Beautiful Cards Review

Overall Rating

Good ideas for card makers

Not sold everywhere

Card making is one of the most popular hobbies around at the moment, and people all round the country are quite cheerfully spending a fortune keeping up-to-date with the latest ideas and accessories.

Beautiful Cards is the latest of the magazines covering this craft, issue one (September) having been released in August. In this first issue there are pages of ideas and projects for all kinds of cards, for instance: Happy Birthday, New Baby, Friends, Wedding, Anniversary, Congratulations, Thank You, Love and Romance, Get Well Soon and Kids' Birthdays. Each category contains a good selection of card designs, and the instructions for making them followed by a page of Best Buys. This page gives details of some of the items used for the cards, the cost and who to contact to get more information.

Also included in every issue: Meet the Designers - Anna Davenport (Publishing Editor) and eight other contributors to the magazine, Readers' Card Gallery - just what it says, and Simply Sentiments - this is a double page of suggestions for greetings to put on and in your cards. There is also a "Send in your Sentiments" section - readers' suggestions - the best to win a prize. There is also a useful page of stockists giving telephone numbers and websites.

The cover price of Beautiful Cards is £4.99, however there are incentives for taking out a subscription. For instance: UK - 8 issues by cheque/credit/debit card = £29.94 meaning you get eight for the price of six. (Europe 8 issues - £41.94). The other option is to purchase by Direct Debit at £14.97 every six months. At present, if you choose this option you will receive a gift of quality paper, card, envelopes and peel-offs to the value of £25. Having chosen this option myself, I can vouch for the contents - I was most impressed. However, the free gift and offer price only apply to UK subscriptions.

If you wish to subscribe you can do it by telephone: 01858 438 822 - lines are open weekdays 8 am to 9.30 pm, Saturday 8 am to 4 pm and Sunday 10 am to 4 pm. Please quote ref. RO23. Alternatively, you can do it on-line at www.cardmakingandpapercraft.com

Issue two of this magazine will be on sale on 13th October, and they promise over a hundred card and tag ideas for Christmas, plus Christmas best buys.

I have to say that I have not seen this magazine in the local shops yet. I was informed about it by email some time before publication and decided to 'take a chance' with a subscription. I have been quite impressed by the magazine. It follows the pattern of others of the same type, with the glossy look with which we are all familiar. I have found the 'Best Buys' pages particularly helpful and have visited several websites of which I was not previously aware. I feel that it is a good introduction for someone starting card making, but also helpful if you have been doing it for some time. I am certainly looking forward to issue two.

I hope this has been helpful to you.

Thank you for reading.

Members' Comments onMagnetic's Review

• pat norman on 22nd Feb 2006

  I wonder if you can help me. Saw your review on Beautiful Cards mag. Do you know which issue had a card on the cover with daffodils, made with K & Co paper? I saw it in WH Smiths but had no cash on me at the time, but I don't know which issue it was. I am sure it was Beautiful Cards. Many thanks.
  Pat

• Magnetic on 23rd Feb 2006

  Hello Pat - sorry, I have all four issued so far and I can't see a daffodil on any of them. I have just 'flipped' through the last one and found an ad. for Quick Cards (issue 20) which looks as if it might be the one. They are from the same magazine group. Hope this is of help.

• pat norman on 23rd Feb 2006

  Thanks, Magnetic,
  I will have a look.
  Ta! Pat