Eas(el)y does it

Good morning from Podgy, your favourite bear. Last night I had a whirring brain and itchy paws, so I decided to try out a new idea I'd seen in magazines recently; easel cards.

I thought it would be nice to try something different, so I pawrused the Internet for inspiration and found some really lovely creations. I thought the cards might be too difficult for such a small bear as me but decided it would be fun to try anyway.

Of course, half the fun of learning is sharing it with others so here is my tutorial on a simple easel card.

First, you will need to choose a suitable card blank



for this simple easel style an A6 card works well.

Next, gather some basic craft supplies






A comfy chair is a must for crafty bears, and we have a Therapod adjustable office chair, which is so comfortable, it's sometimes difficult not to nod off while card making



Zzzzzz, ugh! sorry, back to the tutorial...

Select your topper. Pooh used a lot of our stash in his recent mega card making spree, but we have been busy making more





Your chosen card blank should be in landscape format


And to achieve the easel effect you will need to fold what will be the front of your card in half, like so. This will create the easel of your finished card.



Now, you will need to cut a piece of cardstock to roughly the size of your unfolded (bottom) piece of card blank.








This can be a little smaller, but must be no bigger, as you need the card to fit into a standard sized envelope when finished.

Now apply glue to the folded front of the card, like so




And adhere your cut card, so it looks like this






Choose some coordinating patterned paper to add interest to your card. If you have punches and corner rounders, you can add some fancy edges to it.


To add a bit of a 'zing' to your topper, try adding some 3d sticky foam to the back



Be careful when using scissors, as they can cut your delicate paws


For the base of the card, you will need to add a 3d sentiment or similar, to allow the easel to stand properly. Cut a small piece of card




And add some 3d foam



This will create a platform for the easel to stand against, and prevent floppy cards.

Before sticking everything, make sure you are happy with the placement of your topper, then stick, stick stick.



I found some silver gems, which match silver in the topper, fabtastic for that extra special finish.



Here's what it looks like from the side



Once folded, it will fit into a regualr envelope, so no need to worry that you won't be able to post to your distant bear friends.



I hope you enjoyed my tutorial, now I'm off on a hunny search.

With love from the bears 🐻