DIY Christmas Card Tutorial - Using Mica Powder

Christmas 2024 is only 2 days away! So I thought I'd go old school with a quick last minute DIY craft tutorial.  In the way of Christmas cards, using beautiful sparkly mica powder.  I'm not a stranger to this kind of crafting, check out my old post here from Ihanna's DIY Art postcard swap.  Where I used Brusho pigment powders to create my postcards.  This tutorial works in very much the same way, but then finished off with the usual card crafting paraphernalia.

On a side note, what a weird Christmas season it's been this year.  Lots of people have said how it doesn't really feel like it.  I've had major ick stuff happening in my immediate area, like, distressing stuff we see in the news every day.  But because it's not in our immediate lives, we can detach.  Well! Two incidences I won't go into that left me reeling, with the 'bad news' right on my doorstep! It was a lot.  And I can't help but feel deeply about the fact the world just seems to be burning around us.  My ADHD intuition radar is going off the scale! But, a blog for another day perhaps! I digress.  Let's focus back on lighter things such as the sparkle of Christmas! 

For this tutorial - You Will Need:

• An old, empty body spray bottle.  Emptied, rinsed and filled with tap water.
• Your Mica or Brusho pigment powders (I used Mica powders particularly as they are sparkly.  The Brusho ones are bold and non sparkly).
• Some water colours if you want to add some extra colours around the mica powder design.
• White card blanks (can be square, rectangle etc.  Whatever you have in your craft stash!)
• Various Christmas themed card toppers.
• Embellishments to add the finishing touches, such as gems, pearls, stickers etc.
• Christmas sentiment toppers.  This can easily be done by typing out and printing on some decent card stock.  I chose a very simple 'Merry Christmas'.
• Double sided tape.  Foam pads if you want to add height.

The idea of this is to create a sparkly background using the mica powders and then simply top with card toppers, a Christmas sentiment and some finishing touches of gems or pearls.  I was feeling a bit bored of using background papers.  Which is what I usually start with, then finish in the same way.  I've been desperate for some creative time.  This way, I got to relax with the making of the backgrounds.  It was definitely what I was craving! Being able to switch off and get in the flow.  Thinking about what colours would suit my recipients and designing each card with them in mind.  I love putting this much thought into it and really thinking about what they would like. 

I've tried to take two different angles here, one so you can see it as it is.  And one angled for the shine.  This dull winter weather makes it tricky for photos but you get the gist! This was an extra card I did that I'm not quite sure on the colour combo.  But I think, once I add the toppers and bits, it'll probably look alright as a whole! Once the background is done, it's the 'messy middle' (often spoken about in the 'Get Messy' art community).  Where you have to trust your creative process.  This is also helped by taking a break to let it dry.  I can start losing focus or start doubting my art.  Being able to stop, take a step back and come back to it fresh, certainly helps me to re-focus! I have the habit of not knowing when to stop.  So having to let it dry is a good added step for the discipline of this!

Method

​Here are the specific steps to recreate your own:
​
1. Choose your colours.  I would pick two or three that compliment each other or contrast well.

2. You can do this next step either way, spray with water first, then sprinkle with the powder.  Or vice versa.  It creates the same result but probably gives more dopamine to spray first then see the powder spread out into the puddles of water! When you do it the other way, powder first, it just kinda blasts the powder off the card when you spray! 😂

3.  Add some water colours in any blank spaces in similar colours to keep the scheme consistent.  Let it all dry.

4. Add a Christmas image card topper, a Christmas sentiment and then finish off with your embellishments.

And that's it! If you're an avid crafter such as myself, where card making was once a hyper focus, I'm sure you will have a graveyard of left over craft stash! 😂👌Mica powders can be bought easily from Ebay, Amazon etc.  Having searched on Ebay, you can pick up a small set of 6 different colours, such as this one for under £4.  All you need to resurrect an old hyper focus and enjoy a new one at the same time, genius!

I hope you're enjoying your Christmas and get all the rest, joy and peace you need! Here's to 2025, strap in, I reckon it's gonna be a wild one! 😲🤯