Oriental Christmas card

You will need

Blank grey card 10 x 21cm (4 x 8 ¼in)
Pink and white card 10 x 10cm (4 x 4in)
Grey card 18cm (7in) square
Tracing paper and pencil
Midnight sparkle glitter glue
Green felt-tip pen
Hole punch
Snowflake and flower craft punches
Glitter braid and fine green glitter thread
Sticky tape, double-sided sticky tape and double-sided sticky pads
Scissors, cuticle scissors and serrated craft scissors
Tweezers, craft knife and cutting mat
Compasses or circle templates
Template (see here)

Tip

If you have not use glitter glue before, practise a few lines first, keeping the nozzle slightly above the card, then lowering it and pulling away quickly at the end of each branch. An elastic band around the glitter glue tube and the attached nozzle will keep the nozzle cover out of the way while you are piping.

Step 1

Draw the branches on to the card with a pencil and then start piping with the glitter glue. Leave for a few hours until the glue has dried and flattened.

Step 2

Draw nine circles 17mm (5 8ths of an inch) in diameter. Cut them out using your serrated craft scissors, making sure that there are an even number of notches on each.

Step 3

Attach the green thread to the back of the circle using a small piece of sticky tape. Pull it over the front and round the back three times between two opposite notches, before moving clockwise one notch and repeating this action.

Step 4

Continue working the thread clockwise all around the circle to make a pine symbol. Secure the thread at the back with sticky tape. Repeat this process with the remaining circles.

Step 5

Punch seven pink and five white flowers using the flower craft punch; then seven white and five pink snowflakes using the snowflake craft punch; then, using the hole punch, seven white and seven pink circles, which will be buds.

Step 6

Stick a square of double-sided sticky tape in the middle of a flower.

Tip

Tweezers make an excellent substitute for fingernails when working with tiny pieces

Step 7

Put a piece of double-sided sticky tape on the back of a snowflake. Stick the glitter braid to it and wind it round the front and back of the flake spokes. This step is very fiddly, so use your tweezers: cut the braid and position the snowflake in the centre of the flower. Repeat with the remaining flowers.

Step 8

Place a square of double-sided sticky tape on the back of each pine symbol, and position them as indicated on the diagram.

Step 9

Place a square of double-sided sticky tape on the back of each flower and a tiny piece on each bud, and position them as shown right.

Step 10

Transfer the Chinese letters on to a piece of grey card, then colour them with the green pen. Using the circle template and the embossing tool, emboss a circle round the letters. Carefully cut around the circle using the cuticle scissors (inset).

Step 11

Attach four sticky pads to the back of the circle.