar. I don’t have kids but I know how special it’s felt when my nephew made me stuff. I hope you do that post, Wendy. Thanks for reading.

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  15. We ALWAYS, I mean always, made Mom home-made cards. They were the best and those are my favorites, too.

    Usually our cards consisted of an animal drawing + a unique poem concocted by the 5 of us. Then we signed in our our best cursive; she still has most of them … in her china cabinet. Example — “If all Mothers were as sweet as you… they’d be lucky.” A classic that makes us howl with laughter today.

    If our cards were as pretty as yours we wouldn’t have had to be so poetic!!

    My Mom’s in another country so we can’t be together this Sunday … I mailed her a book she wanted & tucked in ca$h for her to spend at the horse races 🙂

    Hugs! MJ

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    • Oh, I LOVE that “poem”–so to speak. Why is that soooooooooooooo damn funny?! Kids crack me up. At any rate, love that you and your siblings collaborated on cards. That is just so sweet! It’s also sweet that you put money in your mom’s book for betting on races. Happy Mother’s Day to you, my friend.

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    • Oh, cool. I’m so happy to have inspired you. You have made my dady. Great to hear from you. Hope to hear from you again soon. If you, indeed, manange to get one made, let me know how your card turns out.

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  18. You getting arts & crafty reminds me of all the cooking shows I have watched that always made cooking look so easy, but it never it. I’m sure if I tried to duplicate your card for Father’s Day (Mom bought her rainbow long ago) I’d somehow cut off a finger and super glue myself to the card stock. Yet, he’d probably appreciate the pint of blood I’d use for my signature. Hm?

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  19. Such a pretty, creative card! I am packing my bags and heading to Seattle, my old stomping ground, for a long weekend. I’ll be visiting friends, including one who is performing with her singing group, the Righteous Mothers. While there, I’m also taking a memoir writing workshop. That’s how I’m spending Mother’s Day. Can’t wait! Hugs to you, my friend!

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    • Wow, Monica, I would be so curious to know what you learn in memoir workshop. I’m struggling with mine, to be honest–especially the proposal. I’ve never done one before. Hope you have a wonderful weekend, my friend!

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      • Kathy, I agonized over the proposal. Took me MONTHS to finish, and I was naive enough to think I could do it in weeks. Ha! But I have a friend, a published writer, who pushed me, when I was ready to give up. She kept pushing. And it gave me no small satisfaction to be able to submit it. Now, I wait. I’ll let you know what I learn.

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      • I suppose it helps to have someone push. My Sara is pushing me, but she doesn’t know anything about the process. And I’m afraid I know almost as little. Congrats on finishing the proposal. I’d love to know what you learn this weekend! Thanks!

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      • I’m sure Sarah is most supportive, but it really made all the difference having someone with experience in writing proposals. i had the most trouble with the synopsis, and was ready to call it quits over it. but with my friend’s guidance I was able to write it, and even though it was agonizing, she helped me gain clarity and see my story from a bird’s eye, overall, big picture point of view. Suddenly, everything made sense!

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      • I haven’t tackled that at all yet. I’m tryng to assemble my first 50 pages and deciding if/how I want to anchor the story in some aspect of the present. I’m experimenting now with beginning with my interivew of Baby Doc last year just before we left Haiti and relating my fascination with Duvalier to my own unresolved issues regarding my father’s criminality. At any rate, I look forward to hearing what you learn this weekend. I should probably attend some kind of workshop myself.

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  20. Pingback: Happy Mother’s Day | I dip my toes in the water

  21. This is lovely, Kathy! I love making homemade cards… in fact when I give a card it is usually homemade… they are way more fun to make than buying one.

    On Sunday, I will be doing some daycare duties so mothers can have a few hours of peace. 🙂 How about you, how will you spend Mother’s Day?

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    • Ah, Currie, that’s a great thing to do for Mother’s Day. Today Sara and I are taking my mother to lunch, and on Sunday we will be with my family, as well. Unfortunately Sara lost her mom more than 10 years ago. Blessings to you for your efforts on Sunday, my friend. Hugs—————

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  22. This is such a great idea Kathy. Home made cards are great, aren’t they, and often so much more meaningful than store bought cards, as you can add your own personal message. I’ve kept all of the cards my children made for me when they were growing up. A couple of Mother’s Days ago, my daughter was a bit strapped for cash, so she made me a picture to hang on the wall. She found an appropriate ‘Mother’ verse on the net, printed it out on pretty paper, decorated it with pressed flowers, added a border, popped it into a second hand picture frame, and there you have it! I have it on the wall in my bedroom, and I love it!

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    • Ah, how sweet that your daughter gave you a gift she hersef had made. It sounds lovely. Great also to hear that you’ve kept all the cards your children made growing up. I would love to see a card I made as a kid. I wonder if my mother still has any. Happy Mother’s Day, dear Joanne.

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  24. We think alike! I made homemade Mother’s Day cards, too. My mom received a recycled card layered on handmade paper on card stock. Barry’s mom received this cute like cut-out picture of a mama hugging her baby on handmade paper on card stock. This one looked a little childish (tee hee) but the pic was so cute I couldn’t resist. And B’s mom wrote back to say she was keeping the card because she liked it so much. Glad you are encouraging this! It is so much fun to make & send homemade cards.

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  26. Thanks for sharing! I’m so envious of your creativity. I always envy people that have artistic talents (and get frustrated with those that don’t, like an uncle that can draw just about anything and gave up on it years ago…such a waste).

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