In this badge set, you’ve discovered how easy it is to make ATCs. Sharing your knowledge with others can be done in a wide variety of events. Combining the creation of the cards with swaps and display can give you more event ideas than single specific ideas.
Steps
Card Creation Process
1. Open-end.
You can create an open-ended event. Merely have cards available. Ask everyone to bring their own paper crafting tools and crafting scraps to share. Let everyone sit, craft and socialize. When I did this with my Girl Scouts, I have never had the girls so quiet for an entire meeting. The girls used anywhere from 2-10 cards in the meeting time.
NOTE: Providing samples of cards you’ve made will help them see possibilities. Also, encourage everyone to share their own creations.
2. Pre-made.
Some people freak out when you hand them piles of supplies and tell them to be creative. Instead, create packs with the same elements and instructions on how to make a type of card. You can invite them to be creative by adding elements to the pre-made packs. You can do this as a training workshop or even as a quick “add-on” to a larger meeting to give everyone a chance to try it.
3. Between.
Another way to keep your participants making similar cards without the work of creating packs, you can simply make a card for them to start with. Perhaps a shot of your local beach, snow on branches or a local landmark could be your starting image. You might also just want to create a more generic background of sand or bricks. This one element will tie all of the cards created together while still allowing everyone the ability to be creative.
Check out “Artist Trading Card Backgrounds” for more ideas on doing this.
4. Technique.
Another way to make comparable cards is to have everyone use the same technique. For example, when I did iris folding on my ATCs, I used ribbon instead of paper for the layered pieces. The technique didn’t change, the material I used for it gave it a different look. Look at the “Explore Paper Techniques” badge program for some to get started including drawing, collage, lettering and layering.
5. Themes.
Lastly, themes are a great way to get a variety of cards that have some similarities. Choosing a color scheme, holiday or even favorite movie can be a great starting point. Need more ideas for themes, hop online and start looking at themes others have suggested. Keep a list of those you like and start adding to it.
Card Swaps and More
6. One time.
You may choose to do your cards as a one-time event. It is a great way to use up a lot of craft scraps. It is also a great activity when you haven’t had time to plan anything else in detail. Look at the different ways you might direct the craft creation process above. Which would work for a one-time event such as an extra activity at a meeting or a training for adults to take back to their kids?
7. Make and take.
You might choose to do one station or several. Each station has someone explaining how to assemble an ATC while sharing some information about these types of cards. Timing is important as you want everyone to complete the card in the same 5-15 minutes. This includes the introduction and time for questions. Some items may need to be prepared ahead of time to make the time goal you set. By having all stations timed together, people can move through the different stations. This can be an event itself, or added to another one.
8. Online.
You can participate on online swaps with sites such as swap-bot.com. You can also run a swap online once you get comfortable with how it works. This allows you to see what others create and how they put materials together. If you want to start building a collection of ATCs, this is the best way to do it.
Some of the swaps may be small, trading in single cards. Some may be huge. I saw a US swap that asked each person to pick one of the 50 states. They had to make 51 cards – one for each participant and one for the host. It was a huge undertaking, but everyone seemed to love it.
9. Local.
Local swaps may be hosted by craft stores, especially those that sell scrapbooking and paper craft supplies. Everyone signs up by a certain date, then the store contacts everyone with the number of participants so they know how many cards to make. Just like online, you make one more than the number of participants. This allows the shop to display the cards for others to see what was shared. See if you have a local store that hosts an ATC swap. If not, talk to them about trying it for a month or two.
10. Club.
Start your own ATC swap club. Show others how to make ATCs. Pick a theme, technique for everyone to use, etc. Set up a weekly or monthly meeting to allow everyone time to work on their ATCs. This is especially helpful for parents who may not be able to find time to work on them at home without “helpers.” Perhaps you can invite others to share their art or craft skills to add variety to your cards. Find a few people also interested in this idea to make running a monthly club easier on everyone.
11. Contest.
Set up the rules of what is acceptable and not, then let your participants not only create their own unique pieces of art, let them judge as well. You may want to have a theme or keep it open for full creativity. You can have your participants fill out cards for their favorites or just put boxes by each entry and let them drop in a BINGO chip to vote for it.
12. Art show.
Unlike a contest, an art show just highlights the cool cards everyone made. Let the artists mingle so they can answer questions about their creations. You will want to be able to display the cards while keeping fingers from playing with them.
13. RAK.
A random act of kindness gift is another way to bring cheer to people who need it. Hosting an event where everyone makes ATCs to later deliver to a nursing home or hospital will bring service into creating the cards. With their small size, they can easily be put on bulletin boards or next to beds. What other ways might you be able to gift these small pieces of art to others?
14. SWAP.
Swapping cards you’ve made may not sound like a full event. However, when you’re discussing techniques, meeting people and sharing cards, the time passes quickly. Explore how making an ATC Swap event could bring newbies and experienced crafters together.
Badge and Supplement Files
Member Level
- EP_Badge List_ATC Events _larajla — list of badge items
- EP_Badge Set_ATC Events _larajla — list of badge set and related badges
- EP_Supp_List_ATC Events _larajla — list of supplements for the badge
- SUPP_ATC Events _Journal_larajla — badge journal
- SUPP_ATC Events _Planner_larajla — badge planner
- SUPP_BPG_ATC Events _2in_12up_larajla — generic badge printable
Supplement Fun
- N/A
Sites to Explore
- www.swap-bot.com
- www.atcsforall.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?30-Open-ATC-Swaps
- www.illustratedatcs.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?48-Trading-Open-ATC-amp-Mail-Art-Swaps
- www.altered-art.net/swap-artist-trading-cards.html
- thepapercollage.blogspot.com/p/artist-trading-card-swap.html
Get the infographic here > larajla blog post
Get the PDFs of the badge program / supplements here