Designing Holidays

Don't expect me to always be this sentimental. But this post calls for it. Last year, just seconds before the Fourth of July, I became an aunt to the most amazing little niece, Shea. She has a bright smile that shows off her dimples, is wonderfully cheerful, and likes to play with my hat. She's all sorts of special, so from the day she was born I decided to use my design skills and make her greeting cards to celebrate each of her major "first holidays". I'm hoping someday when she's older, she can look at them and know how much she means to me (and maybe think her aunt is awesome).

This past Saturday we celebrated her first birthday, and as such I think now would be a fitting time to show off these cards.

Newborn Baby Card

Card made for Shea the day she was born, exterior.

Card I made for Shea the day she was born, interior.

The theme for Shea's room is ladybug's, so I incorporated that theme into this card for the day she was born. The illustrations were originally created with watercolors, and the card itself is an inkjet print on bristol board. The front has a sort of shiny embellishment on the flower-like designs, achieved by use of a clear dimensional accent liquid (I believe it's specifically called "Inkssentials Glossy Accent, by Ranger" for anyone who's wondering).

Halloween Card

Halloween card, exterior.

I went with a sort of comic sequence for the illustrations in Shea's Halloween card. The story unfolds as you open the card. And she really was dressed up as a monkey--that should explain the otherwise random monkey costume. Illustrations were originally made with watercolors and colored pencils, and the card is again an inkjet print on bristol board.

Halloween card, interior, partially opened.

Close-up of the inside illustration.

The interior of the Halloween card, partially-opened and revealing a continuation of the comic sequence from the front. 

Halloween card, interior, fully-opened.

Close-up of the inside illustration.

The fully-opened interior of the Halloween card, showing the conclusion of the comic sequence. I'm pretty happy with the way the illustration turned out--according to Jen, I really captured Shea's smile here!

Thanksgiving Card

Thanksgiving card, unopened.

Thanksgiving card, opened.

This was an incredibly experimental card, as the format was radically different from anything I had done prior. The illustration was still originally watercolor, and it's yet another inkjet print on bristol board. But clearly, this isn't just a bi-fold or tri-fold card. Each feather is a separate piece, and together they act as a fan. Pulling the little white ribbon "opens" the card and reveals a "Happy Thanksgiving" message. A more detailed note is shown by opening up the turkey's stubby wings.

The process of getting the fan to work involved a lot of planning and experimenting in a short amount of time. It's a lot more involved than it appears.

Christmas Card

Christmas card, exterior.

Christmas card, interior.

I wish I had more time to work on this card. When my original idea ended up not working out, I needed to go the much simpler route in a rush and had to combine Christmas and the New Year. But given those circumstances, I'm pleased with the results.

The animals on the front, made in Illustrator, are cut-outs and sort of pop out from the rest of the card. This 3D-effect was achieved with craft foam. Inside, as the card unfolds vertically, a unique snowflake design adorns each page. The snowflakes were made with white craft foam and were a royal tedious pain to cut out cleanly.

Valentine's Day Card

Valentine's Day card.

To be honest, I had no intention of making a Valentine's card, seeing as I don't think much of the holiday myself. But it was my niece's first Valentine's Day after all, so at the last minute I whipped up something simple and sweet. My sister really likes owls (specifically "cute" ones), so I used a couple of "cute" owls here.

This is a pretty simple single-page card with a fairly tedious process, especially cutting out the individual leaves in the tree. I was sort of inspired by the previous Christmas card to employ a 3D-effect with craft foam--everything pops from the background. Again, illustrations were originally made with watercolor, and I did some light detailing in Photoshop. Everything is an inkjet print on bristol board.

Easter Card

Easter card, "unhatched".

Easter card, "hatched".

Oh man, this card probably required the most planning. It features a sort of pull-tab feature. Each little Easter animal pops out of an egg and holds up a sign spelling out Shea's name. It's such a saccharine level of sweet, I almost got a cavity making this. 

Before even working on the final card, I made some sketch models so I knew where to put stoppers for the slide effect, how big to make the animals in relation to their respective egg, etc. There are multiple layers created with trusty craft foam, which also helps the pull-tab and slide effects. The eggs were made with patterned craft paper, and all other illustrations are colored pencil drawings on bristol board. The sky is made of a translucent blue paper, so the light behind it affects its appearance.

I am also well aware that rabbits and sheep do not hatch from eggs. 

First Birthday Card

First birthday card, exterior.

First birthday card, interior.

And finally, the last of the "first holiday" cards, printed on craft paper board. This calls back to the card I made for Shea when she was born in that it refers to the ladybug theme again, using an illustration created in Illustrator. The birthday party also had a tropical luau theme, so I had the ladybug standing on the beach wearing a grass Hula skirt and flower on her head, made with craft raffia.

Opening up the card reveals a fireworks display. A little story: when my sister was in the hospital waiting to have Shea, there was an early Fourth of July fireworks show nearby that could be seen from her window. I wanted to incorporate that into the card somehow. There is a wheel behind the punched fireworks holes that you can spin, and the colors change. The wheel is covered in tin foil and colored with Sharpie markers--this makes the fireworks look like they "shine".

-------------------------------------------

 So there ya go, a series of first holiday cards for an awesome little niece. If she ever has a little brother or sister, they can be sure to get their own special cards as well.