A Card for Cousin Amy

Whenever I get new rubber stamps I can't wait to try them out. A recent purchase of two Hero Arts clear sets (Asian Frames and Japanese Dolls) inspired me to make this birthday card for my niece. Hero Arts also has a set of a smaller version of the four Japanese dolls on wood mounts, but the other stamps in the clear set are useful.

To make this card I started with a blank white card and used the Martha Stewart daisy edge punch to decorate the front flap. Next, I stamped the back of a piece of colorful origami paper (thin ones work best) using light colored ink and one of the doll stamps. The kimono part of the stamped design was cut out and run through a Xyron (print side up). You could use a glue stick if you don't have a Xyron machine. Stick the kimono onto the card and carefully stamp (using black ink) the doll design over the cut out kimono. Cut out a 1" strip (long enough to go all the way across the card) of the same origami paper. Stamp the strip with the cherry blossom border stamp if desired and glue or tape the strip inside the card so that part of it shows below the punched edge. With dark green ink, stamp the bamboo design three times on the card (masking the doll to protect it). Color the bamboo with green, yellow, and brown color pencils and shade in shadows for the doll and bamboo. Lastly, stamp a birthday message in black ink. The wish stamp came from a Hero Arts clear set, but you could use whatever appropriate stamped message you need.

I hope that you will try to make this card. (Click on the photo to see a closeup of the card.) It is a good way to use up origami scraps and making a greeting card set using the four dolls would be a great gift or craft fair item.