Make your Own Halloween Cards

By Christina VanGinkel
Halloween has become a favorite holiday of many people. Where it once was more of a celebration for the elementary aged child who for one night of the year could ponder dreams of piles and piles of sugary confections and grotesque makeup and costumes, it is now a holiday enjoyed by all ages, especially the adults. In addition, whether you are announcing the Halloween bash of the year, or just want to spread a bit of holiday Boo!, making your own cards is decidedly the way to go! Supplies for decorating them are available in all shapes and forms, and no matter if you are wanting to make one or two, or a couple of dozen, you can have them whipped together in no time.

Stamps

Halloween themed stamps are available from a variety of stores such as Lillian Vernon, who offers a choice of sets, including one with twelve stamps, and a larger set of 24. Each includes a variety of ghosts, pumpkins, witches, bats, haunted houses and more. The small set retails for less than five dollars, and the larger set for a bargain price of $7.98, so cost will not scare you off surely! Each stamp is also self-inking, so add some Halloween colored paper, a few envelopes, and stamps, and you will have everything you need to get those cards in the mail.

If you happen to be a fan of Stampin' Up, be sure to check out their selection of howling good stamps, including smiling Jack-o-Lanterns, Trick or Treat sayings, and oh so fun designs such as their Stampin' Around Arachnophobia stamp, which is sure to get your Halloween spirit firmly onto every card you decorate with it! Be sure to also check out their daringly cute Best Friends set, which includes not only a spider, but also a bat, a cute spidery decorated Boo!, and several witchy and monstrous friends, all sure to help you decorate your Halloween themed cards in no time at all.

CraftROBO & Wishblade

If you own one, of the ingenious cutters that crafters are all fawning over such as the Wishblade or the CraftROBO, put it to use, and cut up a whole slew of Happy Halloween cards. I made a die cut of a spider and her web, and several other Halloween themed die cuts to decorate my annual Happy Halloween cards last year, and plan to do so again. Many of the manual cutters also have dies perfect for Halloween crafting, including the Sizzix which offers a bat, a ghost, a spooky tree and many more.

Emboss

Embossing was a popular craft in years past, and recently it has once again been making a strong comeback with crafters all over. It is fun to do and produces some unique pieces. Halloween has not been left out when it comes to embossing supplies. With the Fiskars Shapeboss and their mini fall stencil, you can make an elegant looking Halloween card decorated with an embossed pumpkin and foliage. Other Companies that sell embossing supplies also carry a variety of Halloween themed supplies.

Stickers

Stickers with a Halloween theme are in abundance from probably every company that makes stickers for the craft market. Fun, scary, silly, all the fronts you could possibly be considering are available in the form of a sticker. Combine a few with some lush cardstock and you will be able to create a Halloween themed card that all your friends and relatives will keep on display long past the big day. If your local craft and hobby stores only carry a small number of choices, be sure to check out a couple of online stores for a much broader selection. Oriental Trading and eBay both have a huge variety of Halloween themed stickers to choose from. When I peeked at eBay for what was being offered just for Halloween themed stickers I cam away with over 600 hits. While some are duplicates being offered by different sellers, many of them are in designs that are so unique, eBay is probably the only place you will encounter them.

Halloween is a great time of the year to try your hand at crafts. Make some Halloween cards to share with family and friends and to show them just how much fun creating your own cards can be.