Home Made Card: From a Collage

I like finding ways to involve kids in blessing others.   Even if its something as simple as sending a birthday or thank you card to a friend, it’s nice to share the experience with them.  Ever since I saw this idea for converting toddler scribbles into silhouette cards, I’ve been using art from my two and four year old to make thank-you cards.

When I remembered my sister-in-law had a birthday coming up, I thought it might be fun to try a new twist on this idea.   After I armed my girls with gluesticks, children’s scissors,  and lots of different craft materials, I set them to work making a colorful collage on a small piece of paper.  We stuffed our background full of as many textures and bits as we could manage.  Love the variety

Meanwhile, I prepared a half sheet of card-stock by folding it in half; sketching  several balloon shapes on one side  and cutting out the balloons with a pair of scissors.

When the girls had the collage done, I had my preschooler use her glue stick to completely cover the inside of the front of the card with glue.  We stuck the collage face up to the first page of the card and trimmed the edges.  I added strings to the balloons, and our card was done!

Making Home Made Cards

Here are some fun ideas for collage materials:

• scrapbook paper
• shiny paper
• cloth
• ribbon
• confetti
• glitter
• yarn

And here are some general suggestions:

• Use materials of several different textures for a fun effect.
• Make sure that the collage and the card are well-glued to avoid a ragged appearance.
• Encourage you children to cover the entire paper and leave as little white showing as possible.

And of course, you don’t need to use balloon shapes for the windows.  A cake with candles, a present, or a party hat would also work well for a birthday theme.