Sheetload of Cards July 2024 – Make It Your Own

A new month. A new Sheetload. This month’s tutorial by Alicia with Call Me Crafty Al was a perfect layout for Christmas in July. For everyone that just let out an audible gasp, come on! You have to start early if you want to have enough cards to send out this year.

I’ve had this Christmas Time paper pack from Echo Park since last year. During the holidays, you’re in the spirit and just adding things to your cart and lying to yourself about how you’re going to use them immediately. Well, I didn’t. I felt like July was a great time to get this pack out and start prepping. Gotta make room for this year’s impulse buys!

Echo Park is one of my favorite brands for paper packs. The paper is so high quality and beautiful. It’s definitely great for mass producing cards. When choosing the two sheets I wanted for this set, I looked for a main pattern for the background that had elements I could easily coordinate with a die set I already own. The birds, poinsettias and holly leaves were definitely something I could work with. Then I chose a second piece in a plaid that wouldn’t distract too much from the focal point yet still stand out a bit.

Now here’s where I caution you to not make the same mistake I did…..that I often make. Pay attention to the pattern of your paper. Is it directional? Can you turn it landscape or portrait and the pattern still makes sense? Well, this one was sneaky, or maybe I just need new glasses. The original layout from Crafty Al was for landscape cards. Friends, I cut all my pieces for the background and got them adhered down to my card bases. I moved to gluing the plaid strips. The first strip kissed the paper and I saw a little red bird, lying prone on my background. I snatched that strip right back up and had moment where I silently lectured myself about the number of times I’ve done this and how I will not make the same mistake again. I will. However, all was not lost. I simply pivoted to portrait layout and adjusted the length of my plaid strips. Crisis averted!

For the focal point, I used retired Vicky Papaioannou sets from Spellbinders called Winter Birdhouse and Sweet Bird on a Branch. I love these little birdhouses and I bought a set for each season. I’ve linked a similar set down below. The cardstock I used was mostly Stampin’ Up cardstock that I’ve had for quite some time. I pulled sheets that closely matched the colors of the patterned paper and cut all the die cut pieces I needed. Then I assembled the bird houses and adhered to my background.

For my sentiment, I used the Festive Phrases bundle from Concord & 9th. This set has lots of holiday sentiments and coordinating dies to fit any card. The different fonts and sizes make this set so versatile and that’s exactly why I snatched it up.

Finally, for the inside, I used the same pattern I used for the strips on the front. Then I stamped a sentiment using the same Festive Phrases bundle. I never feel like my card is complete unless I do something to the inside. Do you finish the insides of your cards?

These cards came together pretty easily with things I already had in my craft room. So don’t be afraid to mix and match stamps, dies and paper. That’s all part of the fun, right? Make sure you go check out Crafty Al over on YouTube if you’d like to get access to the tutorial I used for this set. Thanks for stopping by today. Now go get creative!

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