Joy Fold Card

Just as the name suggests, this card is a great joy to make. It is a quick and simple, yet really effective and fantastic way to use up all those scraps of paper you have sitting around. Each card takes around 10 minutes to make.

Supplies:

• one piece of cardstock measuring 4 ¼" x 8 ½" (I used yellow)
• one piece of cardstock measuring 3" x 8" (I used red)
• one piece of patterned paper measuring 4" x 5 ¼"
• one piece of different patterned paper measuring 2 ¾" x 4"
• one piece of cardstock measuring 2 ½" x 3" (again I used yellow)
• piece of coordinating ribbon
• stamp
• brad
• photo turn
• ink
• hole punch
• ruler
• scorer
• glue

Step One

Take your biggest piece of cardstock (4 ¼" x 8 ½") and measure 3 inches in from the left-hand side. Score a vertical line to create the crease for your card and fold this inward. (I have marked in pencil to explain this in more detail but you will not need to.)

Step Two

Take your next piece of cardstock (3" x 8") and measure in 4 inches. Score a vertical line to crease. Fold this in half.

Step Three

Take your largest piece of patterned paper (4" x 5 ¼"), ink the edges and adhere this to the inside of your biggest piece of cardstock (4 ¼" x 8 ½").

Step Four

Your smaller piece of patterned paper will need the same inking treatment around the edges. Next, punch a hole approximately 1" in and centered top to bottom. Insert a photo-turn with a brad. It is a little hard to see on my photo so I have added an arrow to demonstrate.

Step Five

Stick this piece of patterned paper to the front of your largest piece of cardstock.

Step Six

Stamp a greeting onto a scrap of cardstock and adhere this to the inside of the smaller piece of card. Notice how the fold is on the right-hand side - this is important to note, as the card will not work with the fold on the left.

Step Seven

Take your smaller piece of cardstock (2 ½" x 3") and stamp an image on it. Decorate with ribbon. Color your image in if you want to.

Step Eight

Adhere the stamped piece of cardstock to the front of your 3" x 8" cardstock. (Remember the fold is on the right-hand side when facing you - it's like a backwards card!)

Step Nine

Attach the (3" x 8") card to the base of the larger (4 ¼" x 8 ½") card. Note that the flaps open out in opposite directions.

Step Ten

Fold the left flap over the base of both pieces of the card and then sandwich this with the flap from the right.

Step Eleven

Fold the card flat and turn the photo-turn into place to secure the flap.

It really is as simple as that! I had great fun trying these cards out and made a couple of variations - you really can do anything. I made a friendship card and placed the photo-turn at a different angle as well as mounting the stamped image on a coordinating cardstock. I also made a "new home" card and instead of using a photo-turn I secured it with a length of ribbon. I also cut a scalloped border on the base card to add interest.

Don't forget to share your creations in the gallery if you give these cards a try.