Crafts Unleashed

I admit it. I am a “create your own greeting card” kind of  gal. Usually, however, I create something on a large 8.5″ by 11″ watercolor paper, scan it, then digitally alter it, resize it to 5″ by 7″, then print it on cardstock.

This month, however, I was given a “Scrapbook Kit In A Stack Friends Family” value pack (Item SBK8Friend) by ConsumerCrafts.com to review and I have to tell you that I had a blast with this kit.

It comes with:

• 532 stickers – most of which are alphabets and numbers in six colors: orange, pink, brown, green, grey, and blue;
• 24 printed papers – there are two different colors schemes for each design: text about family is repeated over and over again, the word “friends” is repetitive, stripes cover an entire paper, and finally, my favorite… a chocolate paper covered in delicious looking polka dots;
• 24 sheets of cardstock – green, pink, baby blue, and white.
• 20 friends and family quotes on vellum paper.

Every page coordinates well with each other so you can literally create hundreds of greeting card ideas without ever having to use another embellishment. Which of course means that you can create a last minute greeting card in under ten minutes!

And to test that theory, I challenged myself to create six cards in under an hour. I didn’t give myself any time to plan out a design, either. I just laid the kit out on my craft table and went with whatever came to mind.

To my surprise, I came up with some rather cute, yet simple cards and all I used to create them was the scrapbook kit in a stack pack (Item SBK8Friend), a pair of scissors (Item 1149-17), a glue stick or double-sided tape (Item 2445-67), a paintbrush (Item SB9561), acrylic paints (Item 97848), 5×7 blank greeting cards with envelopes (Item 1103-66), and a black pen.

We Are Family #1

Friends #2

Best Friends #3

Family Is Great #4

Family Is... #5

2 But 1 #6

One thing I did have trouble with was the vellum quotes. Vellum is very delicate and too much “wetness” causes the paper to warp and crumble. So while I am not quite sure how to seamlessly use the vellum quotes, I did discover that you can cut out a hole in a piece of cardstock, cut out a quote, then adhere the quote to the back of the cardstock, so that when flipped right-side up, you get a window effect with the quote nicely showcased and readable.

If you find the cost of purchasing a single greeting card too much, enjoy creating with your hands, and like the ease of not having to “design” your own papers, then you are going to love this kit. Seriously, I didn’t think I’d have as much fun with it as I did and I had to make myself stop creating just so I could get this review in on time.

Disclosure