Happy Friday Friends, Family and Faithful Readers!

Fridays are product review days, and today I am going to review the Cards magazine from Scrapbook Trends magazine.

My card sale is still going on and will continue for the next couple of weeks! Buy 1 get the 2nd FREE or Buy 3 for $7!! After another week or two I am going to pull everything that is currently on my etsy site and post all new cards and projects – my Fall line and some Christmas items. So please take advantage of the sale!

One of my favorite card idea books/magazines out there is Cards magazine from Scrapbook Trends magazine. Cards is a monthly “magazine”, but kinda seems more like a book to me. Not really a bad or good thing, just an observation. One of the reasons I really like Cards is the variety of ideas, styles, and genres of cards they have in every monthly issue. The book is separated usually in a dozen “chapters” – the first half is usually dedicated to different themes or genres. Depending on the season and issue depends on which genres they highlight. For example, the most recent issue, September, had card ideas/examples for Grandparents, Get Well, Birthday, Thank You, and Thinking Of You. They also provide cards highlighting different techniques – stitching and stamping were in this month’s issue. The magazine also features a different Designer of the Month in every issue – with the designer’s biography and background and a section of cards made and designed by them. Also in every issue is an Ultimate Card Class that features either a line of paper/products,technique or cards designed for a particular theme. This issue’s Ultimate Card Class was cards for little boys – using a product line by Basic Grey featuring dinosaurs, robots, trucks and other “little boy” colors and themes. There is also usually a Stamping Basics section that focuses on a different application of stamping. This month’s feature was flocking and glitter using stamps.

Each section features cards using different styles, colors, paper and embellishments to appeal to a wide variety of designers, card makers and creatives. This is one of a very small handful of craft magazines that includes simple, understated but elegant designs that I really like most. (not to worry for those of you who prefer lots of color and patterns to your designs! They have plenty of those in every issue as well!)

The one drawback to this magazine is the cost per issue. Each issue (because it is more of a book than a traditional magazine) is $19.99. While I do think it is well worth the cost, I do know that it can add up when you get the issue every month. However, I do highly recommend getting a yearly subscription for Cards magazine. A full year’s (12 months) subscription is about $100 – I used some Christmas money last year to get my subscription and I am so glad I did it. The subscription will not only save you a lot of money (even if you only wanted every other issue or only 6 months of it, you would still be ahead of the game by subscribing), but you will also be guaranteed the magazine every month. The two scrapbooking stores where I live usually get the latest issue of Cards a week or two after it is released, and they often sell out quickly as they are very popular amongst handmade card makers.

Thanks for reading with me and don’t forget to check out my Etsy Card Sale!!!! (http://L7Designs.etsy.com)