Portable Card Making
 

I have never thought of card making as being a "take it with you" hobby. There is so much stuff.

The closest thing I've been able to come up with is to stamp a few sheets with StazOn black and take my color pencils with me.

What do you do when you are going somewhere and have several hours that need to be filled? Does anyone have any ideas for "On The Go" crafting?

The only time I have ever managed to successfully craft on the go was when I stamped out my Christmas images one year and took the markers I needed to color them.

I make kits for Make and Takes and OWH card drives, so I always have a few sitting in a crop that I can grab when I grab my crop tool bag (that also has all of my TH markers in it, just in case).

I've had to do those times sitting in hospitals waiting on specialists for my daughter (sometimes over 8 hours) and quite often take images to colour or paint. Find it very relaxing and dont feel as ough I am wasting time just sitting. Have plenty of images to colour, water filled paintbrush inktense pencils and copics for a bit of choice. Too much stuff needed to do more than colour images.

Struggle on scraping weekends when you have to restrict what you take. Car ends up looking like it will burst with all the needs, must take stuff. Funny thing is usually take everything then use this little portion but how of how do we thin it out.

No matter how well we plan will always need ????? That was left at home and 99% was never needed. And i only make cards so couldnt image with scrapbooking.

This isnt really "on the go" - but I keep a Cricut , an old Cuttlebug and an assortment of older inkpads, nestabilities, card stock, paper and embellishments at my daughters house.
I stay there 3 days a week to babysit my grandkids.
I have my own bedroom and bath on her third floor. We call it "Grannies Attic".
I take the grandkids up there to make their little projects - although ffrankly, all they care about using is the glitter glue!
I love my space there. I also keep 2 sewing machines and a serger there.

For true "on the go" crafting I always have a portable bag ready with my current crochet project.

If I'm caught out without my crochet, then I entertain myself listening to audio books on my phone.

Portable card making for me?? Not possible!!

I spend a lot of time in hospital waiting rooms too but haven't been able to successfully craft on the go so I am very interested to hear people's suggestions. The best thing I have come up with is to stamp a few images in a Visual Art Diary and then bring along a pencil and brainstorm some sketches around the images which has actually been really helpful.

I hear ya!

I have had to take my mother to quite a few appointments and the last time I actually took some envelopes to address and couldn't because there just wasn't the space nor an area to work even though I had taken a clipboard.:?

I was telling my mother's friend this (who is friends with the hospital board) and that I thought there might just be a work desk/charging area/etc. We had recently been at another hospital where the waiting area had a "working" area for laptops etc. Because lets be honest, who actually has a "day off" for these things (and don't even get me started on the information board that can only be viewed in one area of the Waiting Room...:rolleyes:

I wouldn't be able to craft anywhere there wasn't a table.

That said, I have taken some card supplies with me to Vegas before, but it does require a bit of planning. I had card bases (precut and scored), some patterned paper, a couple of sentiment stamps, some ink cubes, a scissors, adhesive, and a small bag of small embellishments (primas and gems, I think). Oh, and a small trimmer. Everything fit in a document/project case.

I think that the "one sheet wonders" might be a good set of templates to use-- I think there are even OSWs for 6x6 papers.

I packed my smallest cropped hopper rolling bag, smaller than the Navigator, when I went to AZ last month to visit my mom. I took my Cuttlebug, plates, a healthy selection of stamps (photopolymer) with matching dies ,old SU clam shell cases with Memento dewdrops, white cardstock, my mini MS scoring board, a zip lock bag of assorted colors of scrap cardstock, as well as an assortment of tools like my ruler, scissors, tweezers, adhesive, etc. And I was so glad I brought it. Nights sitting watching tv with mom were much more fun since I could scrap on one of her tv tables! The one thing I forgot to bring was any sort of embellishment!
Not sure how efficient I'd be in a hospital waiting room, though..I think I'd rather crochet in that scenario.

I recently flew across the country, and I get real antsy sitting that long. So I bought a new stamping book for each flight. So, I designed in my mind. It was the best I could do.

Actually my husband and I are going on a cruise for his 50th birthday in September and invited my best friend and her husband. The husbands enjoy each others company, a beer and lots of talking. My girlfriend and I love crafting. So I have already planned a travel kit for us each. I have stamped and printed digital images all on watercolour paper and copic card stock. Too many to take so will have to thin out , alittle.

I bought the full set of Peerless paint squares which I cut up and placed ready to use on watercolour paint pallets, one set each. I have my inktense pencils ( colour swatches) and sharpener and what limited Copics I have ready to go. A little bag to carry it all. A tim holtz crafting mat each and of course the water filled brushes, normal brushes, white and black fine line pens, clothes and small watercontainers.

Cant think of a better way to be able to sit and chat and relax as we travel and those times when you have to sit and wait. My first time leaving Australia, bit scary admitting that in this day and age where travel overseas is just so common place for many.

Congrats on your first cruise! I haven't been on one myself, but all my friends say they are wonderful. What a great idea for how you've prepared to sit and while away the time with your friend! Good thinking!!

Obviously since I'm a demo I use SU stuff. I've been able to take a few of the kits places with me to work on pretty easily since you have everything you'd need (and I add adhesive and scissors and a few things like that). Really, should work for any kit from most companies, right? I think kits are perfect for travel!

I also get a lot of digital designing on MDS done away from home too! :-)

what you can do in card making completely depends on space generally and work table space.

I can craft in less than 1ft square (I do it all day every day :lol:) it is just all the supplies I need access to outside of that space!

By the time I clutter up my desk that's about the space I work in too even though I have more space lol!!!!!:p

I agree with the OP, and have never thought of card making as a "take it with you" hobby.

When I first got started in papercrafting and heard people talking about "going to crops", buying elaborate luggage to use to take all your stuff with you to crops, going to "all night crops", etc., I thought it sounded like way too much trouble - and I still do.:) My hat's off to those of you who manage to make this a portable hobby!

I make mini kits to take to work with me. Usually they fit into a large SU! clamshell, and consist of a few Copics and a stamped image, and maybe little scissors so I can fussy-cut it after colouring it.

The first time I decided to taking stamping stuff away, I packed the cuttle bug and lots of stuff, 2 big bags full, it was just too hard with so much stuff, next time, I pre cut all the card, and cut my dies at home, put it all in a small plastic box, I just put in tape, rhinestones, stamps, inkpads, dies, card, ribbon, oh and a small crafting mat. Made life a lot easier, husband wasn't flipping about having too many bags.

That's what I do too. I belong to a small local craft group and I try to bring portable projects that don't require a lot of equipment or "wet work."

I spent a weekend in March at my cycling team's training camp. I knew we'd have down time so I packed a small tote bag with precut bases, some adhesive, some stamp sets, some markers and prismacolors, some ink pads and a scrubber, plus some embellishments and scissors. I limited the colors and stamps I took to a few that grabbed my attention while I was packing.

Several of my teammates joined me and made some cards. It was actually nice to have such a limited selection of supplies.

crafting on the go
 

I take a cricut, paper, tools and a few stamps when we go camping. mostly long weekend family reunions, I gotta have some crafty time in the air conditioning. Not huge on sitting out in the sun......... I always burn, fair skinned.

I've tried, but I just can't make papercrafting portable. There's always something I need that I didn't pack - even though I pack enough to stock a small store. Even at my demo's 10-for-10s, I can't seem to limit myself to a normal tool kit with a scissors, black pen, ruler and adhesive (which is supposed to be all we need). I have a set of colored pencils, a small set of markers, my own piercer, an xacto knife, a white pen, my scor-buddy . . .

When I need a portable project, I take along my knitting or crocheting :)

This thread makes me giggle because it reminds me of one of my take-it-with-me efforts. I used to travel with my job and I often took craft supplies with me to prep for classes. A few years back I was checking into a hotel near Houston, Texas. I had so much luggage for my crafts the receptionist thought I was a Hurricane Katrina evacuee. Oh Dear!

I agree that kits are the most portable. I have even made cards in the car when stamping is not involved. When I travel for work, I try to plan a project that I can pack in my suitcase and make multiples of. I do take my paper cutter for that though. You could make your own kit by designing the card in advance and getting all of the pieces ready. You could probably even take a punch with you as long as the cutting and stamping are done ahead.

I understand the concept of filling time waiting in hospitals, down time at other functions, etc., but I totally don't understand the need to haul crafting stuff on a vacation with my husband. We travel REALLY light (one rolling carry-on and one personal item each -me, a large bag; him, a backpack) and never have enough "down time" to make it worth hauling all of that stuff! I use the time on planes and waiting to catch up on the reading I miss so much. I try to do things on vacation that I can't do at home...

One other thing I've noticed about the whole "portable" concept is that it easily takes as much time to organize and pack all of the stuff as it would have to make a lot of the stuff you're packing for! My BFF and I used to pack stuff to haul over to the other person's house for play dates, now we just take turns planning whatever project we're going to do and have everything already there.

I guess I'm being a total Debbie Downer on the whole "crafting on the go" concept - it just doesn't work in the Sue-niverse...

I don't do colouring, but have successfully taken a few blank cards, stamps and ink pads with me to craft at someone else's house (not a crafty person! They were rather bemused). Ribbon etc, it's all fun! Just don't try and take everything. I like being able to make a card from start to finish, so take whatever adhesive, DSP and embellishments you think you'll need.

YES!! It can really spark creativity if you have a limited range of things to choose from :D

I'm not sure about sparking creativity but it saves time. It takes me a lot less time to decide between two greens than it does to decide between seven shades of green.

Or 8000 stamp sets...oh wait...maybe that's just me:rolleyes:

As Tim Gunn says "Make it work people"

LoL. Me too. Dea

If I'm going someplace that has a work area, such as my mom's house, I've been able to mass produce cards that I've already designed at home. I've done our Christmas cards and sets of thank you cards at her house. I make a kit of precut paper, inks, stamps, punches, etc. and bring it with me in my luggage.

I just can't create something from scratch on the go, without all my "stuff" to choose from during the design process.

I just packed my take it with me card project for vacation with my in-laws. Except my family expects completed cards, not just a colored image. Half of them don't have the rest of the supplies at home to finish them. I hope I got it pared down to the essentials to complete a card.

May I ask what water paintbrush you use?

I love this hobby so much, I am looking to make it portable. I love all the tips etc, keep em coming.

Copics and stamped images for me. My granddaughter and I had an absolute ball coloring!

I spent a week in a motel last summer while my DH was in hospital. I knew I would be making a few thank you cards for the hospital units he was on. I have a small clear Rubbermaid container, suitcase style. which was packed full! I chose a few TechniqueTuesday sets; small, clear with sentiments, acrylic blocks,appropriate coloured markers for the stamp sets, neutral and colored cardstock, 1 black inkpad, a small bottle of stamp cleaner and scrub pad, adhesive, dimensionals, oval punch, word window punch and my cutter with score blade. My evenings were spent making cards which occupied my mind. I missed my EF and die cuts, back to basics stamping for sure, but the staff loved the handmade cards, my DH got lots of compliments on them, lol