Winter Cards for Snowy Weather!

Winter is still raging in America, and with the northeast digging out from under the recent storm, it is time to show a "Welcome to Winter" card!  Using Stephanie Barnard's Circle Flip-Its card, I want to begin by showing how to mail a square card without the extra postage required by a square envelope.  Simply use a larger rectangular envelope (6" x 9") that will go with one stamp--the size for mailing an 8 1/2" x 11" sheet folded in half .  Punch some small shapes out of the envelope on the left side so it will not interfere with the stamped side, leaving some room for your return address.  Then cut a piece of cardstock (good to have it coordinate with your card) to fill in the holes left by the punches and to take up extra room in the card.   Adhere this to the inside of the card by tape runner or glue stick.  If you run the insertion piece through a Xyron, making the front side the sticky side, it will leave a sticky area where the punched shapes are if you want to add some glitter, pearlescent powders, or gold or silver leaf for a little pizazz on the mail art.  Just be certain to glue the edges of your punched shapes down well so they will not catch on the mail equipment.  If you prefer to NOT punch holes in your envelope, just glue a piece of cardstock into that end of the card so the square card will not be floating around inside a huge envelope, but will occupy its own space inside.

Card Front

Now for the card.  Using the round Flip-Its Sizzix die, cut the card from a heavy printed cardstock--the one I used was foiled, so the silver areas are reflecting other colors in the photos.  The back was stamped with a variety of blues and a couple of Stampin' Up stamps that look like snow.  If you have a two-sided cardstock, the stamping will not be necessary.  The large snowflake is cut from silver-glittered cardstock and with the Sizzix Basic Grey Snowflake #3, trimmed to fit the circle in the Flip-Its card.  The center is punched from a recycled Christmas card because of its foiled snowy looking pattern.  A little bling is added to the center of the punched snowflake.  Magenta's self adhesive peel-offs in silver grace the outside edges of the card and help to reinforce the folded area.

The inside of the card shows the stamped sentiment trimmed with the same Magenta trim and another punched snowflake from the recycled card.

Card Inside

 Here is another view of the envelope ready to deliver this fun wintry card to one of my friends for a Card of the Month swap on the Tennessee Stampers' Yahoo Group.

Front view of envelope and card