5 Creative Ways to Find Cardmaking Inspiration

Finding cardmaking inspiration doesn’t always mean starting with a completely original idea.

Have you ever looked at a beautiful handmade card and thought, “I love it, but I wouldn’t know where to begin”?

The good news is, you don’t have to copy the whole card. You can simply borrow the layout, colours, fold, layers or one clever little detail, then use the products you already have to make your own version.

I was reminded of this after returning from the recent Stampin’ Up! Incentive Trip to Alaska*.

During the trip, we had the option to join in a handmade card swap. We each made 15 cards, plus one extra for display, and I came home with 15 cards made by other demonstrators.

For my own swap, I made a Concertina Step Fold card. It was a fun one to make, and you can see the finished project in action here. The free tutorial is available here.

Each card I received had something different about it that caught my eye, whether it was the colours, fold, products or a clever design idea.

They seemed like a great way to ease back into creating at my own craft desk.

Instead of starting every project from scratch, I decided to choose a few cards I loved and use them as the starting point for something of my own.

Here are five simple ways you can do the same.

1. Borrow the Layout

The layout is simply where the main parts of the card have been placed.

Look at the shapes and how they sit together. Is there a large rectangle in the background? Is the main image in the centre or off to one side? Or is the greeting across the image, tucked underneath, or sitting on its own?

You can keep the same general arrangement and change everything else, including the stamps, papers, colours and occasion.

This is really handy when you know which products you want to use but can’t decide how to put them together.

Try looking at the card as a simple sketch instead of a finished project.

Once you break it down into a few basic parts, it becomes much easier to recreate the layout using different supplies.

2. Use the Colour Scheme

Sometimes it is the colour combination that makes you stop and take a closer look.

You can use similar colours, or simply borrow the same balance of light, dark and neutral shades.

For example, if the card uses one neutral, one soft colour and one deeper accent, try that same mix with colours from your own collection.

Stampin’ Up! also lists the coordinating colours on the back of every pack of Designer Series Paper, which makes choosing cardstock and ink much easier.

Start with one neutral and one or two of the listed colours. That is often enough to get you moving instead of staring at the packet wondering where to begin.

3. Recreate the Fold or Use the Measurements

Sometimes the fold is the whole reason a card catches your attention.

You can keep the same fold and measurements, then completely change the papers, colours and theme.

A birthday card can become a Christmas card. A floral card can become something playful, masculine or suitable for a wedding.

You can do the same with the sizes of the layers.

If a card looks nicely balanced, measure the main panels and mats. Those proportions can be used again with all sorts of different products.

Keep the part that works, then make the rest your own.

4. Study the Layers and Materials

Layers are often what make a simple card look polished.

Look at how the maker has used cardstock mats, patterned paper, ribbon, labels, die-cut shapes or texture.

A narrow cardstock border can help separate a busy patterned paper from the background. A raised focal point adds depth. A small piece of ribbon or metallic paper can add interest without taking over the card.

You don’t need every product used on the original card.

Instead, ask yourself what each layer is doing. Is it adding colour, contrast, texture, balance or emphasis?

Once you work that out, you can choose another product that does the same job.

5. Choose One Technique or Finishing Detail

You may not even want to recreate the whole card.

Maybe it includes a blended background, embossed panel, paper-pieced image, splatter, stitched detail or clever embellishment placement. Choose that one feature and build a completely different card around it.

Small details can be just as useful. Notice whether the embellishments are placed in a triangle, whether the greeting overlaps the main image, or whether Dimensionals have been used to lift one layer.

Sometimes one little detail is all you need to get started.

You Can Also Change the Occasion

Another easy way to make a card your own is to keep the design and change the greeting or occasion.

A thank-you card layout might work just as well for a birthday. A Christmas fold could become a wedding or anniversary card. A floral design could become a sympathy card with softer colours and a different sentiment.

The basic design gives you a starting point, but the finished card can still be made for the person and occasion you have in mind.

Inspiration Is Not the Same as Making an Exact Copy

Cardmakers often use the word CASE, which is commonly understood to mean Copy and Share Everything.

That might mean recreating a card quite closely, or it might mean taking just one idea and using it in a different way.

There is nothing wrong with learning from a project someone else has shared. Papercrafting has always been full of people teaching, sharing and adapting ideas.

Just remember to credit the original maker if you know who they are, especially when you are sharing your version publicly.

Then ask yourself:
What did I love about this card?

That answer is your starting point.

Try This With a Card You Love

Sometimes the best cardmaking inspiration is already sitting in your craft room.

Choose one handmade card you love. It could be a card you received, a project you saved online, or even something you made years ago.

Then choose just one thing to borrow, like:

• the layout
• the colours
• the fold or measurements
• the layers and materials
• a technique or finishing detail

Pull out a few supplies and make a start.

You do not need to make every decision at once. You only need one simple place to begin.

That might be all it takes to get you sitting down and creating again.

Keep Creating With Me

Over the next two weeks, I’ll be sharing some of the swap cards I brought home from the Incentive Trip, along with the projects they inspired me to make.

You can follow my Stamping with Simone page on Facebook to see the original cards, my versions, and and the parts I chose to borrow from each one.

You can also subscribe to my free Stamped & Delivered newsletter for tutorials, practical cardmaking ideas and helpful product guidance, delivered by email a couple of times a month.

*Fewer than 1% of Stampin’ Up! demonstrators worldwide earn the annual Incentive Trip.