Repurposing Cards - The Photos

Hello cybersphere! I've been asked to share the photos of the Repurposed Baby Announcement/Christmas cards, so here goes nothing. Let's see if my blogwriter can do what I want it to do.

Firstly, the original Birth Announcement card:


I took a black and cream paper stack and cut a series of 10cm x 15cm panels and distressed the edges with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. Then I cut some ATC sized cards from black Coredinations card stock and embossed them with a script Texture Fade (which I can no longer find listed on Sizzix's website). I sanded the ATCs to reveal some of the lighter core and then inked around the edges with Walnut Stain Distress Ink.

I stamped the Baby and Postcode stamps onto cream card stock in Black Soot Distress Ink, cut them all out and then edged them with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. Then it was just a case of assembling.

Using a standard card blank, I wallpapered the front of the card with the black and cream panel, then added the ATCA card. The baby and postcode stamps were then arranged on the ATC and two small heart gems were stuck to the Baby plaque.

Now, the Christmas card:



I removed the Baby and Postcode stamps and the black hearts.

On cream card stock, I stamped the lamp post and the holly leaves from these two sets


















I cut them out (sitting in front of the television one evening) and inked the lamp post with Aged Mahogany Distress Ink and the ivy with Forest Green Distress Ink.

I stuck the lamp post on the edge of the ATC, and the holly leaves on top of the lamp post. I filled in the holly berries with Red Pepper Dimensional Pearls.

Easy, really.

Repurposed Christmas Cards

Nearly two years ago when my daughter was born, DH asked me if I would make birth announcements or should he buy them. Given that G at that point was sleeping a fair amount (mostly on my Mum), I was prepared to give it ago. "How many do you want", said I. "Oh, I don't know. Lots", said he in reply.

Now, "lots" in my book is now clearly different in my definition than his. But I didn't know that at the time. Mum and I went shopping for bits and I ordered inserts from a printer friend of mine.

I made 100.

We used 30.

A year later, at the approach of G's 1st birthday, I wrote the details of her party on the back of the inserts of another 30 and sent them out as invitations to all the people who wouldn't necessarily read email or who might especially like to be invited by post.

That still left 40 sitting on the shelf.

As usual, I set myself up with a task list of things I needed to do this Christmas and completely forgot about cards. You see, having been brought up a Quaker and told that all days are as equally important as Christmas, and we should treat every day as sacred, Christmas cards were something that mostly got bypassed in favour of making cracking gifts for ours friends and families. DH came home from work about 2 weeks before Christmas and asked "Do we have any Christmas cards left over from last year?".

Argh! Busted!

I have a lovely studio filled to overflowing with things that I could use to make Christmas cards. In fact, I need to sort through it and throw some of it out. But I've got a half-built kitchen in there at the moment and it's been used as a general dumping ground since G was born.

Could I get in there, find what I needed and come out alive?

Then I remembered the birth notice cards. They weren't pink and fluffy because, as those of you who know me know, I'm not a pink and fluffy type of person. So, could I do something that would turn them into tasteful Christmas cards? This meant that I would only need to grab a box of Distress Inks and one or two stamps. Survival of the studio chaos was possible!

With the use of some adhesive remover and an evening in front of the television cutting out lamposts and holly (and the removal of the birth announcement sheets), I have created 39 lovely Christmas cards.

39? What about the last one?

I've saved one card to go into G's baby scrapbook.

I have all the bits needed. They're in my studio somewhere.

PS. For those of you interested, I will post a title tutorial on how I turned the birth announcement cards into Christmas cards.