All of us love to receive birthday cards and no doubt we ourselves send a number during the year but what could be better than receiving a handmade birthday card. It is so easy to pop into a store to buy a birthday card but by taking the time and trouble to make a handmade birthday card for someone you will be sending something totally unique and you will be letting that someone know that you care enough about them to to make the effort to something something especially for them. It will make them feel special and loved.

Nowadays people often resort to sending an electronic card but I think this is so impersonal and sends entirely the wrong message.

The secret of making a good handmade birthday card is to tailor the card to suit the intended recipient – for example I would not send a card covered in flowers and ribbon to a 5 year old boy – that would be neither appropriate or appreciated!

Think about the interests of the person you intend to send the card to and then try to incorporate something suitable into your card. Think about their hobbies, their favourite colours (if you know them that well), do they have a pet?

When you are making birthday cards you can split them in various categories – children’s cards, ladies’ cards, men’s cards, close relatives’ cards and special birthday (eg 30th 40th etc) cards.

Children’s birthday cards: These are great fun to make and it’s where you can really  get your creative juices flowing. Think about all the things children love, fairy castles, and princesses for girls, toy cars, rocket ships for boys. The list is endless and you will be able to find suitable background papers, toppers and card making embellishments.

Teenage Birthday Cards: Whilst teenagers can be notoriously difficult making a card for them need not be. Again focus on their interests such as computers, skate boarding, I phones , shopping etc.

Ladies birthday Cards:  These are where you can really turn out some beautiful work. There are so many wonderful rubber stamped images available that work so well with card making embellishments such as ribbon and flowers.

Men’s birthday Cards: Many card makers seem to struggle with making these cards but that should not be the case. There are many suitable background papers available, men themed rubber stamps and suitable peel off stickers. Just focus on their interests and hobbies, and if they have not got any you know about choose something “safe” like the outdoors, cars or sport.

Special Birthday Cards: This is where if you have a die cutting machine such as a Cricut it can come into its own by creating large die cut numbers which can fill the whole card.

Handmade birthday cards which are made with love and care can often become keepsakes for the recipient.

One thing that many card makers neglect when making a handmade card is the inside. Store bought cards can have some lovely verses in them but these are very impersonal. I recommend always putting an insert into your card which matches the  colour theme of your card and then either, hand write your own words, or print them out from the computer. To make the insert look special you can use a card making punch to punch a design along the edge of the insert, or in the corner.

I have heard people say, “But I don’t know what to write!” – well just write something from your heart – something you like about the person you are sending the card to or if all else fails just wish them a “Happy Birthday”!

If you feel your handwriting is not good enough and you do not want to print then you can use a sentiment peel off sticker or rubber stamp a greeting. If you rubber stamp the message, consider inking it with a colour which compliments the card, or heat emboss it to give a professional looking finish.

You should also consider the envelope you are going to send your birthday card in. If you are using a plain envelope out of a pack then put some decoration on it to match the card. You could cover the flap with the same background paper you used on the card, or rubber stamp or emboss a small design on the front of the envelope. I recommend a little something in the bottom left hand corner so that it does not interfere with the postage stamp.

If you are making your own envelope then it can be made to complement the card perfectly.

If your handmade card has a lot of card making embellishments on it and you are going to post it consider whether it will go through the mail in one piece. It might be better to put it in a card box instead – there would be nothing worse for all your hard work to be ruined in the postal system, or worse still it fail to get delivered.

The  most obvious thing about making your own birthday cards is that you do actually remember when it is someone’s birthday! Whether you use an electronic diary system or a good old wall calendar  make sure that you write everyone’s birthday you intend to send a card to on it. Check it regularly, and if you do have some spare time consider making a few cards at a time so that you do not leave everything to the last minute and that way you will send the card your recipient truly deserves and not one rushed off at the last moment.

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