I love to sew quilts and make quilt cards. So, I thought a card quilt in shades of green might be fun to try for St. Patrick’s Day. It might even bring you and your recipient some extra luck if you make one too!
Many of us paper crafters have scraps of patterned paper in our crafting space, so why not use them? So I started by going through my paper stash and selecting a variety of greens I thought would go well together.
HERE’S A LITTLE BONUS TIP FOR YOU
Since it is basically impossible to use up every piece of paper a paper crafter has, I have started separating the patterned paper apart from my cardstock scraps. I made myself two little 6″ x 6″ file systems with little labeled file tabs made from the white backing paper of Designer Series Paper packages. A new file divider for each of Stampin’ Up!s family of colors – 50 in all!
So now I cut down and sort “older” papers by their main color and file them into their specific little spot. It is so much handier to be able to go retrieve a certain color when I am matching a card base or patterned paper to the envelope flap that I always like to decorate. You will feel so organized when you complete this project.
Now, back to the Quilt Card!
LET’S MAKE THIS QUILT CARD!
It all starts with cutting or punching 1 1/4″ squares. Prepare 12-14 squares in a variety in various shades of green paper that you have in your paper stash. Then select one of the shades as your card base color. Mine is Old Olive. Then cut a Basic Black layer 4″ x 5 1/4″. On the next layer, 3 3/4″ x 5″ Basic White is where you will make your paper quilt.
I have a black mat on my craft desk that has a 45-degree diagonal line on it, so I lined up my Basic White piece and drew a light pencil line with a ruler from the lower left corner to wherever it stopped on the upper right side. Having the line there helped to line up my squares.
At first, I was going to put them edge to edge, but decided against that, when I saw I would end up with tiny bits of paper at the outer edges. I didn’t want that to happen. The squares are spaced a little less than 1/8″ apart.
When you get done laying out your colors the way they look pleasing to you, then start adhering them with Tombow Multipurpose liquid glue to the Basic White. By using liquid glue you will be able to secure the corners down well. You will have squares that hang over the edge and need to be trimmed off with your paper snips. Those trimmed off pieces can potentially become parts of your next card.
Once the quilt layer is done, adhere to the Basic Black layer. Tie the Black and White Gingham ribbon around those two layers. Affix the bow with a glue dot to hold it in place. Cut the ends of the ribbon at a diagonal so it will look fancy!
I stamped the 1/2″ strip of Basic White with the “Good Luck” from the retired Special Moments stamp set. I had used a 1 1/4″ square punch for my quilt squares so that is how I got the tag to fit precisely in the center square raised up on mini dimensionals. I added two retired Holiday Rhinestone Jewels in the green color at the pointed ends of the tag.
THE LITTLE DETAILS
Don’t forget to insert a 4″ x 5 1/4″ Basic White cardstock layer for your inside stamped sentiment and handwritten personal message. That will bring your recipient good luck for sure!
To complete your card, be sure to select one of your green patterns and cut a 2 3/8″ x 6″ piece to adhere to the exterior flap of your envelope. Then trim off the excess. Now you are done!
I hope you had fun giving this idea a go! You have made a very Lucky, extra Green St. Patrick’s Day Quilt Card!