20 Altered Playing card Crafts
Do the dogs that were playing poker become a little too obsessed with your deck? Or perhaps it was a toddler who used a Sharpie to mark his cards. Or maybe you’ve just found the set of cryptic markings that a cheating cheater placed on each card in the deck.
I have plenty of ideas to help you upcycle your old playing cards. Playing cards is one of my favourite craft materials to alter. There are many tutorials available to help you choose the right project. I think you’ll love making altered playing-card crafts as much and as much that I do.
You can build your best house of cards by using Hot glue. The structure is strong enough to support any number or plastic ponies, dollhouse dolls, or dinosaurs. You can embellish the structures with acrylic paints, permanent markers and stickers. It’s ideal for little one’s small world play!
Flower. The flower can be placed in an arrangement or attached to a brooch clip.
Playing card polyhedra. I’ve got the right sculpture project to help you, for those who have exceptional math and/or visual-spatial abilities. These beautiful polyhedra created from interlocking playing-card cards are simply stunning. These can be embellished with paint, or any other art. It is worth leaving them looking like playing card cards to make the final product more impressive.
Modular star. I recently made a modular Star Stuffie. Now I’m obsessed about making 3D stars. The construction of this modular star from playing cards is very similar to that of the polyhedra. I was most impressed by the tip to place a complete deck within a cardboard box. Then, use a bandsaw blade and cut slots through all of the cards simultaneously.
Making a playing card bow. I included instructions to make this bow as a necklace in the tutorial, but I think it would be equally adorable as a gift.
Hair accessory. This piece is very similar to the bow above, but is a little more elaborate. For a more eco-friendly project, replace glitter foam with cardstock.
Box. This is a great way to save money on a storage box or gift, especially if you have a special keepsake.
You can make ornaments from your altered playing cards. Most altered playing card ornaments can stand alone. I’ve seen them placed in small binders and displayed on easels. Ornaments are another option to store your most festive and ornamental altered playing cards. This neat trick is easy to do with a hole drill and twine.
3D playing card ornament. You don’t need to embellish your playing card but want something unique, this is the way to go.
You can alter the playing card artwork. Here’s how to make altered cards. You will need lots of Gesso. And lots of imagination!
Reasons that I Love You. This is the most thoughtful, sweetest gift you could make.
Pendant. Make a fussy-cut playing-card pendant using a fancy card punch and a jumpring.
Wall art. You can display your treasures on a wall if you have a deck with one side that is still looking good, or a deck which is just too old to be used.
Bunting. Playing cards can be used as the pennant Flags on bunting. I backed each card above with upholstery samples fabric. You might not need it depending on what the card’s graphics say.
Playing card soldiers. I decided to make the next Alice craft, since the banner above is for a party that celebrates Alice in Wonderland. This tutorial will show you how to use a Cricut to cut the pieces. But, hand-cutting means your project can be more creative and personal.
Playing card toys. These altered playing cards dolls are a close cousin to the soldiers. However, the concept is more open-ended to allow for your creativity to flourish!
