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Card making punches were once a must have piece of equipment for card makers but then they seemed to fall out of fashion. However in recent years there has been a resurgence in their popularity as a new generation of punches has come onto the market and opened up exciting new design possibilities for card makers.

Punches come in all shapes and sizes and they add versatility to your card making projects but what exactly are they?

Originally paper punches were used to help file paperwork in offices but over the years they evolved into a tool to be used  in card making, scrap booking or other paper crafts. If you can think of a shape you want to punch out of paper there is probably a punch already designed to do just that out there already!

The punch itself is a die cast piece of metal housed in a plastic casing, they are sometimes known as lever punches. Using a punch is the easiest way to die cut your own shapes. However there are different punches designed to do a specific job:

• Mini Punches: As the name suggests these are small punches, approximately 3/8" (9 x 9mm) in size. They are also known as button punches. They normally punch out an object such as a flower, a Christmas tree, a star etc.

• Regular Size Punches: These are approximately ½" (15 x 15mm) in size.

• Large punches: These are the next size up and are approximately 3/4" ( 24mm ) in size. Because of the size they can punch out things such as a sprig of holly or other such items.

• Giant Punches: These can punch shapes anything up to 3½" (9cm). They tend to be, but are not exclusively, shapes which you can use for matt and layering.

• Corner Punches: These have a plastic guide which you slide your paper into and they then punch the corner of it . They can be used on card blanks, paper, card or photographs. Some of these punches just shape the corner of the card, for example  they round it off, whilst some of them punch a pattern either into the corner or around the edge of it. You can even get a corner punch which will just make small notches either side of the corner to add subtle detail to your project.

• Long Reach Punches: These have an extended reach ( a little like a small stapler) and they let you punch your design deeper into the card.

• Edgers: As the name suggests these punch a design along the edge of your work such as a scalloped design , or zig-zag, hearts etc. Some of the edger punches also punch a running line of slots which can be used to thread ribbon through to create a very effective edge

• Deep Edge Punches: These are a new generation of edge punches which create a continuous die cut border up to 2½ times the size of a standard edge punch.

• Around the Edge Punches: These are relatively new to the market and normally come as a set of punches which can be used to punch out a matching design around every edge and corner of the card.

• Cassette Punch Sets: These are actually punching systems which have interchangeable heads which can be used to cut the alphabet and/or numbers.

The smaller sized punches are designed just to stamp through paper whilst the more robust ones will stamp through card. If you are unsure about how much your punch can handle always try it out first on a piece of scrap card to save your ruining your project when you find it will not punch through successfully and you are left with a mangled area on your work.

USING YOUR PUNCHES:

Punches are very easy to use and need very little looking after. Simply slot your paper, card or whatever into the punch and push down on the lever of handle. You should always try to punch on a firm flat surface as you will be exerting a lot of pressure. If you have a weakness in your hands which prevents you from exerting the correct amount of pressure to work the punch then Punch Aid is a useful tool which can get round this problem as it applies greater force to the punch than your hand can.

If you are doing a lot of work with one particularly punch on rare occasions it may suddenly jam and stop working - this could be due to the blades having expanded under the high pressure or temperature. If this is the case simply pop the punch into the fridge or freezer to cool it down and then it should work perfectly again.

If you have had a punch a long time and think that the blade is not as sharp as it used to be then punch through some sandpaper with it and this will help to sharpen it up.

If you are unsure where to position a punch turn it upside down to see where you will be stamping. Most punches have a guide line for you to work to but if you are unsure then have a practise first on a piece of scrap paper.

Punches are very versatile as depending on the design on them they can be used for 2 purposes - the first is to use it for what it is intended for - to punch out a shape on your card. However if you keep the shape that has been cut from the card that can be used as a card making embellishment.

The shape can be colored and/or glittered and can then be used on the same card or can be kept to be used on later card making projects such as in your birthday card making or Christmas card making.

The cut outs are also ideal to use as confetti in Shaker Cards or as table decorations. For example small glittered Christmas tree shapes would look wonderful scattered over the Christmas dinner table.

Most card makers hate waste and keep off cuts of paper they really like - use this to punch out embellishments from. Flower and butterfly punches are especially useful for this. It is very effective if you multi layer punched out flower shapes to give your work extra dimension.

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