Bayou Craft | Blue Note

Styled by MARÉ BRENNAN
Photograph by KELLY MOORE CLARK

Easy Cyanotype Valentine’s Day Cards 
We are crushing on these easy and fun to make Valentine’s cards that harness the sun’s rays and chemical reactions to create something ethereal and love-ly. 

What you’ll need:

• Thick watercolor paper 5.5” x 8.5”

• Cyanotype chemical set – available online at Michael’s or Dick Blick

• Paint brush

• Heavy cardboard (we cut a 

• 12” x 12” cardboard scrap glass or acrylic sheet (we used a 12” x 12” glass sheet from a picture frame.)

• Chip clips or clamps 

Design Elements: We used dried ferns and leaves, letters and hearts we cut out of paper, star anise, seeded eucalyptus, maple seeds, heavy gauge wire, burlap ribbon, and dried flowers.

Mix your Cyanotype chemicals according to their instructions. Once you’ve combined the solutions together, paint your paper on the area you want to decorate. If you want a fold over card, paint the bottom half. Let the paper dry completely. 

Place paper on heavy cardboard. Begin arranging your materials on top of the painted paper surface. Once you have your design finished, carefully place glass or acrylic sheet on top and use a clamp on either end to sandwich your design between glass and cardboard. Then move your creation outside into the sun. Depending on the intensity of the sun, leave outside for 15-30 minutes. The solution should turn a bronze hue. 

Once your art has “baked” in the sun, bring inside and rinse the paper and solution under cold water until the water runs clear. Your design should emerge during this process.

Let your paper dry thoroughly. Once dry, fold in half to create notecard.