In case you haven’t figured it out by now, I’m a
postcard-sending, notecard-writing, letter-penning, holiday-card-creating sort
of woman. I’ve been designing my own Christmas and Halloween cards for more than two decades. Of all the cards I create throughout the year, I think Halloween cards might be my
favorites.
Naturally, I can’t simply slap a pumpkin on a
card and call it Halloween. Oh, no. I like to do a little research, hunting
down obscure facts, fascinating places, unusual traditions, and anything
suitably spooky. If I happen to uncover something of local interest, so much
the better. This year’s card features a local mausoleum, and you can read its
story in the photo below. Nothing says holiday cheer quite like a
mausoleum, does it?
Decorating the envelopes is almost as much fun as designing the
cards themselves. I put considerable thought into those little paper packages,
too, because why should the inside get all the attention? This year, I decided
to coffee-dye the envelopes before decorating them with rubber stamps.
There was just one tiny detail I hadn’t
considered: when coffee-dyeing envelopes, leave the flaps open! Otherwise, the
coffee acts like a rather enthusiastic postal adhesive, sealing everything
shut. I discovered this the hard way and had a devil of a time getting the
envelopes open again. Fortunately, I prevailed, and the envelopes survived the
ordeal. No one will be the wiser. At least, that’s my story, and I’m sticking
to it.
As in years past, I relied heavily on the
wonderful rubber stamp creations of Tim Holtz to bring my spooky designs to
life. His stamps are practically made for this sort of thing, and they fit
right in with my fondness for the mysterious, the macabre, and the delightfully
peculiar. I used the following sets: The funny thing about being so passionate about this little
creative endeavor is that I’ve already planned themes for the next three years!
Apparently, my Halloween card production department has no intention of slowing
down. I suppose that’s what happens when you combine a love of crafting with a
fondness for obscure history and all things spooky.
I hope you’re enjoying the Halloween season as much as I am. May
your days be filled with creativity, your nights with a little mystery, and
your mailboxes with something more interesting than bills and political
advertisements.
I hope you’re enjoying the Halloween season as much as I am. May
your days be filled with creativity, your nights with a little mystery, and
your mailboxes with something more interesting than bills and political
advertisements.Here’s to a spooky, creative season!
I haven’t blogged about all of the Halloween cards that I’ve made over the years, but I have about these three. If you’re interested just click on the highlighted links below.
Halloween Card 2011As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
1 comment:
Those cards of yours are interesting. And I’m glad you don’t use pumpkins as decorations. Pumpkins are for eating, not for carving.
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