How to Make Easy Opposing Triangle Cuts for Your Cards (including Video and Tutorial)
Opposing triangle cuts are a great way to establish a ground for your cards that can set the stage for adding focal points and greetings. These are great for fast, easy cards, as well as card bases you can make in advance if you need a card in a hurry at some point in the future.
So, what do I mean by opposing triangle cuts? Here are a few samples, each of which uses a single piece of double-sided designer series paper (DSP).
Don't have any DSP? No worries! My YouTube video shows how to make your own for this card design!
The converging points of the DSP in the center of the card naturally draw the eye to the center, and give the viewer a perfect resting spot. This makes it easy to add a stamped image or even a greeting to the center. The design works well for both portrait (vertical) or landscape (horizontal) cards. Finish a card in one sitting, or just take get it to the stage I've pictured above, and you're well on your way if you need a card in a hurry!
Here are a few finished samples. As you can see, there is no limit to the variations you can place in the center of these cards. There are circles, rectangles, flowers, and hearts!
Here's a brief tutorial on how to make the cards:
TUTORIAL
Start with a piece of color card stock cut to 8.5" x 5.5". Score long side at 4.25" and fold in half. Use a bone folder to get a crisp fold. This makes a standard A2 base.
2. Design Options:
The first layer on top of the card base can either be a white, neutral, or coordinating mat (Option A), or it can be the triangle cuts glued directly to the color card base (Option B).
Option A: Cut a white, neutral, or coordinating piece of card stock to layer on top of the card base front. This ideally will be 5.25" x 4.0". (You may glue it to the card base right away, or first glue the triangle cuts to the mat before gluing the mat to the base.)
Option B: Cut a single piece of double-sided DSP to 5.25" x 4.0". A high contrast between the two sides will give you the best result. This contrast can be due to different colors or different densities in the images on the paper. See the finished examples above for color changes between the matching top and bottom triangles, and the matching left and right triangles. Each pair is vastly different in either color or density - or both!
3. The Triangle Cut:
Using either DSP or card stock you make (such as that shown at left), cut your rectangle to 5.0" x 3.75". Using your paper trimmer, place the top left piece of the paper on the cutting channel, and then place the bottom right piece of the paper in the channel as well. Make your first cut, as shown.
Now, you'll want to place a piece of low-tack tape near the corners on the back of the paper. This will hold the two cut pieces in place so that you can make your second cut. Avoid taping the center, as you will be cutting across the center area.
I used Post-It Labeling and Cover-Up Tape. It has roughly the same amount of stickiness as regular Post-It notes. You may also use washi tape for this, but don't press too hard. Washi tape can sometimes tear your paper. If you must use washi tape, peel it off slowly and gently.
Once the tape is in place, you're ready to make your second and final cut. Turn the paper back to the front side, and turn it so that the uncut corners are now in the cutting channel on your paper trimmer.
Once you have the uncut corners in the cutting channel, make your second cut. If you used double-sided DSP, you can now choose one of the sides for the top-bottom pair, and the other side for the left-right pair of triangles.
In the sample at left, I made my own DSP from plain card stock, leaving me with four additional triangles for a second card! These are all personal design choices. Remove the low-tack tape from the back of the DSP, and separate the cut pieces.
Here's the final placement of triangles for my card front. After this, it's simply a matter of adding a stamped image or a greeting. Remember, you can choose whether you use portrait or landscape orientation.
FINAL COMMENTS
This card design is a great way for beginning card makers to make some design choices that are almost foolproof. For those uncertain how to match plain card stock with designer series papers, see my previous YouTube video on that topic here.
For today's card design, you can watch me make these cards step-by-step on my YouTube video titled "Make Easy Opposing Triangle Cuts for Cards."
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Thanks for stopping by. Please visit again soon. Meanwhile, may God bless you richly through the holidays and beyond!