Penguins go skating pop-up Christmas card

Creating a pop-up Christmas card is a fun way to send seasonal wishes, and this week’s challenge at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown provided the perfect opportunity to craft a charming design. Utilising the adorable ‘Penguins Go Skating’ stamp set and matching dies, along with the ‘Jolly and Merry’ stamp set from Mama Elephant, I embarked on creating a whimsical winter scene. To add depth and interest, I incorporated a piece of designer series paper (DSP), plain white cardstock, and black ink. For the pop-up mechanism, I adapted a tutorial by the talented Sam Calcott, known for her innovative card designs.

Materials Used:

• ‘Penguins Go Skating’ stamp set and coordinating dies by Mama Elephant
• ‘Jolly and Merry’ stamp set by Mama Elephant
• Designer Series Paper (DSP) (from my stash)
• Plain white cardstock
• Black ink pad
• Colouring mediums (e.g., markers or coloured pencils)
• Adhesive
• Scoring tool
• Paper trimmer
• Embellishments (optional)

Creating the Card Base:

1. Card Dimensions: Begin by cutting the white cardstock to your desired card size. For this project, I opted to make a standard A6 size card (10.5 cm x 14.8 cm) to ensure ample space for the pop-up elements, so cut a piece of white cardstock 21 cm x 14.8 cm.
2. Scoring: Score the cardstock in half to create the card base. Ensure a crisp fold by using a bone folder or scoring tool.
3. Stamping: My design included several sentiments stamped on the front of the card using the Jolly and Merry stamp set, stamped in black ink and leaving room to add a panel of dsp, which continued the design in the centre – the real star of the show.

Designing the Pop-Up Mechanism:

Inspired by Sam’s tutorial, I customised the pop-up element to suit a Christmas theme.  As I needed space for my stamped sentiment, I added only 2 pop-up sections for the snowy hills.

1. Inner Pop-Up Pieces: Cut 2 pieces of white cardstock 2″ x the width of the card minus 1/8″. Score each at piece at 1/2″, 1″, and 1 1/2″.  These will serve as the holders of the pop-up scene.
2. Creating a Pop-Up Tab:
   • Determine the placement of your pop-up elements.
   • Cut and score a small piece of white cardstock to create a box-like stand to fit behind one of the elements in the front of the scene.

Stamping and Colouring:

1. Penguin Images: On a separate piece of white cardstock, stamp the penguins from the ‘Penguins Go Skating’ set using black ink. These delightful illustrations by Aida Zamora capture the playful essence of the season.
   mamaelephant.com
2. Sentiments: Choose festive sentiments from the same stamp set and add to the front of your scene, depending on your design preference.
3. Colouring: Use your preferred colouring mediums to bring the penguins to life. Consider traditional festive colours to enhance the seasonal theme. Use the matching dies to cut out the penguins.

Assembling the Card:

1. Front: Adhere the DSP to the front of the card base, ensuring it aligns neatly with the edges. Add one of the die cut penguins using dimensional adhesive.
2. Inner Scene: Attach a piece of dsp as a backdrop to the scene. Adhere the pop-up strips of cardstock to the inside of the card, creating long tabs and adding die cut snowy hills to each section.
3. Adding Pop-Up Elements: Affix the coloured penguin images to the pop-up tabs, ensuring they stand upright when the card is opened.
4. Embellishments: Add any additional embellishments if desired, such as snowflakes or glitter, to enhance the festive feel.

This project beautifully combines the whimsical charm of Mama Elephant’s ‘Penguins Go Skating’ stamp set with the interactive surprise of a pop-up card, which folds flat for posting. By adapting Sam Calcott’s tutorial, I was able to create a cute and delightful Christmas card, perfect for this week’s 52 Christmas Card Throwdown challenge.

For those interested in exploring more of Sam Calcott’s innovative card designs, you can find her tutorials on her YouTube channel, Mixed Up Craft youtube.com

I hope you’ve been inspired to join in this week’s challenge – we’d love to see what you make.

Happy crafting!