Jul 30, 2026

Send a Hug with a Handmade Card 🤗

Designer: Marcia Izabel Marchiori

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Level: Beginner

Hello, everyone! Today I'm going to show you how to make this super cute card to send a little hug to someone you love. It's a simple project that's sure to make anyone smile! 🤗

My goal with this tutorial is to make the process as easy to follow as possible. That's why I created printable templates with almost everything ready for you, including the measurements, fold lines, and cutting guides.

The best part is that once you understand how this 3D card works, you'll be able to create all kinds of variations using different shapes, themes, and decorations. So let's get started! 🥰

Tools & Supplies Needed

• OLFACM-9x12-01/YEL Double-Sided Self-Healing Cutting Mat

• OLFA QR-1x12 1" x 12" Frosted Acrylic Ruler

• OLFA AK-4 Cushion Grip Art Knife paired with curved blade

• OLFA AK-5 Art Knife (we are going to use the tapered base of the handle)

• One 8½" × 11" (letter-size) piece of patterned fabric

• One 8½" × 11" (letter-size) piece of fusible interfacing (used: Therm O Web HeatnBond Lite Iron-On Adhesive)

• Three 8½" × 11" (letter-size) sheets of cardstock in three coordinating colors (dark, medium, and light)

• Double-sided adhesive tape

• Hot glue gun

• Approximately 7" of 1/8" ribbon in a coordinating color

• Printer

• Iron

• Optional: coordinating color marker (used: Tombow Dual Brush Pen)

PRINT TEMPLATE here

Instructions

- Print the three Templates at 100% scale. Print Template 1 on the darkest cardstock, Template 2 on the medium-tone cardstock, and Template 3 on the lightest cardstock.

- For an extra touch of elegance, we'll create a double-sided paper and fabric cover. This step is optional, as you can simply use patterned paper, but fabric gives the card a beautiful finished look.

Layer the materials in the following order:

• Printed "Template 1" cardstock

• Fusible interfacing

• Fabric (right side facing out)
Make sure the wrong sides of the printed cardstock and fabric are facing each other with the interfacing in between. Following the manufacturer's instructions, iron the layers together until they are securely bonded.

Using the tapered base of the OLFA AK-5 handle and your Acrylic Ruler, score the center fold line using the red lines as guides.
Then, using your OLFA Cutting Mat, Acrylic Ruler, and AK-4 Art Knife fitted with the curved blade, carefully cut along the outer edge lines and cut out the reversed "HUGS" letters.
Tip: While you can certainly use a straight blade to cut the letters, I prefer the curved blade because it makes it much easier to freehand the rounded parts of each letter. To make the cutting process even easier, use your OLFA ruler to cut all the straight lines first, then finish by cutting the curved sections freehand.
Fold the cover in half along the scored center line, then set it aside.

- Take Template 2. Using the tapered end of your OLFA AK-4 Art Knife and the ruler, score all the fold lines marked in red. Then, using the OLFA Mat, Ruler, and Art Knife, cut out all the Template 2 pieces.

- Fold each piece along the scored lines.

- Take Template 3 and score all the red fold lines using the tapered end of your OLFA Art Knife and the ruler.

- Using your OLFA AK-4 Art Knife with the curved blade, carefully cut out the cat shape. Fold all the scored sections. Your pieces should now look like this:

- Let’s assemble the card: Using double-sided adhesive tape, adhere the inner card piece to the inside of the cover.

- Attach the “SENDING YOU” banner by applying glue or adhesive tape to the tabs and attaching it above the cut-out "HUGS" on the front cover.

- Attach the folded cat piece to the folded center section of the inner card using double-sided adhesive tape or glue.

This step is completely optional, but I think it's a cute way to match some of the cat's details to the colors of the card. I simply colored a few areas with a matching marker.

Prepare the pennants by applying a small amount of hot glue to adhere each pennant to the ribbon, trimming the excess ribbon.Then glue each end of the ribbon to the cat's paws, as shown below: