Masculine 50th Birthday Card

Here's a quick and easy masculine birthday card. To add a little interest to an otherwise simple background, I used patterned paper with a starburst design. The "50" was cut with my Cricut Explore from the Cricut cartridge Something to Celebrate, and I added gold glitter glue to the candle flame (because what man wouldn't love a little sparkle on his 50th birthday?)

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Masculine Birthday Card

This simple masculine card was made using an embossing folder and my Cricut machine.

I used a wood grain embossing folder for the background.  I cut the word "happy" from a piece of kraft cardstock and used the negative space for my card.  I also used a pen in my Cricut to write "birthday" just below "happy", then cut around the entire sentiment to form a rectangle with a zigzag pattern across the bottom.  I finished the card by wrapping jute around the front panel.

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Nautical-Themed Masculine Birthday Card

I'm always desperately searching for masculine card ideas.  I saw a cute nautical-themed card on Pinterest and decided to make my own version for my husband's birthday card.

I cut the ship's wheel and anchor using the Cricut cartridge Splish Splash.  Map-print paper was used as the base for this card and I added a strip of corrugated paper to "anchor" the nautical embellishments.  I cut a banner shape from thin cork, then attached the ship's wheel using a silver brad.  The anchor was attached to the corrugated strip with jute rope.   I used a Spellbinders Nestabilities die set to cut the rectangles for the sentiment. 

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Boy's 13th Birthday Card

Cards for men and boys are one of my biggest challenges.  But the most difficult are for teenage boys. You've got to keep the card interesting without making it too "cutesy".   And I've never raised a son, so I'm not quite attuned to what they like or find "cool". Considering my confusion, I've learned to keep it simple without making it look like I didn't try at all.  Two things I turn to again and again are embossing folders and fancy (yet masculine) paper.

For this card I used the Cuttlebug embossing folder Diamond Plate to emboss a metallic sheet of paper.  I chose patterned paper that included silver stars, then cut the number 13 from grungepaper and painted it silver to match.

The most rewarding part of this project is that it went to a wonderful young man who always appreciates my handmade cards.  And that makes it all worthwhile.

Do you find cards for men and boys difficult, or is there another type card you find especially challenging?  I'd love to hear your thoughts!