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Aside from the ever so popular A2 card, what are your favorite size cards to make?
I'd like to start making different sizes this year. I plan on 5x5, 6x6 and 5x7. I'd also like to make some of the longer/skinnier cards. Not sure what size those are? Any ideas?
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A2 will always be my #1 pick since it uses a sheet of cardstock so perfectly and fits Invitation envelopes so well.
Other thoughts:
Mailing minimum size: 3-1/2 x 5. That's the size of Stampin' Up! note cards (and envelopes - 3-5/8 x 5-1/.
Max size for mailing as a letter: 6-1/8 x 11-1/2.
Any size square up to the limitations of your cardstock, but remember that square envelopes need extra postage. You can sometimes get around that by using a standard envelope and leaving a gap. I usually opt for in-person delivery of square cards whether large or small. A 4-1/4 square leaves only a nice slice of CS as a leftover and, of course, 12 x 12 CS yields some nice 3 x 3's and 6 x 6's with no waste.
If you want "easy" for ready-made envelopes, you can make large and small "business size". The larger is #10 so make the card about 4 x 9-1/4. For Monarch, the smaller one, use 3-3/4 x 7-1/4.
You can use the envelope punch board to make just about any size envelope. There's also an app that I use called Envelope Generator that's very helpful.
I really don't like the A-2 size cards; they are too small for my big bulky fingers. I found a size of card at Hobby Lobby that is 5 x 6 1/2. I find it much easier to work in this space.
I have on occasion used 8 1/2 by 11 cs folded the long way and a legal size envelope. I don't know why I don't do it more often except that I never think of it. Great for words going down instead of across or for multiple small elements, including window cut outs.
Square cards cost more in postage to mail. If I make a square card I usually use a different sized envelope for mailing to avoid the additional postage cost.
__________________ The quickest way for a parent to get a child's attention is to sit down and look comfortable. Practice safe eating always use condiments
A9 size is my favorite, hands down. (That's an 8 1/2 X 11 sheet folded in half- to give you an 8 1/2 X 5 1/2 card)
I have always felt that A2 is too small- when I'm sending somebody a card, I want it to make an impression! I get that A2 is cost effective, and I really feel that it's popularity is due to Stampin Up demos making that size almost exclusively. Most of the direct sales stamp companies make their stamps to suit that size card, too.
For me, though, a big card helps express a specialness that an A2 card cannot equal. With a few exceptions, most of the cards in my gallery are 8 1/2 X 5 1/2.
I stock up on A9 envelopes from PaperPapers when they run a discount on clearance, so I have plenty on hand (seriously, get on their email list- I have gotten such great metallic cs & envelopes from them!).
Depending on how embellished the card is, it's usually around $1 for postage, so big deal! Two stamps!
Other than the A2 size, I like 5x7. I also was gifted some square cards, and I look forward to creating with those! Thank you for letting us know they require extra postage. I did not know that. I would have hated to get them back in the mailbox. If it's a special card, it would be worth it. I would think that would be a good size for sending gift cards etc.. also.
A9 size is my favorite, hands down. (That's an 8 1/2 X 11 sheet folded in half- to give you an 8 1/2 X 5 1/2 card)
I have always felt that A2 is too small- when I'm sending somebody a card, I want it to make an impression! I get that A2 is cost effective, and I really feel that it's popularity is due to Stampin Up demos making that size almost exclusively. Most of the direct sales stamp companies make their stamps to suit that size card, too.
For me, though, a big card helps express a specialness that an A2 card cannot equal. With a few exceptions, most of the cards in my gallery are 8 1/2 X 5 1/2.
I stock up on A9 envelopes from PaperPapers when they run a discount on clearance, so I have plenty on hand (seriously, get on their email list- I have gotten such great metallic cs & envelopes from them!).
Depending on how embellished the card is, it's usually around $1 for postage, so big deal! Two stamps!
I have paid over $2.25 for an A2 card that is embellished which requires non machineable and postage due to additional weight.
Only special family members will receive special non machineable cards.
I sent out over 35 flat A@ cards for christmas this year. only received 8 cards. So next year I'm only sending to family and just a few friends. I will return a card that is sent to me. So next year postage will be affordable. Just my take.
__________________ The quickest way for a parent to get a child's attention is to sit down and look comfortable. Practice safe eating always use condiments
5 3/4 square is my favourite - and luckily there's no surcharge for mailing square cards here. It's probably because that's the size I used to buy when there was an online Irish shop and that's what they stocked. They went out of business a few years ago and now I buy from their source and stick to the same size - but sometimes I find myself matting it up onto a 6" square.
I'm also increasingly finding that my cards end up a little bigger than A2 (well, the metric equivalent which we describe as A6) and find 7 x 5 a nice size to work with. But impossible to buy envelopes for here, so that means making them.
99.9% of my cards are A2. I find bigger cards are more like a scrapbook page and I don’t know what do to to fill the space! I have made less than half a dozen 5 x 7 for a special occasion where many people were wanting to sign inside.
I have made longer gift certificate cards, they were a special order for a business. I think at that time as made 30 and haven’t since then.
I buy Invitation sized envelopes in bulk and the super rare time I need something bigger, I have bought boxed Christmas cards I can filch an envelope from.
I have paid over $2.25 for an A2 card that is embellished which requires non machineable and postage due to additional weight.
Only special family members will receive special non machineable cards.
I sent out over 35 flat A@ cards for christmas this year. only received 8 cards. So next year I'm only sending to family and just a few friends. I will return a card that is sent to me. So next year postage will be affordable. Just my take.
I once sent a Christmas card, very fancy with lots of layers and embellishments to my in-laws in the UK, and it cost over $12 to mail!
BTW- I just found this out recently- Do you all know about "extra ounce" stamps? 21 cents, which is also the non-machinable cost. Neat little item to have around.
Cook22, just thought I'd mention this, although our rules here in the UK may be different to yours. I always thought there was no extra charge for square cards, until I was looking at the Royal Mail website before Christmas. They stipulate that to go in normal mail, an envelope must be rectangular- I never knew that before. So a Square card, regardless of dimensions, needs a Large Letter stamp.
For 5x7 envelopes, This online store, Ideal Envelopes, I've used a lot and they stock them.
I tend to make a wide variety of shapes and sizes- 5x7, all sizes of square,folded A4, even occasionally a full A4 size. Lately I have made a lot of your notecard size, which is something I'd not done before.
From one sheet of cardstock you can cut a 5" x 10" piece for a 5" square card, and have a 3.5" x 11" piece leftover for a 3.5" x 5.5" card. Those are my go-to sizes besides A2.
I make all sorts of cards sizes, but my go-to is a 5x7. I make A2's when I want a notecard. Since I make all my own envelopes, the size of the card isn't an issue for me. I just make the envelope to fit the card. When I send a card the cost of mailing it is not my primary concern because I only send cards to people who I care about. I don't make cards to sell and I haven't yet made cards en masse to donate to organizations for them to use or give away (in those cases mailing costs does become a real issue). A handmade card is a gift and when I want to cheer up a friend or send a birthday or holiday card of any size to friends and family, my main concerns are the WOW factor of the card and having fun making it, not how much it costs to mail it.
Since I started using many of the Magnolia (Tilda and Edwin) stamps, I've made mostly 6 x 6 cards. The stamps are large enough that they are difficult to do much with them on an A2 card. I love to heavily embellish them and use lots of flowers. So I bite the bullet and mail most of them in a box. I know the card reaches its destination in good condition.
Like bjy1947 above, I mostly make 5 X 6 1/2, although I buy the bases at Michaels. I buy the pack of 50 cards with 50 envelopes. They are $9.99, but often they are on sale half price. Ten cents for a card and envelope is worth not having to make my own. It is a nice large size to allow multiple layers. Another plus is that with the white ( or you can buy ivory) inside, your message always shows up. A hint ( that it took me about 15 years to come up with!) is to have a paper on your work table with all the layer sizes written down. Ex: 1/8” border - 4 3/4 X 6 1/4, 1/4” border - 4 1/2 X 6.
I love square cards - I do 4.75x4.75", 5x5", and 5.5x5.5", depending on the image. Canada Post allows 5.5x5.5" square at no extra cost. My smaller ones are usually mailed in A2 envelopes or hand-delivered.
__________________ Susan
My SCS gallery is here should you care to look! Or please visit my blog, Cardmaker's Garret.
The Minimum & Maximum sizes that the Post takes is NICE to know! I've been wondering this myself. Wanting to make sets of Note Cards for gifts for people. They'd probably want to mail them. LOL
I usually don't venture far from A2 size cards. I'm like some of you, it makes it hard to fill all that space up! LOL If I have a larger die, like some of Spellbinders Dies.... You HAVE TO make the larger size cards! That's about the ONLY TIME I make larger cards! ;)
Thanks For asking this question, I have been thinking of doing more cards this year then the standard A2 which has been my go to for the last 15 years, yet I still find the 4.25 x 5.5 a little small after all those years
If it’s been a milestone year for someone, then I have either made larger up to the 5.5 x 8.5, I think I prefer a bit smaller then the half sheet, but they definitely feel more special the A2
I also really did like the few long skinny ones, I think A9, that I have made
This year I bought some envelopes that will fit a 4.5 x 6 card A6, so
I will try that
I also want try 5x7 I think that would be a nice size, now I know where to look for envelopes
I feel if I were to try and sell some cards anything bigger then A2, bigger ones would be more popular, not sure how much I would charge but I think if an A2 card was $3 and you basically recreated the same thing with an extra layer you could almost double the price
I mostly make A2 size. I find, especially with "blank" cards I make where I don't put a pre-printed/stamped sentiment on the inside, I sometimes have trouble finding enough to say to write in a larger card! Especially if I don't know the person all that well. Some years ago, I used to have cards printed with a photo of a painting I'd done for our Christmas cards on the front. One year, the company messed up the printing, so the picture had little white specks all over it. They reprinted the cards, and just told me to keep the mis-printed originals. Well, I got rid of the original cards, but kept the envelopes. They sent me a whole new set of envelopes with the reprinted cards, so now I have a bunch of the original envelopes to use! They are not quite 5x7" (I measured, & they will hold a 4.5x7.25" card). So if I need a slightly-larger-than-A2-size card, I make one to fit one of those envelopes. I still have several of them, too! LOL I have also made A9 size on occasion, if it's one that several people have to sign.
I mostly make A2 size. I find, especially with "blank" cards I make where I don't put a pre-printed/stamped sentiment on the inside, I sometimes have trouble finding enough to say to write in a larger card! Especially if I don't know the person all that well.
Same here! This is the very thing that keeps me from sending cards more often.
I did recently buy a package of post it notes that say "Share Handmade Kiness! Carefully remove this message and send this card on to a loved one!" Makes it possible for the recipient to use the card if they wish.
I almost always make A2 cards, because it's hard for me to fill up the front of a larger card size. I do have a few packs of the 5x7 cards, but often end up cutting them down to A2 size. The only time I've used 5x7 cards were for kids' birthday cards that used a lot of pre-printed papers and embellishments (as in Disney, or Disney princess).
My second favorite size and shape is a long, tall card shape that will fit into a business sized envelope. I bought a pack of colored envelopes some years back that are slightly smaller than the size 10 business envelopes..and I use those too.
On occasion, I even make shaped cards, but usually stick to standard rectangular designs.
I've noticed that a lot of crafters in the UK make square cards almost exclusively. Funny how popular card sizes are different for the UK than from the US.
Karen
I think we use a lot of square cards over here, as up to 6" square goes by normal letter post,( 65p & 76p, 2nd class & First Class) and 7" & 8" only require a Large Letter stamp(88p & £1.15). As long as they're not too heavily embellished, of course, as there is a maximum thickness too. I think a lot of use use the larger sizes for those being hand delivered.
I think we use a lot of square cards over here, as up to 6" square goes by normal letter post,( 65p & 76p, 2nd class & First Class) and 7" & 8" only require a Large Letter stamp(88p & £1.15). As long as they're not too heavily embellished, of course, as there is a maximum thickness too. I think a lot of use use the larger sizes for those being hand delivered.
I've noticed that about the large cards. Most of the crafting shows that I watch are broadcast from the UK, and the cards being demonstrated are huge (at least to me in the US). They are lovely. I make a lot of 5 1/2 in. square and 6 in. square because of how much I can do with all that real estate, and because many of the Crafter's Companion dies are really scaled for that size card. When they get to the 7 x 7 and 8 x 8, I think, "Well, now, that's a scrapbook page in my world." The postage would be prohibitive over here.
I think we use a lot of square cards over here, as up to 6" square goes by normal letter post,( 65p & 76p, 2nd class & First Class) and 7" & 8" only require a Large Letter stamp(88p & £1.15). As long as they're not too heavily embellished, of course, as there is a maximum thickness too. I think a lot of use use the larger sizes for those being hand delivered.
Oh, I didn't know that square cards go for normal postage, so that explains a lot. I did wonder why almost all of the cards that I see in UK card magazines are square, and many are really large as well.
Karen
I've noticed that about the large cards. Most of the crafting shows that I watch are broadcast from the UK, and the cards being demonstrated are huge (at least to me in the US). They are lovely. I make a lot of 5 1/2 in. square and 6 in. square because of how much I can do with all that real estate, and because many of the Crafter's Companion dies are really scaled for that size card. When they get to the 7 x 7 and 8 x 8, I think, "Well, now, that's a scrapbook page in my world." The postage would be prohibitive over here.
Yes, I've noticed the Crafters Companion dies (and many of the Creative Expressions as well) are sized for large square cards but I have learned to cut them down to fit a smaller A2 card. It's rare that I make a 5x7 card, unless it's for a wedding, or a kids card. Whenever I try it, I end up with too much space and not enough ideas.
I keep most of the handmade cards that I receive, because I rarely get one, so the really large cards would also be harder to store. I was lucky enough to win a card made by Sue Wilson, who designs dies for Creative Expressions, and it's large enough to frame.
Karen
I guess I should change my name to Goldilocks....because A2 cards are just too small (they limit my creativity) and 5x7 a lot of times are too large (especially if you want to fill up the inside with a handwritten message)....so my preferred size is 4x6 or A6 (4-1/2x6-1/4) but its not as easy to find this size.
I never heard of square cards costing more to mail! That must be a US thing. I usually make square cards (5 1/2 x 5 1/2 or 6x6) here in the UK. Oh dear, I mail them to family in the US. Will they have to pay extra postage????? I'm glad to hear about this. From now on I'll not make square cards for the US, if the recipients have to pay extra. Can someone please clarify that?
I never heard of square cards costing more to mail! That must be a US thing. I usually make square cards (5 1/2 x 5 1/2 or 6x6) here in the UK. Oh dear, I mail them to family in the US. Will they have to pay extra postage????? I'm glad to hear about this. From now on I'll not make square cards for the US, if the recipients have to pay extra. Can someone please clarify that?
I've always assumed that the postage paid at the point of origin is fine for the destination (unless it's under value at the point of origin, but even then I doubt if that would be picked up with international. I probably overstamp quite a lot of mine, preferring to err on the side of caution if I think they're thicker than a regular envelope). There has to be some system like that for international mail, surely. I send a LOT of square cards to the US and nobody has ever mentioned having to pay extra on receipt. I'd like to hope that at least a couple of people would have mentioned if there was an issue.
I never heard of square cards costing more to mail! That must be a US thing. I usually make square cards (5 1/2 x 5 1/2 or 6x6) here in the UK. Oh dear, I mail them to family in the US. Will they have to pay extra postage????? I'm glad to hear about this. From now on I'll not make square cards for the US, if the recipients have to pay extra. Can someone please clarify that?
I'm pretty sure that the sender pays all postage and the recipient isn't charged for a square card. The only time there will be postage-due is if it is over the weight required for that amount of postage. It costs more to send a square card here in the US, but I've gotten them from the UK and never had to pay postage.
Karen
If I'm not making an A2 card, then I'm making an A7 one. In fact, I just made one this morning. I like the challenge of limited space that the A2 provides, but sometimes a stamp just needs a little more room to breath. Then I jump to the A7. I also do other sizes, but those two are my go to sizes.
I make 5x7 mostly. I like this thread. I was thinking about this just Yesterday when I got the Cricut Joy Card mat in. It had all these different sizes and I thought to myself "Wow, I always make 5x7." I was thinking the Joy was going to shake up my comfort zone. I also make note size cards to. I think that is 4x5.5.
I love making square cards but it seems our PO doesn’t as they cost more to mail. I think it’s because I buy the base card and envelopes together and it’s easier for me. Sometimes I make big cards...it depends on what mood I’m in. Enjoy.
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Favorite size card to make?
