Personalized Christmas Card

Jazz up inexpensive store-bought cards with the simple bead/thread/tape technique, and not only will you add a personal touch, but your cards will begin to rival entries in the premium card market. Scroll down to the bottom of this page to check out the before-and-after photo of this sweet holiday card.

There are all sorts of enhancements you can add instantly by using heavy-duty double sided tape like Treasure Tape™. You can simply create an “embroidered” border around the edges of the card or you can add dimension to the card by outlining the image with Kreinik metallics and other goodies. Once embellished, you can frame them or adhere them to address books, boxes and other items to give as gifts too.

Materials:

• “All Is Calm” greeting card by Franc Graham (www.francgraham.com) or your own greeting card
• Tapestry #12 Braid in 032 Pearl, or colors to match your cards
• 1/16” Ribbon in 003 Red and 015 Chartreuse, or colors to match your cards
• Green Facets™ or colors to coordinate with your cards
• 8” x 10” sheet of red liner double-stick Treasure Tape™
• Diamond™ (clear) micro beads

Steps:

1. Cut 8” x 10” sheet to size of area you want to embellish. We traced the framed area of the image to get an exact match, and then cut it out of the tape.
    
2. Peel back tape’s white liner and adhere tape to card. Remove top red liner to expose tape.
    
3. “Draw” with threads to embellish to your liking.
    
4. Place card in shallow pan and pour clear micro beads over exposed tape. Swirl micro beads with fingers to cover all exposed areas. Tap card on side to dislodge loose micro beads. Return unused micro beads to container and store.

Kreinik threads available through needlework stores or www.kreinik.com.