The Pirate Review - Creative Cards: Wrap a Message with a Personal Touch

When you care enough not to send Hallmark

Martha Stewart is my arch-nemesis.

You need to know this up front, because I am about to review a book that would probably get the thumbs-up from the High Priestess of Perfection. No doubt when Martha stops by a neighbor's house, bearing a willow basket (woven by herself) filled with heart-shaped blueberry tarts (berries picked on her property in Maine, of course) and a darling collectible canister filled with loose-leaf tea (chosen from the bushes in her greenhouse), she has a handmade card to go along with the package. And she probably made the paper, ink and glue herself.

As for me, I don't have access to the cleaning staff, personal trainer and whopping bank account necessary to de-clutter a harried schedule, so Martha's everything-from-scratch philosophy is, at best, wholly unrealistic for me. Most of us are lucky if we speak to our neighbors on a regular basis, much less pop by with homemade goodies. So why am I advocating a book that further complicates your life by suggesting that you create handmade cards, rather than just buying them from your local manufactured sentiment palace?

Well, it's all a question of degree. The anti-Marthas of the world primarily despise her not because she has projects, but because she makes EVERYTHING into a project. Martha sweeps through life turning molehills into mountains; her entire life is consumed by the creation of grace notes. She seems to live by the American adage, "If a little is good, a lot is better," and by the presumption that those who don't wish to make a production number out of everything are somehow inferior.

But just because I can't stand Martha doesn't mean I don't want a grace note or two in my life. In a largely soulless commercial world, there's something particularly nice about giving or receiving a personal item that can't be bought in a store, something that takes into account the unique personality of the recipient, even if it's simple to create. And that's just what this book offers—a set of instructions for creating a wide variety of attractive, personalized cards for many occasions.

Be warned—author Yoshiko Kitagawa does display some Martha-esque tendencies, starting with the introduction where she admits that one year she "sent out about a hundred [handmade] cards, with the year and greeting on the front, my name on the back, and a personal message inside." To stay grounded in reality as you read, remember that this was her choice—it surely doesn't have to be yours. Also remember that her list of tools and tips is optimal, but not required. You needn't rush out to buy expensive Japanese paper, specialty markers and a protractor to create attractive cards. I've gotten good results with nothing but scraps of leftover wrapping paper, some glue and a Uni-Ball pen.

More important than the materials you use, however, is the care you take in creating your cards. In fact, taking the time to mark, cut and fold precisely is the only really essential aspect of cardmaking. Doing so marks the difference between a poorly-constructed homemade card and an elegant handmade one—the difference between craft and craftsmanship.

So how much artistic know-how do you really need to create a nice-looking card? Frankly, not much. If you can create simple origami folds and have access to some tool that can let you cut a nice straight line, you're ready to roll. (Since I can't hand-cut a straight line to save my life, I use an old rotary cutter, mat and ruler from a patchwork project. If I didn't have that, I could use the paper cutter at my local copy shop.) Nice handwriting is a plus, but not essential. Even if you don't have a good eye for mixing colors, the author provides some samples and suggestions to get the ball rolling.

If you're nervous about precision cutting, skip over the first several projects (which suggest the use of a compass) and go straight to the Glossy Moderne or Kraft Card sections of the book. These cards are simple to make, forgiving, and adaptable to a number of uses. If you like the abstract look of origami, but want something relatively easy to construct, try one of the distinctive Obi Cards. Kitagawa also offers a whole section on Christmas cards, in varying stages of difficulty, and a few specialty cards for occasions such as weddings, graduations and baby showers. The shape of these cards varies from soft traditional to hard-edged modernism, but any of these cards can look dramatically different with just a color change, or the decision to use patterned rather than plain paper.

All instructions are black-and-white illustrations, with measurements given in inches, and a key for folding and cutting diagrams on page 8. Interleaved with the instructions are beautiful full-color plates of the finished cards, using the suggested papers, colors and inserts.

Remember, when it comes to handmade cards, quality trumps quantity every time. You could mass-produce these kinds of cards, but that would largely miss the point. It's better to enjoy making one special creation for a friend than to work frantically on seventy identical cards for the holidays.

Anyway, isn't that Martha's job?