Make Your Own Greeting Cards

A greeting card you make yourself can be more meaningful to the recipient and just as attractive as any store bought greeting card if you apply a few simple desktop publishing and design principles.

If you are already familiar with the operation of PageMaker, InDesign, or other professional desktop publishing software, then use it. If new to desktop publishing and your main goal is make your own greeting cards, then consumer software such as Art Explosion Greeting Card Factory or Hallmark Card Studio are good software choices to make a greeting card.

Before you begin think about what kind of greeting card you want to make such as funny, serious, or personalized. Having a vision ahead of time can speed up the process even if you will be using templates straight from the software. If your software has a blank template or wizard for the style of greeting card you want, then use it to set up your greeting card, or create a layout from scratch in the desired size. For a top or side fold card printed on letter size paper, rather than other types of specialty greeting card papers, create a folded dummy and mark the front, inside front, message area, and back of the greeting card.

If you want to keep it simple, then stick with one image. Some clip art is drawn with a less realistic and more cartoon appearance. Some styles suggest modern, while other clip art has a distinct fifties air about it. Color and types of lines and the amount of detail can all contribute to the overall style. Mix and match images that share a similar style. Some graphics work without modification, but simple changes to size and color can make a image work better for your greeting card layout. You can also use color and frames or boxes with dissimilar images to create a more unified appearance.

For a greeting card, you will probably stick with one, maybe two typefaces. Usually, you want your type and images to convey the same tone or mood whether that is formal, fun, subdued, or in your face. You can change the font color so it that contrasts with your paper color and other graphics or pick a color that appears within your clip art to tie the two together. As you tweak the front and inside of your greeting card, aim for a consistent look and feel. Print out your front and inside pages and place them side by side. Do they look as if they are part of the same card or do they look as if they do not belong together? You want consistency, but it is okay to throw in some contrasting elements too.

You have just created your masterpiece, so why not take a little bow before hitting the print button. One way to do this is to use the back of the card to credit yourself with the design. When it comes time to print your final greeting card, do not forget that final proof. Before putting your creation on expensive photo paper or greeting card stock print a final proof in draft mode. Check text and graphics and layout, then check margins and alignment.

Fold your proof and make sure everything lines up correctly. If printing multiple copies of the final card, then first print just one at high quality on the desired paper. Check color and ink coverage. As complicated as the process looks written out in the steps, to make a greeting card is a very basic, simple desktop publishing task. Do not let the details get in the way of having fun designing your own original creations.

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