Beach themed shape cards

Today I have some beach themed shape cards to share with you.

I took the images from the "Fun in the Sun" set that I made and made some fun shaped cards out of them.

Here is a sandcastle card.

It was a little plain all by itself so I added some shells and a starfish. I also added some flags for a little punch of color.

I always line the inside of my cards, but I usually forget to show it.

Lining them makes the card sturdier and gives the card a more finished look.

I learned a long time ago that if the lining was all one piece the fold of the card got really bulky.

I solved that problem by making  front and back liner pieces that attach desperately.

Up next is this adorable sand pail card.

The bottom of the card is rounded and I wanted to keep it that way so I added a shell and a sand pile to allow the card to stand up.

The shovel fits into a pocket on the front of the card and comes out.

Notice the sand piece "inside" the pail.

That could also be cut from blue paper and turned upside down where the smooth side is up to look like water.

This one is lined also. The lining also gives a clean surface to write on rather than the dark cardstock that the card is made from. Try lining your next card and see what a neat little touch it adds to your cards.

Up next is this cute little clam shell card.

It is attached together so that it opens up like a clam.

Of coarse, I could not resist adding a "pearl" to the center.

It does not show up in the picture, but the pearl piece is cut from a pearlized paper and looks really cool in person.

Wouldn't this be cute with a little strap for a "mermaid's purse :)

It would also make darling interactive pieces for a learning game.

For instance, a capital letter could be written on the inside and the separate pearl piece could be matched to it with the corresponding lowercase letter instead of being attached to the card.

Another example would be to write an addition or subtraction problem on the inside. Then the answer written on the pearl which could be matched to it.

(The elementary teacher in me is coming out. LOL)

I used to make stuff like this all the time. That is one of the things I miss most about teaching. Playing educational games with the students. I was constantly putting together cute little themed center activity games. ( I am thinking of starting another blog with kid's games like this posted. Let me know what you think. Of coarse I would still have this craft blog :)

Well I hope you like the cards.

Here is a link to download the clamshell card as a svg cut file and a pdf template.

http://www.box.net/shared/b1gafgjkv9t1yzjlig02

As soon as I finish instructions for the other cards ai am going to place them in my Etsy store as a Beach Themed bundle.

Happy crafting. 



Fun in the Sun

Just thought I would share my latest creation. It is a step card with a beach theme.

I got the idea for the sun from the July/Aug. 2011 Paper Crafts Magazine.

Julie Campbell designed a flower using curled up squares and a button in the center.

I decided it would work great for a sun.

She used double sided paper and the patterned paper I wanted to use was just one sided so I adhered it back to back.

Here is how it works:

Take 1 1/4 inch squares of paper.

Curl to edges over and glue flaps in place.

Arrange the curled pieces in a circle and glue down like this

(Note: I made part of the sun hanging off the side and trimmed the excess. The original was a full circle.)

Next, place a circle on top.

(I used paper, Julie used a button, but any round shape would work)

OH, it just dawned on me that this technique would look really cool for thoser badges that are so popular right now...I feel a new project coming on...LOL)

For right now, I will just show you the rest of the card...

sandcastle, shell, & starfish

(If you look really closely, you can see that I tried to emboss the starfish with my Cuddlebug swiss dots embossing folder. Good idea, but the piece is so little that it only ends up with 3 or 4 dots...LOL)

pail, shovel, & shell

I am thinking now that the shovel is way too big for the pail...oh well...

seagulls

I live near Galveston so the seagulls were a MUST...although the water in our area of the Gulf of Mexico is never blue but brown:)

umbrella and beach ball

...and the water.

(shark included :)

I put a black background behind the card when I took pictures so it is hard to see, but I have "Fun in the Sun"  on the different parts of the steps.





I have to go tweek a few things but I thought it turned out pretty cute.

Hope you enjoy it!

Happy crafting!