Handmade cards are super fun to make, especially when you draw your own pictures! Why do I draw my own pictures for every single card you ask? To be honest I do it because I want to create something of my own. From time to time I use scrapbook paper for accents on my cards, but all of the illustrations are hand drawn by moi. Yes this makes the card take longer than if I was just using cut-outs or photographs, but I want to hone my drawing technique, which is all my own. I say do not be afraid to grab that pencil and go to town drawing what you love. My obsession is Hawaiian scenes, so I have drawn another one for this handmade card. Here are the supplies that I used to create this masterpiece:

• A piece of used computer paper
• Card stock
• A drawing pencil
• Colored pencils
• A paint brush
• Mod pod
• A large tapestry needle
• Embroidery floss

So the embroidery floss and the needle sound like a weird ingredients for a handmade card? Yes these are out of the ordinary, but you will just have to look at the tutorial below to see why I used these supplies. My card, my examination, so read the hub below to get your own creative juices flowing!

When creating my Hawaiian scenes I use my imagination and just draw palm trees, mountains, and the ocean where I think they might go. Yes this is not an exact Hawaiian tropical scene, but it is the essence of what this scene would look like in my mind.

For coloring in the ocean I used an aqua colored pencil to capture the essence of the vibrant waters found on South Sea islands. I made sure to leave some white spots to mimic the waves, and a darker blue pencil was used to give the water depth.

Here I gave dimension to the palm trunks by using a grey colored pencil to lightly color the trunks in the forefront, and pressed down harder to create a shadowy effect for the palms set farther back. I love playing around with colored pencils, especially the water colored ones that blend easily such as the ones I used for this project.

For the beach I used various shades of yellow colored pencils. It is soothing to shade in portions of the picture and see it coming to life!

In this step I have added color to the palm fronds by using two different shades of green, which captures the beauty of this lovely foliage. Personally I love the shape of the fronds on the tree that is leaning far to the right side of the card.

For the mountains I used a light green colored pencils, and shaded darker to capture the shadowy portions. The sky was filled in with a beautiful deep blue color. Now that the picture is complete I can assemble my card.

Did I mention I love to use mod podge on many of my cards? You probably have not heard of lot of people doing this, but I discovered years ago how it adds luster and brush like strokes to my drawings. Since I used water colored pencils on this tropical scene it also helps to blend the colors, which makes this drawing look slightly more like a painting. Also, I used the mod podge to glue the picture to a piece of card stock. I could have drawn directly onto the card stock, but I prefer to draw on lighter weight paper because it is easier for erasing. However, as I draw more and more these days I am trying to avoid erasing as much and just let each drawing be as it were.

Once I glued the picture to a piece of card stock I went to bed and allowed it to dry over night. The next day I cut off the excess card stock. I used my picture as a template to trace around another piece of card stock. The picture will be the top of the card, but the blank card stock will be the bottom part of the card. I decided to join the two pieces of card stock by sewing these together with embroidery floss. I used a tapestry needle for this project as it is hard to sew through card stock, and you may not want to do it unless you like hard work! I actually punctured holes in the card stock before sewing to make it easier as I gathered the two sides.

For this project I used a zig zag pattern to sew the card together. First I used a slanted stitch to go across the card from left to right, and then I went back over my previous stitches by sewing from right to left. This zig zag pattern reminds me of the fronds of the palm trees, and I really, really like it. Just remember when you make a card to get creative and try and think of fun and different ways to decorate each piece.

Have you ever bought a card at the store that had a message you did not really like? Many times at the store I would have to spend 90% of the time making sure the message on the inside of the card was appropriate for the recipient, but when you make your own card there is not worrying about this triviality.The cards I design can be personalized with messages that come from the heart, which is a special touch I always like to add. I hope you enjoy making handmade cards as much as I do, and please do not be afraid to let your creativity flow like the lava beds of Hawaii, which I hope to visit one day.