I like making cards, particularly cards that are a little different from everyone else’s. (Otherwise what’s the point – why not just buy someone else’s cards?)

I came up with the idea for this lacy kind of burlesque bodice card while thinking about pirates. Actually, I was making another card, a pirate card (see below), and I started to wonder what a really girly pirate card would look like. It’s not a direct line (my thinking never is), but that thought pattern turned into this card.

So, try it out! It’s wonderfully open ended; leave it blank and people can write as sweet and flowery or as racy and sexy a message as they wish. Just please don’t sell it. Cuz that’s, um, my thing. You’ll have to come up with your own sexy paper goods for that.

What you’ll need:

• a blank card (or cardstock to make one, and a matching envelope)
• pretty paper in 2 coordinating colours
• plain white or undesirably coloured printer paper or cardstock (for making your template)
• ribbon in a colour that goes with your two pretty papers
• a pen or pencil
• scissors
• a hole punch
• a good glue stick
• ruler
• clear nail polish
  
• a paper doily or some lace
• [optional] scrapbooking eyelets, an eyelet setting tool and a hammer

Putting it all together:

1) Make yourself a bodice template. It’s basically a rectangle with a downward curving line cut along one of the short ends.

2) Trace it onto one of your papers, flip it over and trace it again, and cut out these two shapes.

If you like, for some extra detail, take a marker and trace along the outside edge of the bodice shapes.

3) Using your ruler and pen or pencil, score a line about 1/4 to 1/2 inch in from the long edge of each rectangle.

4) Fold along this line.

5) Cut a strip of doily or lace the length of the top of your bodice pieces (minus the folded under bit).

6) Glue this doily/lace strip to the inside of each half of the bodice.

7) Set the bodice pieces aside and “distress” the front edges of your card. I do this with a stamp pad and a Q-tip.

8) When the glue on the bodice pieces is sufficiently dry, punch four evenly spaced holes along the shorter of the two long edges on each bodice half. Make sure the holes on one bodice piece line up with those on the other piece.

9) [optional] Using your eyelet setting tool and hammer, fasten eyelets to each hole.

10) Glue the folded-under flaps to the front of your card, leaving a gap in the middle between the two bodice pieces.

11) Cut a square from your other fancy paper. It should be about 1/2 inch to 1 inch less wide than your card. (I cut the top edge of this square with fancy patterned scissors for another nice bit of detail.)

12) Glue this square inside the flaps of the bodice.

13) Taking your ribbon, lace it through the holes in either side of the bodice and tie it in a bow at the top.

14) Put a bit of clear nail polish on the ribbon ends to keep them from fraying.

15) Ta-da! Inscribe sweetly innocent or terribly racy message inside, as desired.