As we all know, an interest in hobby crafts is not just a way of making cute additions to your home décor or to interest you on a rainy day. It can also be incredibly helpful as a means of creating meaningful presents and cards for people without splashing out and spending lots of money. Whether a colleague is leaving at work, it’s a parent or child’s birthday, or you simply want to send an old friend a fun gift, there are so many different ideas out there for you to personalise and create.
It All Starts With A Great Idea
With so many types of paper, card and decorative elements to play with, along with innumerable folding and cutting techniques, there’s no end to the number of different types of gift you can create. Opt for something bright and bold or subtle and sweet. Of course, the base design is where it all begins: take inspiration from some of these imaginative ideas and simply add your own flair.
Personalised playing cards
It is generally accepted that most homes the world over have a pack of playing cards: however, how many people can claim to have personalised playing cards? Use collaging techniques to bring a little added personality to a traditional pack of 52, or use calligraphy to bring stylised elements to the design. Alternatively, for friends that are interested in astrology, why not try creating your own pack of Tarot cards for daily readings and mystical insights?
Make a book
Making a book can be either an incredibly simple endeavour or an extremely hard one. Depending upon your level of skill and willingness to engage in specialist techniques, the outcome can look quite different. For the most basic level of book-making, you can simply thread pages together using string or ribbon, while more advanced binding techniques involve glueing or sewing in a spine. The front cover is, for many people, the most important part. In this case, you can simply bring in the assistance of a company offering book printing services like print24, and focus upon personalising it yourself.
Decorative photo frame
Making a decorative photo frame is easy and can be tailored to any theme or colour scheme that you like. You can use old reclaimed wood or strong card as the base and then cover it in wrapping paper or use plain paper to then add your own painted decoration. This is a particularly great idea for couples celebrating their first wedding anniversary: traditionally, gifts given at the end of the first year of marriage are made from paper, so you can use this theme to decorate a beautiful photograph from the wedding itself or get more creative. Not only can you create the photo frame, but if you are artistically gifted you could even consider drawing or painting an image to set inside it: for instance, it could be something personal to you as a couple, or a map of where you spent your honeymoon!
Origami decorations
Origami is an art that requires time, patience and care – but once you have the skill, it reaps rewards. The incredible complexity and sheer variety of different things that you can create using origami techniques means that it’s a great place to start when thinking about gifts. The crane is probably the best-known origami model, and a great way for beginners to start out, but there are so many wild and wonderful options out there to try as well. Why not eschew the traditional bouquet on Valentine’s Day and try an origami rose instead? It will certainly demonstrate an investment of far greater time and attention than simply buying something!
For more inspiration, take a look at our papercrafting projects.
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