Newspaper Page Text
Page 4B
Melisandre Browning shows participants at a library event how to use craft supplies
and equipment to make cards for all occasions. Photos by Kathy Mitchell
Die cuts and embossing give A pressing machine is used to emboss
handcrafted cards a professional look, paper, making designs stand out in relief.
Crafters can make some elements stand out in a three-dimensional effect to make
them “pop.”
life’itufe
THURSDAY, MAY 17 - 23, 2018
WHAT A CARD!
Crafters create greetings with a personal touch
BY KATHY MITCHELL
While greeting cards date back to
ancient Chinese and Egyptian cultures,
the practice of exchanging them became
common in Europe and the United States
in the mid- to late-1800s as stationery
companies began mass producing cards
that combine images and words, according
to Greeting Card Association, a more than
75-year-old industry organization. The
preprinted designs and messages in part
replaced handwritten individual notes to
congratulate, express sympathy, offer well
wishes of the season and other sentiments.
A popular trend now combines the
manufactured look and feel with a personal
touch as hobbyists make greeting cards
customized to the crafters artistic taste and
choice of wording. Such cards were the
focus of a session May 5 at the Scott Candler
Library, where Melisandre Browning
showed participants how to use craft
supplies and equipment to make cards for
all occasions.
Although the cards are handmade, they
bear no resemblance to the crayon-and-
construction-paper creations preschoolers
make for parents. These are more akin to the
high-end cards with sophisticated die cuts,
fancy papers and intricate detailing found in
specialty shops.
At the library event, the nine participants
received card-weight paper, beverage
napkins, glue and other supplies. Similar
to the procedure in paint-and-sip art
sessions, the instructor presented a model
for students to work from and talked the
participants through their projects step by
step. As in the art sessions, participants
were encouraged to individualize their work
with custom details. “You have freedom of
choice in this class,” Browning said. “Pick
the images you like best and layer them in
a way that looks good to you.” Some images
are glued flat to the card, while others can
be raised to make them “pop” with a three-
dimensional effect, she explained.
Following Brownings instructions,
participants peeled away the white layers of
three-ply beverage napkins then carefully
cut artwork from the colored layer. “Use
enough glue around the edges,” she
cautioned, “you don’t want any sides curling
up.
While some may think of handmade
cards as a less expensive alternative to
store cards, the start-up cost of the hobby
can be high. “You need a paper trimmer
to give you perfect edges,” she explained,
adding that other items are needed for a
professional look. Embossing folders and
pressing machines stamp the paper so that
a design stands out in relief. In the final
stages of card making, embossing powder
is sprinkled liberally on the card and
melted with gentle heat from an embossing
wand—a device that’s a little like a mini hair
dryer. The process gives the final product a
gloss and helps hold the elements in place.
Tiny pieces such as butterflies, birds or
jewels may be placed as a last step.
Browning has a bag of ink stamps with
such conventional messages as “Happy
Mother’s Day,” “Happy Birthday” and
“Thinking of You;” however, card makers
have the option of using a computer to
create an original message.
Cardmaking should be approached as a
craft hobby, not as a money-saving venture,
according to Browning. “A nice card can
cost around $7 to $10 in a shop; you can
spend close to that making one. You’re going
to have a lot of wasted materials, but when
you’re done, you have something unique.
You can be proud of a beautiful product you
made yourself.”
“These are definitely not 99-cent cards,”
remarked participant LaDoris Bias-Davis.
“These take a lot of work and a lot of time.”
Most participants were rushing to finish
their cards as the two-hour session drew to
a close.
Browning said she learned card making
through a series of classes at the senior
center next door to the Scott Candler
Library. After studying with Diane Spencer
for more than two years, Browning learned
that the library was interested in having
someone teach cardmaking, so she asked
Spencer if she wanted to teach the class.
“She said, ‘No, you teach it. You’re ready. In
fact, I feel I’ve taught you all I can. I’m ready
for some new students’ Actually, this is just
the third time I’ve taught,” Browning said.
The second time Browning had taught
was less than a month earlier and some in
the May 5 group also had been in that class.
One participant brought her card from
the April session framed to show the class.
“Mine is on its way to my daughter,” another
said.