Coin Envelopes and Mini Cards

I’m always looking for something small and fun to include in my shipments for items I sell from my Etsy shops. So following the same basic concept as THIS post from last week, I made mini cards to fit into little coin envelopes.

I had picked up some coin envelopes at Staples Office Supply a while back for around $10 for 250 But today, while working on this tutorial, I realized I had bought a size smaller than I needed. Using the 8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ flat and scored card stock, I should have bought THESE!

But the fix was easy enough, it just involved different measuring for the art file and a bit more trimming of the final cards. I might as well include that in this post, as no project goes completely smooth every time, right? If you happen to buy the correct size coin envelopes, you will only have one cut after the folding if you are working with half sheet card stock.

{And, by the way, it’s time you found yourself a beefy little cutting board. Vintage boards are the best and can handle bulk cutting. I have several sizes but the smaller ones I use the most. I have never bought new, you can find them in thrift stores and on craigslist.org.}

Don’t think that because you may not be fluent in design software that you can’t do these yourself. Get clever and cut and paste -then get yourself over to a copy store and print them out. Print them on the pre-cut and scored card stock like I use or double your art and print on standard size card stock. You can score down the middle yourself with the dull end of a letter opener, for example and then trim the cards down yourself.

I laid my art out at the top of an 8 1/2″ x 11″ artboard. I work in Adobe Illustrator. Using guides helps a lot. Those are the measurement-placement lines that you can place on your art board that will not print, (shown here in light blue.)

I created two different designs featuring logos & info of my two Etsy shops on the back .

Once the cards were printed, I folded then trimmed the long edge of the full piece first. Then using several layers of tape built up I made a jig for the next cut for the smaller cards. This makes things go so much smoother and faster than constantly trying to line up your piece precisely each time. (Click photos to enlarge.)

Once your cards are cut, it’s a good idea to press the folds down hard, this helps the cards lay flatter. Simply stack several together and press hard down and along the layers of folds.

I paired each card with a little envelope. I’ll tuck a few of both into some of my shipments. They will serve as a little thank you to the buyer and also as a promo for both my shops.

Coin envelopes come in handy for so many different fun things. There are sizes that are perfect for business cards as well as tiny supplies & goodies. Check your local office supply store or search Google to buy online. If you are looking for smaller quantities, try ETSY! I have seen these in other colors and white.

An even simpler little giveaway with your Etsy sales- you can gather up a little stack of coin envelopes and tie them up with string. Everyone can use tiny envelopes, right?!