Making cross stitch cards is super easy, and now you can do it too! In this tutorial I show you how to make a Double Fold Aperture Card. You only need a few supplies, a pretty cross stitch and some imagination. For unusual or larger card sizes I find this site very helpful: http://www.thecraftyowl.co.uk/envelopeexpert/ If you choose to mount your cross stitch into a ready made aperture card, you can follow from Step 16 onwards. Materials required: cross stitch design iron on interfacing (optional) card, card stock or poster paper (large enough for triple the width of your finished card) double sided tape or glue a sharp stanley knife/craft knife eraser pencil bone folder (optional) ruler trimmings double sided roll on tape (for envelope) Method: 1. Iron interfacing to the rear of your cross stitch design if you feel it needs it (recommended for linen fabric, especially). 2. Choose a card colour that compliments your design, in a weight heavy enough to support your cross stitch and able to stand upright. (160-240gsm recommended) 3. Decide on the border you would like around your cross stitch design, where the aperture window is going to be cut. (yellow pins) 4. Decide on how much of a border (frame) you would like around this 1st measurement. (I used a 1" border. red pins). 5. Measure out the HEIGHT of your card onto the piece of coloured card. 6. Measure out the WIDTH of your card and mark this measurement 3 times onto the coloured card. 7. Measure a 2mm cutting line on the inside of the left side panel. 8. Using a ruler, and working on the middle panel, carefully measure out the desired frame for your aperture window (Step 4.) Measure from the fold lines in towards the centre of the panel. Overlap your measuring lines to make it easier for cutting. 9. Using a ruler and a stanley knife/craft knife carefully cut out the aperture window, starting and ending at each point where the lines overlap. Take care to not go past the overlapped lines, as this will be visible on the front of your card! Use a SHARP knife, as a blunt one will not give you a neat cut line. 10. Lay the aperture window over your cross stitch to make sure you are happy with the size of the window. 11. Cut the card out following the lines you have ruled, including the 2mm strip on the left side. 12. Carefully erase all the pencil lines that will be surrounding your cross stitch. 13. Trim the excess fabric surrounding your cross stitch design. I do this by finding the halfway point between the aperture window and the card height and width measurements. Be EXTREMELY careful to not cut away too much fabric - you need enough left to be able to adhere the fabric to the card securely. 14. Carefully fold the card inwards along the fold lines (using an optional bone folder will give a sharper fold), for both the left and right sides. 15. Look over the card and make sure you are happy before proceeding. At this stage if you are not completely happy and need to re-do the process, you've only wasted a small amount of card and your time.... and haven't damaged your cross stitch in any way. 16. Place double sided tape around the aperture window (on the wrong side), as close as possible without it hanging over the edge. You can use thin or wide tape, depending on the size of your card. 17. Lay the cross stitch over the top to ensure you have placed the tape in the correct position. 18. Remove the backing tape, turn the card over to the right side, and carefully line up the aperture window to where you want it to sit around your cross stitch design. Take your time! 19. Working on the wrong side again, place double sided tape around the left side panel - how much you use is up to you. 20. Remove the backing tape and stick the card down into place, covering the rear of the cross stitch. 21. Now all that's left to do is to trim your card - should you wish to! Your only limit is your imagination! Don't forget to add your greeting on the inside :) Envelope Punch Board from We R Memory Keepers was used to create custom envelopes. I highly recommend purchasing one of these if you are going to make cards on a regular basis. I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. I will be uploading more card tutorials using different techniques in the near future. Thanks for watching - take care, and happy stitching :) x

• published: 05 Aug 2015
• views: 1994