One of my hobbies is turning photographs of flowers and garden plants into scented greeting cards and notelets.

I usually take several pictures of the flowers I want to feature on my cards and pick the ones with the sharpest image.

The best time to take photos is early in the morning for a dewy look to a flower photo or early evening when the colours of the flowers tends to look more vivid.

Take the photograph against a dark background if possible to bring out the image of the flower. A light background can look "wishy washy".

I use Microsoft Publisher for my card creation and scan the photo in. Print out using a good quality glossy card paper.

To scent the cards I use Pure Essential oils to match the fragrance of the flower or plant featured on the card.

For example:

Rose essential oil for photographs of roses
Lavender for photographs of lavender
Lemon for photographs of lemon trees

and so on...

To scent your greeting card/s, simply place 2 drops of the appropriate essential oil (or blend of oils) onto a piece of blotting paper or cottonwool balls, then place in a plastic bag with the card that you want to fragrance. Seal and leave for 48 hours. When you remove the card it will be delicately fragranced.

You can also use the same photos to make a range of bookmarks, writing paper, invitations, place cards etc

You can give your cards away as gifts or start a part-time scented greeting card business.

In New Zealand I sell these cards on average for $10.00 for a pack of five plus $2.00 postage and packaging.

To sell your cards advertise in gardening magazines or see if your local garden centre will sell them on your behalf.

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Copyright (c) 2003 J Black.
Email Address: Jill_b-@hotmail.com