How To Make A Fourth of July Card
The Fourth of July is America's holiday because it is the day we celebrate our autonomy from England. Since I love to make patriotic cards for my friends and family, so I decided to create this special little project. The supplies I used were:
- A drawing pencil
- Colored pencils
- A piece of printer paper
Step One: Start With A Sheet of Printer Paper
Find a blank sheet of paper for making this card. I decided to use some left over scrap paper, so my page was slightly smaller than eight by ten inches. However, I am making a quarter-fold card, so it really does not matter how large or smaller the dimensions are as long as I can fold the card properly.
Step Two: Fold The Card In Half Vertically
Fold the sheet of paper in half vertically. Make sure the cold the card evenly so the card looks neat and crisp.
Step Three: Make A Quarter-Fold
Take the half fold and create a quarter fold section, which results in a quarter fold card. Now the card is ready to design.
Step Four: Get Ready To Design
Stand the quarter-fold card up and plan out the design. During this step you can even take a separate piece of paper and sketch out the illustration before commiting it to the card.
Step Five: Add The First Blue Stripe
Add the strips blue stripe with a white star, which will represent the blue canton of the American flag. Make the card look exactly like Old Glory if desired, but the objective of this card is simply to capture the beauty of the red, white, and blue swaying in the wind, which is why the stripes are squiggly.
Step Six: Add The Red Stripe
Add the red stripe to the card by leaving a gap for the white stripe. The lovely thing about using white colored paper is not having to color in the white stripes. For a fun effect you could design an American flag card on blue or red construction paper and use a white colored pencil for the stripes of that hue. As a kid I always loved the way a white colored pencil stood out when I created the white stripes of the American flag on blue construction paper.
Step Seven: Add Another Blue Stripe
Add another blue stripe the flag card, but make sure to leave a gap for the white stripe that comes after the red one. Keep in mind this card simply captures the spirit of the American flag, and hand made cards can be designed according to the preference of the crafter.
Step Eight: Add Another Red Stripe
Add another red stripe to the card, but make sure to leave room for the white stripe that comes directly after the blue stripe. Creating this American flag card is so much fun, and even adults can have fun making things by hand. I always see people spending large amounts of money on scrapbooking paper, but with a drawing pencil and colored pencils you can create your own paper and cards for free. In this economy that is truly a great way for crafters to save money!
Step Nine: Add The Final Blue Stripe
This simple yet patriotic card will only be complete once the final blue stripe has been added. In my design this leaves room for a white stripe after the last blue one, but keep in mind no two American flag cards are going to be exactly alike. These cards make wonderful notes to family and friend on the Fourth of July, but keep in mind these can be used on other days when you want to feel patriotic, such as Memorial Day, Veteran's Day, and Flag Day!