Wednesday, December 29, 2010

A Christmas book fit for a card

As presents go, gift cards hardly make the list for me ... not for receiving, of course, as I'll take absolutely any present that's offered.

Instead, I'm not fond of giving gift cards. Some people, from what I hear, don't like choosing gifts. It's a scary thing, with lots of worry about whether the color or style is good for the recipient. My gifty world, though, holds only one real negative: I am generally so excited about what I'm giving that I can't keep my mouth shut.

Not that I'm usually busy keeping even the slightest bit of random chatter to myself, but where most people wrap a present and leave it under the tree I'm dancing around cackling "You wanna open it? You wanna open it?"

I hate waiting for Christmas because I'm dying for everyone else to open presents. Surely this makes clear then, why for me gift cards sort of suck the fun out of gift giving.

This year I found a fix for my addiction: With the help of a Christmas book class we attended in the Spring and a Zutter binder, I found out that gift cards can make me a very happy Santa indeed.

I Zuttered two chip board squares which I'd already covered in distress ink, then embellished with flocked Christmas paper for the base. The front also got a vintage image and a few copper glitter Thickers.

The inside pockets also are punched with the Zutter, of course. These pockets are designed so that they're  more or less open at the bound edge, after all nothing would be going in the pockets that could slip out, and the outer edges are the pocket flaps.

I used 5/8 inch Velcro dots for closures and covered the pockets and flaps with designer papers on the two pocket-style pages.

A third page, and the main "gift" page, has a window and tabbed pull-out to reveal the gift card. The inside back cover has a piece of colored stock for writing a note to the recipient.

Tada! A Christmas book and a way to make a gift card a little more memorable.

Man ... just think of all the books I can make. Birthdays, anniversaries, Valentine's, Talk Like a Pirate Day! Yay!

5 comments:

  1. Well Tracy, Your book is darling, and who needs a gift card when the packaging is even better than whats inside!!!
    Also wanted to give you a Big Ol Thank You for my beautiful card and tin. I just LOVE that mini book. I take it you made it with your Zutter? You are so sweet to think of me! I'll be sharing it on my blog soon.
    Have A Wonderful New Year!
    hugs Lynn

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  2. Leave it to you to come up with a most awesome way to give a gift card! Love this gift card and all of the fabby elements! I won a blog candy Bind It All and can't wait to play! Wish we had classes out here! Thank you again for the lovely surprise! Happy 2011!

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  3. Before I started any crafting (2 years ago) I always enjoyed the wrapping of the presents and also to disguise them so nobody knew what was in them. But was a pain in the butt as always yelled don't tear the wrapping its gorgeous....lol Oh dear how times have changed. Yours is a fabulous idea my friend. Wishing you a very Happy New Year. Hugs Annette x

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  4. Thats a great idea, they are fabulous gifts.

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  5. Gasp this is beyond words beautiful!! LOVE LOVE LOVE it.
    Hugs,
    Raven

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