Making Gift Cards...?

[thepixies]

Hi,

i've decided i want to try making up some gift cards. not happy birthday or anything, just blank, with one of my pictures on the front, maybe with a quote that suits.

Now i was wondering how i would go about this. I have a decent printer (canon i865) but i'm not sure what card to buy, and how to fold it, to make it look good.

any help, advice?

 

[darich]

If you're making blank cards using your shots and have the choice of any card and any graphic and any image then the only limit is your imagination.

I'd go for normal card and print 2 cards per A4 page and then fold them in half to give A6 size cards. Coloured card may be nice but it may affect the colour balance of any images you print.

Try searching for art and craft sites and home made cards to get you started.

 

[thepixies]

ok, i'm going to do some tests 2morrow and see how they come out. I'm scared they'll look amatuerish and crappy, but hopefully not.

 

[Arch]

They may well look amaturish..... depends on how well your printer produces them and also the thickness of the card. I think you will need at least 220gsm card to be thick enough for a gift card, but even that may be too thin. The problem you may have is getting the card thick enough, but also thin enough to go through your printer. One thing i'v done in the past is to buy thicker paper say 280gsm and use a colour laser printer to print them off. Some small repro places and copy shops have decent laser printers and shouldn't charge much to do a set amount of copies......... so you may want to consider this if your printer wont take thick enough card, or if the finish isn't good enough.

Edit: i'v changed the paper thickness values.... just woke up.. not thinking straight.

 

[Rob]

Buy heavyweight pre-scored blank cards, and use 3M spray mount to glue a commercially printed (or home printed) 6x4" to the front. IMO that looks the most professional and works well. Get ones with paper inset for message as well if possible.

Don't buy those glossy gift cards and print directly on them - they curl and look crappy and aren't heavy enough to stand up properly.

Rob

 

[summers_enemy]

Find a good scrapbooking and craft store. They'll have cardstock that you can cut yourself into cards, or blank pre made cards that come with envelopes. Like Rob says though, don't print directly on the card. I'd have the shots printed at a store with a white border and then stick them onto the card. You can also use rub on letters and phrases to give a different look to your quotes.