How to Make a Paper Tole Card

I used to do a lot of paper tole when the children were smaller, usually at night when they were in bed. It was a way for me to unwind from a frantic day before I went to bed.

I love the detail in these 3D cards and they are so easy to do.

You can buy kits from craft shops, or you can be a true Cheapskate and make your own.

You will need:
1 sheet of good quality wrapping paper - don't skimp, the paper needs to be a good quality to withstand the layering and glue
PVA glue
Curved nail scissors
A blank card - size is up to you and will depend on the size of your image.
Foam sticky dots or matchsticks cut into 10mm lengths (I prefer to use sticky dots, you can get them at any $2 or craft shop)

Step 1. Decide how many layers you want on your card. Traditionally paper tole is between 5 - 7 layers. For a card up to 4 layers is enough - you don't want the card design too deep to be able to fit an envelope or post.

Step 2. Choose your image. Using your nail scissors cut out the number of images you need - in my example I've cut out four.

Step 3. Taking one complete image, carefully cut around the edge using the curved nail scissors. Curved nail scissors make cutting the fine detail so much easier than regular craft scissors and give the edges of the image a nice finish. Glue this image to the card. This is your base.

Step 4. Taking the next image, choose which parts you are going to layer onto the base. Use the nail scissors to cut them out. Using the sticky dots, stick them in place over the corresponding part of the base image.

Step 5. Continue as above with the third image, layering with the sticky dots to give finer detail.

Step 6. The fourth and last layer is the layer with the finest detail. You may need to cut the sticky dots in half as the layers are small for this step.

Step 7. Add a sentiment if desired - handwritten, stamped or pre-made and glued in place.

And there you have it - a gorgeous paper tole card for the price of a sheet of wrapping paper and a blank card - under $2.50. And depending on the size of the design you choose you will get at least four cards from one sheet of wrapping paper, bring the cost down even more.