I made these cards a while back for my cousin and a family friend, who both graduated from high school this year.  They’re summer-themed and made out of 12″ X 12″ cardstock, folded over into uneven thirds so that the waves overlap the beach scene and give a 3-D effect:

I used mostly scrapbooking materials for these cards, drawing inspiration from the materials at hand.  A yellow polka-dotted paper became the sand; a fun stripey paper reminded me of a beach towel.  The umbrella and the graduation cap get a subtle 3-D effect from adhesive foam dots, adding visual interest to the scene (you can’t really tell from the photographs).

For a fun, youthful touch, I decided to cut the congratulatory message out of paper and glue it on, rather than stamping it.  It seemed like a good idea at the time.  Halfway through, however, I found myself deploring their respective parents’ lack of foresight in naming their children “Brendan” and “Avallon” over shorter names with simply-shaped letters more suitable for card-making.  I have never been such a fan of the letter “O” before.

Note to future parents: The letters “I”, “L”, and “O” are wonderful things.  If you name your daughter LILO, I’ll probably make her a graduation card.  Otherwise, she might be out of luck.