Screenshot 2019-12-07 at 9.57.39 PM

I’m really excited to have completed the first week of Blogmas! So far, I’ve posted:

Today, I wanted to share a new gift idea: a wallet sized laminated bookmark/card so easy to make that even I can do it! (As I’ve mentioned before, my craft skills are…questionable.) I’ve made about two dozen of these for various people, and each one cost me less than a dollar and didn’t take long at all.

Step One: Supplies

20191207_072919 The key element of this project is a self adhesive laminating pouch. I used wallet size, and bought them from Amazon in packs of 10 (here’s a link if you want to take a look). They’re also available at office supply stores, and probably other places, and they have other sizes if you want to make something a little bigger. Other than that, all you need is a computer, printer, and paper. You could also hand write or draw, if that’s more to your taste, although using the computer definitely saves time in the long run (and is a lifesaver for those of us with limited artistic skill).

Step Two: Design

20191207_072824 All you have to do is create a new document, insert a table, and set the row height and column width to fit inside the pouch. For wallet sized, I set the dimensions at 2.2 x 3.3 inches, which let me fit three on a page. Once that’s done, you can fill the space with whatever images, messages, etc. that you want. Each row in your table will become the front and back of one of your cards. For my nieces, I put a picture of us on the front and a personalized message on the back. For my sisters, there’s a picture and holiday message on one side and a list of favorite memories on the other. You can personalize it as much or as little as you want-there’s nothing wrong with using the same design for multiple people, or for everyone. I made five copies, for five of my friends, of the one pictured here. It has a general holiday message, and lines from a Matt Hart poem called “The Friend”.