Retirement Bendy Card

Happy Retirement, Dad!

Even when searching on Pinterest (my go-to source for inspiration), I had trouble finding a retirement card that really grabbed my attention.  So I made my own with a bendy card Silhouette cutting file.  All the details for this bendy card were posted originally 3/21/2014 on the Silhouette America blog, but now you can read the full post below.

As a card maker, I like to vary the shape of my cards once in a while.  The Silhouette online store has a great selection of bendy cards that are fun to decorate.  These can be decorated quite elaborately, but I chose to keep it a little more basic as a man’s retirement card.

My dad has just retired from 40 years of dentistry, and I decided to choose icons that represent what he and my mom will most likely spend most of their time on now.  He has always loved to travel, and the online store has a great selection of basic travel shapes that work well as icons or badges.  If the icons weren’t already available, I just used the shapes I liked and resized them to fit the same circles. I also added the word “family” in a circle because that is certainly going to be a bigger focus for him, with more time to see the grandkids.

Because I wanted this dark red paper as my card base, my choices for adding a sentiment inside were limited.  I chose to use a silver sketch pen with this fantastic Dr. Seuss quote.  You often see the quote for school graduations, but I think it’s perfect for my dad’s retirement with a new future ahead of him.  The silver text really stands out against the red.

All of these circles are 1.22”.  Adhesive cardstock is a perfect choice for these icons.  It cuts nicely, and for the few shapes that have pieces to place inside like the camera and the bicycle, there is no messing with glue.  Every little bit already has adhesive on it, so you just stick the pieces where they belong.  I made the circles overlap the top edge of the flaps just a bit, so the circles on the back side are aligned and stick to the circles on the front.

This last view shows a little more of the dimension of the assembled bendy card.  I hope you stretch outside your comfort zone and try something new.  If there’s ever a tool to help make that easier, it’s definitely the Silhouette machine!

Shapes:
Bendy card envelope set rounded corners
Set of 4 travel icons
Transportation
America badges
Garden tool set
Retro luggage & sleeping bag set
Scrapbook layout kit
You can steer yourself…
Perfect flourish words – birthday party
Apple and banner

Fonts:  Impact, EucrosiaUPC