One of the first factors for developing Kardtects Building Cards was confirming I would be able to duplicate the cards I built with as a child.  Included on the About Page is the story on how Kardtects cards came about, and how they were perfected from cards I played with when I was younger. Because I knew the characteristics of those early cards made for ultimate building, I wanted to find the closest matched paper possible for Kardtects.  And so the search was on.

You might think taking one of the original cards to a print company and saying I would like cards produced from paper like these (with a different print) would be simple. But this was not at all the case since very subtle differences in paper matter greatly when building. Some of these variances are only noticed when actually building with them.

I found out quickly it wasn’t going to be pick a card, any card, and that will do. I tested quite a few papers and designs before finding just the right one. It was like scenes from goldilocks and the three bears. I would order and receive the different printed cards to test, and say to my husband, ‘this one is too thick’, ‘this one is too slippery’, ‘this one is too flimsy’, ‘this print doesn’t flow’, and so on.

One of my first failed grand ideas for the cards was to apply a stamped-on texture/raised pattern on each card by using a die to allow for some grip when building. I was excited for these, but after building with them, and comparing them to the originals, I realized the extra step of stamping did not help for building, and it would have made the cards more expensive. So why have it?

From there I moved back to my initial plan, kept it simple, and looked for a card similar to the ones from my childhood. The original cards were not meant for building, and although they worked great for building, they had tabs and rounded corners. I knew these had to go. Plus, I wanted to apply prints to the cards that fostered imagination and displayed impressive looking structures when built.

I searched for someone who could help me find the ‘right’ card, who was understanding, shared a vision for the cards, and was part of a company that would be able to produce them. I feel fortunate I found that in Bayard Printing Group. It wasn’t long then that I found the Right Card! Finally!

So pick a card, but not just any card, pick Kardtects cards because they are ‘just right’ for building!