Altered Art Cards

Find beautiful altered art cards and learn how to make your own on this page. You'll discover altered art card galleries, cards for sale and tutorials on how to make inspiring creations.

If you're new to altered art cards, you will also learn more about them and their associated elements - altered art, artist trading cards (known as ATCs or ACEOs) and mixed media art.

I've been making altered art cards for a few years, inspired mainly by vintage and shabby chic designs, as well as fantasy and surreal imagery. Read on to find out how to make your own, or peruse creations by myself and other artists for inspiration or enjoyment!

Photo Credit: Copyright of the author. All rights reserved.

This work is the copyright of the author (2012). Please DO NOT copy this elsewhere either in print or online. Photos are copyright of the credited sources.

All About... Altered Art * ATCs and ACEOs * Mixed Media Art

Altered art cards are collectible artist cards that have been created using altered art, usually incorporating one or more existing artworks or objects to create something new. Most are usually the size of artist trading cards (known as ATCs or ACEOs) or standard trading cards and cigarette cards.

First of all, what is altered art?

This usually refers to the process of altering or combining existing works of art to create a new piece. Speaking more broadly, however, the expression can also include the alteration of everyday objects to create artwork as well, such as fabric, paper, fibres, paint, rubber stamps, scrabble tiles, books and many more.

So, this is mixed media art?

Often, yes, because several different elements can be used. Mixed media art refers to artwork that has been created from several methods, such as combining watercolour and oils, or embellishing a painted artwork with fabrics or 3D objects. However, altered art is not always mixed media art, because a piece of art can be altered using just one method of art, such as painting over an existing image (an example would be colour painting a black and white vintage image).

Photo Credit: Copyright of author. All rights reserved

Photo Credit: Playingwithbrushes via Flickr Creative Commons

Defining Altered Art Cards

So, altered art cards are a form of altered art in card format. While these can take any form, the majority tend to be ATC or trading card size. It is currently popular, for example, to alter trading cards from popular series such as Magic: The Gathering, and many such cards can be found on eBay.

Altered art cards created from scratch tend to be artist trading cards or ATCs, also known as ACEOs (Art Card Editions and Originals). These started out as artist cards to swap, but are now often sold. They must always measure 2.5 x 3.5 inches. You can find out more about these cards here:

What is an ACEO or ATC?

A definition of the ACEO or ATC, along with a history and guide to making them.

Of course, you can also use art cards to alter other pieces of art or objects, by fixing them to journals, boxes and all kinds of things!

Photo Credit: June Campbell via Flickr Creative Commons

1. Artist Trading Cards
2. Altered collectible trading cards or cigarette cards
3. Gift tags
4. Greeting cards
5. Your own tarot or oracle cards
6. Playing cards
7. Card collage
8. Fancy labels
9. Love and friendship cards
10. Bookmarks

Photo Credit: playingwithbrushes via Flickr Creative Commons

To create the beautiful colour effects above, I used Ranger inks and distress products. I highly recommend anything by Ranger and Tim Holtz - their products are excellent and Tim Holtz's projects and ideas are just fabulous. You can find tutorials for the methods I used in his DVD below.

For making ACEOs, you can't beat Strathmore Illustration board for a quality base, especially if you are drawing or painting straight onto the card.

Artist Trading Cards, 500 Series Illustration Board

These lightweight, vellum finish trading cards are made of the same 100% cotton fiber, acid-free paper as the Strathmore 500 Series Illustration Boards. Artist Trading Cards are a great way to meet other artists, share creations, and build unique collections. The only official rule is the trading card size, which must be 2.5" x 3.5" (64 mm x 89 mm).

Photo Credit: June Campbell via Flickr Creative Commons

This video shows how to make a large altered art card using collage techniques. You can use it to make something similar or adapt it for a smaller medium, such as ATCs.

Photo Credit: Copyright of author.

This pair of cards features rubber stamped angel wings that have been coloured using Ranger inks, and will be used in an altered art angel piece.

There is no end to the ways in which you can create altered art cards. All you need is something to alter - either the size of your intended card, or a size that can be attached to your intended card. This can be art, a vintage photo or image, an object, a polymer clay item or anything else you can think of.

Then the fun begins! Once you have decided what you are altering, the theme and design, and the basic construction, you can:

Paint it * Draw over it * Ink it * Rubber stamp it * Foil it * Cut it

Embellish it * Stencil it * Pierce it * Stitch it

Digitally alter it * Make it 3D * Mold polymer clay or art clay over it

Antique it * Tea stain it * Distress it * Sponge it

Put fabric on it * Put fibres on it * Put natural objects on it

Collage it * Quill it * Emboss it * Cross stitch it

How many more ideas can you think of?

Photo Credit: PaintItBlack22 via Flickr Creative Commons

Photo Credit: Playingwithbrushes via Flickr Creative Commons

Again, the possibilities are endless... but here are a few ideas:

Shabby Chic * Vintage * Antique * Retro

Fantasy * Natural * Surreal * Whimsical * Modern * Pop Art

Graphic Art * Painted * Sketched * Inked * Stitched

Animals * Nature * Landscape * Portraits * Architecture

Fantasy * Fairytale * Historical * Futuristic * Science

Children's * Nursery Rhymes * Music & Lyrics * Poetry

Messages * Oracles * Games * Tokens

Photo Credit: Flickr Creative Commons - Click images to enlarge and see details

One particularly popular form of altered art cards is altered cards from the Magic: The Gathering or Yugioh! trading card games. These might have been drawn or painted over to create new card designs for those who collect the cards. Fans of the games make their own, or the original card artists sometimes customise their own cards, creating an extra-collectible item! Being one-of-a-kind originals, they can be highly sought after! Here's some more info: