Handmade Christmas wishes: How to craft festive cards at home

Samples of cutout and layered paper tree cards for Christmas. Pics courtesy/Priti Desai

Back to stationery

If you want to handcraft cards, revisit all the stationery materials you may have stowed away at home. "These mainly include brown cardstock for the base, and coloured paper: Red, green or beige," Desai says. "Take white paper, silver glitter paper, and even stickers for snowflakes, polka dots, and a red ribbon. Don't forget the scissors and glue."

Cut out the shapes

For a card with layered paper trees, Desai instructs, "Cut the base first: Fold the brown card stock in half to form the card. Keep the front side flat for the design." The next step is to make the trees.

A shaded Santa Claus card with paper-cut frill beard

"Craft several triangular shapes from red and green paper, with different sizes for depth. Also, make smaller beige or white triangles for the snow‑covered look," she adds.

Similarly, for the Santa Claus card, you can create a large circle for the face with beige paper, a white circular beard, a red hat with a white pom-pom, and smaller circles for details of the eyes, nose, and mouth.

"Glue the facial features onto the beige face, and add a red mouth," she says. "Finally, attach the beard below the face."

Add and assemble

For the tree-themed card, she reveals, "Using white paint or stickers, place circular dots on each tree triangle to mimic ornaments.

Priti Desai

Follow this by assembling the forest - arrange the triangles on the front of the card in a staggered row; the larger trees at the back, smaller in front. Glue them down." You can also make snowflake tops using silver glitter paper.

Accessories galore

Cut a strip of red ribbon and glue it horizontally across the bottom of the card, covering the tree bases. "Tie a small bow in the centre, and add some finishing touches by pressing it gently, to ensure it's secure." She reminds us to allow the glue to dry completely.

As for the Santa card, what would Santa be without a hat? "Once the face is put together, attach the hat by sticking it on top of the face, with the white pom-pom at the tip," Desai suggests.

The final touch

For the Santa card, Desai recommends, "Give Santa's face some nice shading, or other elements with a black marker, for the beard lines and facial features." For both cards, don't forget the obvious: Writing your message. You can use sketch pens, crayons, or simple pencils to give life to the card. Add a dash of festive sparkle with cool illustrations, and experiment with quirky handwriting as well.

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