By Ashley McCleery

The North Jefferson News



In this booming electronic age, greeting cards are still making their way into the hands of millions via snail mail.

Starting last year, card makers even celebrated their own national holiday — National Card Making Day.

Founded by Paper Crafts magazine in an effort to bring card makers together, the National Card Making Day, held on Oct. 7, 2006, received such a positive response and worldwide popularity that it transformed into World Card Making Day.

This year on Oct. 6 from 10 a.m. to noon, North Jefferson residents can grab their stamps and markers and participate in the first World Card Making Day at the Gardendale Civic Center.

As an independent demonstrator of Stampin’ Up, a manufacturer and distributor of decorative rubber stamps and accessories for card making and scrapbooking, Sharla Foy will teach the class about hand stamping cards.

For $25, each participant will stamp 10 cards, creating Christmas, fall/Thanksgiving and all occasion greeting cards. If a participant brings a friend along, the price drops to $20.

Foy’s been creating cards for 10 years, and she said the hobby is perfect for beginner or advanced crafters.

“A lot of people say, ‘I’m not crafty. I’m not artsy.’ But in Stampin’ Up, the artwork is already done for you,” Foy said. “If you are artistic and crafty, you can take it to another level and make it your own with unique designs.”

Throughout the years, Foy said it’s been the perfect creative outlet, allowing her to bless other people with her handiwork. “It’s great just getting to be with other people and making stuff that other people will enjoy,” Foy said. “In our email world, people really enjoy getting a hand stamped card, knowing that you made it.”

In fact, Courtney Hall said she liked the concept of creating a card for others so much that she scheduled Princess Girlz, a Biblically based club for girls ages 5-12, to make cards.

“We’re going to use a craft to teach them about letting others know you care,” Hall, leader of Princess Girlz, said. “We want them to be a service to others and make another person feel as special as they do.”

Not only does Stampin’ Up’s celebration of World Card Making Day teach the art of making cards, but it also provides an opportunity for local card makers to connect with each other.

“Making cards is also my time with the girls because I make so many friends through scrapbooking and rubberstamping,” Foy said. “You meet people from all different walks of life.”

To learn more about World Card Making Day, call Sharla Foy at 631-4603 or 616-5715. For more information about Princess Girlz contact Courtney Hall at 966-6221.