Last Updated on July 6, 2022 by Ellen Christian
Learning how to make an artist trading card is a fun way to share your individual style with friends and family. Check out these trading card making ideas for beginners.
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How To Make an Artist Trading Card
An Artist Trading Card (ATC) is a 2 1/2″ x 3 1/2″ card that has been personalized with words, images, doodles, pictures, photos, etc. They are fun to tuck into cards, letters, and packages. There are groups for people who enjoy making them where they trade the ATC’s with other members. Often, each month there is a theme and everyone in the group will make an ATC that involves that theme (spring, red, music, etc.)
I love to doodle and draw and scrapbook, but I don’t really like big projects. But, I want to be able to finish the project in less than an hour and move on to something different. I just don’t have the attention span for larger projects.
Check out these artist trading cards for kids or beginners for inspiration.
Supplies
- Cardstock that has been cut to 2 1/2″ x 3 1/2″ in size. You can buy ATC blanks on Amazon.
- Something to draw with (markers, crayons, colored pencils, pens, water colors, etc.)
- Bits and pieces of ribbon, stickers, magazine cuttings, glitter, glue, etc.
Directions
- Decide what you want the ATC to look like by practicing on a sheet of plain paper first. Just doodle and get creative. You can pick a theme or just let yourself do whatever comes to mind. I used the book Creative Lettering by Jenny Doh to give me ideas of what type of lettering I should use.
- Create the front of your ATC by drawing, gluing on images, doodling, writing, painting, etc.
- On the back of your ATC, add your signature. Some creative artists also put a link to their website so when they trade the cards with others, people can come and visit their site.
Pro Tips
One of the things that I struggled with the most when I first started making artist trading cards is cutting a straight line. Many people store their ATCs in small sleeve protectors.
If your ATC is not exactly the right size, it won’t fit. I invested in a personal paper trimmer (this is the brand I have on Amazon) that made it much easier.
You can use an artist trading card for a variety of different things. It can serve as a business card. You can enclose it like a gift card with a gift. If you have direct sales or Etsy business, you can use it as a thank you card when people place an order.
Or you can simply make them as a fun way to relax and get creative at the end of the day. Now that you’ve learned how to make an artist trading card, will you be trying? Stuck for ideas? There are a lot of art trading card examples on Pinterest.
You may also like:
- How to make cards using family photographs
- Family vacation scrapbook ideas
- How to make a gratitude journal
Ellen is a busy mom of a 24-year-old son and 29-year-old daughter. She owns six blogs and is addicted to social media. She believes that it doesn’t have to be difficult to lead a healthy life. She shares simple healthy living tips to show busy women how to lead fulfilling lives. If you’d like to work together, email info@confessionsofanover-workedmom.com to chat.
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