Week 2: Clip-art cards

Combining Colors
Some beginning card makers have a hard time combining colors in a pleasing way. One way of addressing this problem is to minimize the color choices. In week one we did this by using a single color or a single sheet of decorative paper on . This week we’ll add another color choice by matting clip art. What’s interesting about the color of a mat, is that it can both enhance the color of the clip art and set the mood of the card.

 

 Card Mats 
A card mat is simply a piece of paper or cardstock 1/8″ to 1/4″ larger than the clip art. The mat is used to create a frame around the clip art. Its main purpose is to draw the eye to the clip art. In the greeting card class we pre-cut letter-size colored paper into quarters. We usually buy reams of colored paper in variety packs – pastels, brights and darks. That’s great for working with a group, but you may find it easier, and less expensive, to buy a pack of 6″ by 6″ or 4 1/2″ by 6 1/2″ cardstock in a variety of colors. For the best buy, look for value packs of 100 sheets.

 Clip art
Clip art is freely available on the internet. My favorite web site for downloading clip art is:  http://office.microsoft.com/clipart  

Microsoft offers thousands of files for download and makes it easy to find just the right image. To find a black and white image, enter a search term like “dragonfly” and click the Search button. On the left side of the screen, choose Filter by Type: Clip art and Filter by Category: Black & White. Select an image and download it per instructions.

Clip art cards
Since this week is about matting and color choices, our first sample card features black and white clip art.

To make a card like this featuring B&W clip-art:

1. Select and cut a mat using a heavy paper or cardstock of any color except black or white. You might select a favorite color or just the use the paper that is most convenient. Cut the mat to about 3 3/4″ by 5″ for a 4 1/4″ by 5 1/2″ card or cut a mat 1/2″ smaller than the card blank you are using. For a 5″ by 7″ card that would be a mat 4 1/2″ by 6 1/2″. (See Week One for how to make your own card blank.)
2. 
   Download this image of an African savannah (pdf) or from Microsoft as a vector clip art file or use another black and white clip art image of your choosing (see Clip art section above.)
3. Print the clip art and cut to about 3 1/4″ by 4 1/2″.
4. To add a message strip like the sample card,

   • Cut a 1/2″ by 5 1/2″ strip of the mat paper. We use the leftovers trimmed when cutting the mat to size.

   • Cut a message strip from the African savannah pdf that is about 3/8″ wide. Or make your own message strip using rubberstamps or a word processor.

   • Decorate the message strip with a small punch or stamp. (The strip mat’s color will show through any punch hole.)

   • Glue the message strip to the strip mat, then glue that to the clip art and trim

5. Center the clip art on the mat and glue in place.
6. Glue the mat with clip art to the card.

Wrap-up
That’s what we will be making at the card class this week. Next, I’ll share how to mat colored clip art and let you know how the this week’s class goes.

If you give this card a try, please let me know. I’m also interested in comments and suggestions.

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