My crafting never, ever looks like it does in the magazines. It's a fairly chaotic affair with lots of running up and down the stairs for missing supplies. Despite having dedicated the largest, brightest room in the basement for play and craft we still end up at the dining table. My solution is a tray and a few small boxes. I load everything up that I think we might need, cart the supplies upstairs on a tray, plunk the tray down in the middle of the table and let them figure it out. Yesterday it was Valentine cards for the Grandmothers. I grabbed red card stock, some craft punches, ribbon remnants, floral scrapbooking embellishments, rub-on alphabet transfers, corrugated cardboard, glue and a stapler.
Stella and I worked on this design together. I love the grungy look. Here's what we did: Cut cardstock to card size (4.25" by 5.5". Score and fold the card. Cut a cardboard shape and peel off the outer layer to reveal some of the corrugated interior. We had a tag-shaped paper punch, and to that we applied the "love" with the alphabet transfers. I've had them forever (8 years!) so I was really glad to be able to use them for something. You could also use an alphabet stamp or very tidy handwriting. We used double-stick tape to attach everything to the cardboard and then stapled that to the cardstock.
Henry worked on this. The kid loves glitter and glue in equal measure. The bird is a Martha Stewart craft punch glued to a metal ring. The idea, which is explained in the interior, is to use it as a key ring charm. This card started out intended for a Grandma but in the end he decided it was better suited for his paramour across the street. He's offering this heartfelt greeting along with a week-old flower taken from a birthday bouquet headed to the green bin.
