Holiday Cards That Move Video by Dave Brethauer

Hello everyone!

Today I wanted to share a couple of interactive card ideas that hopefully will get you inspired to create some memorable holiday cards.

Like many of you, I have made A LOT of holiday cards over the years! I love handmade cards with moving elements, but I often find myself short on time to mass produce them - so they have to be simple. These projects are perfect - simple to make, but they are really fun to receive and look like you worked really hard on them!

My first project is a "pocket card" that can be used as a holder for a holiday photo. I have created lots of photo cards over the years - embellished with stamps, or ribbon or dies. But for this one, I had designed a die with this very purpose in mind!

(Watch this video in HD by clicking here)

When I created the Snowman Panel I was thinking that there would be some sort of layer behind the panel that could just slide away to reveal a new background. At the time, I wasn't sure exactly what the background would be but after playing with the die a bit in the studio, I got an idea.

So I began with the Pinpoint Rectangle set - by cutting two large rectangles I could create a "pocket" by gluing them together. But before I glued them, I cut the Snowman Panel in the front.  When you put the insert into the pocket, all you see is white.

 

But when you pull the slider piece out (I stamped the top of it with the Merry Christmas Sentiments set), then you see the background! I chose a bold red, so that the snowman would really stand out.

I decided to dress him up just a little bit too - so I used a few shapes from the Snowman Heart Collage die to create his hat, eyes and carrot nose. I think this adds a little character on the all white background!

 

Here's a look at what the Snowman Heart Collage looks like all done up - I used some soft velvet paper to fill in the heart area, and various cardstock colors for his face, hat and scarf. I used the stamp set called Each Day is a Blessing for the sentiment - this set is very versatile and can be used on all sorts of cards.

I only used a few of the elements - just the eyes, nose and hat - so that I could keep things simple!

You can use the back of the sliding panel for a photo, a recipe or simply your holiday greeting. The person receiving the card will have so much fun moving the panel up and down.

And here is what the slider piece looks like when it is flipped over - a cute photo card! The person who receives the card can display the photo separately from the slider pocket - it's like receiving two for one!

Now there is another die that I designed with the same goal in mind - the Snowy Spectrum die. I created the same idea here - this time using the Stitched Rectangle Layers to create my pocket.

I thought it might be fun to create a Distress Oxide background for this card - so I blended Wilted Violet, Broken China and Faded Denim to make a snowy wintertime background for the snowflakes. I spritzed with just a bit of water for some simple texture and that was all there was to it!

I love this color scheme - a nice alternative to traditional red and green! I could embellish this a bit further - the snowflakes in the Snowy Spectrum die match the Batavia Snowflakes die - so I could cut some out and layer them on here in some sparkly white cardstock, but I decided to keep it simple.

For my second project, I was still really into slider cards, so I wanted to create a card that had that interactive element, but was still relatively simple to mass produce.

So I used one of the Jumping Elves from the Christmas Elves Die set and  Christmas Elves Clear Stamp set and figured out a way to make him "leap" over the word Christmas. I realized that the Large Sentimental Merry Christmas was big enough for what I had in mind.

I got out my Copic markers for some simple coloring - the elf is small so you can color him in pretty quickly! 

I had to choose the right slider die and found that the Slider Grooves set worked perfectly. It has a small curved arch that creates the perfect path for making the elf look like he is leaping! In the video, I show the basics for making a slider card - and how easy it is to get him to spin.

To dress it up a bit, I used a Poppystamps Holly Berry Sprig die in the corner - just something simple to put a little more color onto the front of the card. I inlaid the cut out paper - green cardstock for the leaves and some sparkly red cardstock for the berries. This created just the right touch.

There are endless variations on these ideas - reindeers jumping over chimneys, polar bears hopping from igloo to igloo, the list goes on and on. What will you make?

 

Comments

[Pam Sparks]

oh wow! These are awesome, so festive and fun Dave! I LOVE them!

[Teresa Doyle]

Oh my goodness Dave these are ALL so sweet! I can see a Santa tumbling across the card too where the elf is, among many other ideas. OMGoodness, the possibilities are endless.... TFS!

[Jacquelene L]

The elf slider card is my favourite! I achieved the tumbling effect by mistake when I made my grandaughter's birthday card, now I know why, I used round foam dots. Thank you for the video tutorial, it was very inspiring. I am happy to see christmas card inspiration, I love making Christmas cards. I started designing my Christmas cards for this year and gathering dies and stamps back in May. I need more Christmas inspiration, I am now full into Christmas creating prep mode!
Jacquelene L
Canada

[Jennifer Svare]

I love these happy cards! Time to get started on them, for sure! :)

[Heidi H]

Love love these ideas! Especially the photo card!

[Valerie Breingan]

Super cute interactive cards.Well done.

[Conniecrafter]

Great set of cards, thanks so much for showing how the sliders work!

[Marjorie Dumontier]

All the cards on this page are truly amazing !!

[Ira S.]

Excellent article. Thank you for sharing. I recently did a video on overspending. I hope you enjoy it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72JRhsc0N_o