Quick Birthday Card

So you love to make stuff, especially cards, but how can you carve out some creative time to soothe your creative soul?   Well, you can!  You can with a little planning and some strategies I've learned along this creative journey that I'll share with you. 

One method is dedicate 30 minutes to simply precut cardstock.  Cut your cardstock into the standard A2 card size (4.25" X 5.5") and/or cut some to layer as card fronts.  Another time-saver is to take shortcuts by using what is becoming more available at the big box craft stores.  For example, one can buy packages of cards with designs and use those as printed pattern paper or sometimes called designer series paper.  In this example I used a pre-made card/designed as the base and mounted a 2" piece of Nina Solar White cardstock with a Stampin Up butterfly punched out.  Added a stamped sentiment, tied on some bakers twine, added a little shimmer with a Wink of Stella pen and a rhinestone and DONE!  No time at all.

The little banners on the upper left of the card were part of the many banners I cut from this same set.  By using the same box of cards, all the papers coordinate, minimizing the time to select coordinating elements.