Before I became heavily into scrapbooking, my evenings were spent making masses and masses of greetings cards. Quick, easy, flexible – I loved experimenting with different patterns, products, designs and ideas. But for some reason I always ended up making baby cards more than any other type of cards. I’m sure my friend Sarah would smile to herself and mutter something about me being broody, but in all honesty I believe that baby cards are really easy to make because it is such a versatile theme… and of course it is really easy to please the recipient! Here I have put together a few starting points which are useful to keep in mind when you want to make a baby card.
Welcome vs Congratulations
I’ve often pondered this question. When a new baby arrives, should you send a card addressed to the new arrival, or to the proud new parents? It is certainly new and exciting to see post arrive at the door addressed to the smallest and newest member of the family. Seeing the still-rather-unfamiliar name on the envelope must be a thrill. On the other hand, it is the parents that deserve a shower of ‘Congratulations’ and the well wishes for the months ahead which will undoubtedly be full of challenges and sleepless nights. At the end of the day, I guess it boils down to a subjective opinion as after all, the only thing that matters is that either way, I get to make a card! Yeay!
The Cute Factor – make it small!
There is no doubt about it. Babies and cuteness go hand in hand. Many of us girls suffer from a heart-melting moment when we set eyes on a newborn baby and I often try to recreate this when designing a baby card. There are many ways to do this, but a good trick is to take a design element and make it smaller than usual. Just in the same way that we marvel at the tiny fingernails of a baby, seeing smaller elements on cards will work a treat and will definitely result in a few tilted heads and a symphony of ‘awwws’. A great away of achieving this is to use Shrink Plastic. Simply stamp your design or phrase onto the Shrink Plastic, heat and watch the design grow smaller and smaller. (Awww)
Baby themed craft products
There is an abundance of baby specific crafting products out there which look great on cards. When scouring through the sticker aisles and stamp catalogues, watch out for those typical baby shapes – Prams, rattles, bottles, booties, baby-grows, nappies, bibs, hand prints and footprints. Of course you can never forget that stars, hearts and flowers will also work a treat.
Colour
Of course the glaringly obvious colour choice when making a baby card will be to focus on either pink or blue, depending on the gender of the new arrival. And if this major factor is still going to be a surprise, then yellow and greens and other pastel tones work great for a unisex card. The softness of the pastels are soothing to the eyes and will no doubt evoke memories of onesies and baby blankies. I also like to work with the colour white as this is a symbol of purity, freshness and innocence – does that sound like a baby to you?
Embellish with Words
Having a baby is such a life changing event that I like to sometimes accent cards with thought provoking words or phrases that will make the proud parents stop for a second to reflect their newborn’s arrival: miracle, bundle of joy, little angel, treasure, adorable, lullaby, cuddle, giggle, prince, dream, remember, baby mine, sweet child, brand new, dream come true, special delivery…
Animals
Teddy bears and rubber duckies no infant can be without, and hence are perfect as embellishments for baby cards. Also great are animal themed embellishments, especially if they fall into the first category…extreme cuteness.
The tactile approach
Just as a baby reaches out to touch their mummy or daddy’s face, using 3D embellishments which make you want to reach out and touch the card. Buttons work perfect (especially when accompanied by the phrase ‘cute as a button’) and using felt will conjure memories of soft plush toys and supersoft blankets.
What’s in a Name?
The last tip I have for making baby cards is to embellish the front with the name of the new arrival. After nine months of waiting for the little bundle of joy to arrive, it is quite possible that several lists of potential names have been made, amended, reassessed and discussed. Reaching the final decision on your child’s name is a commitment of epic proportions, and what would be better than celebrating this with a personalised card for your little treasure.
Emma Grace
The card in the photo is a bespoke card which I have made to order. I hope you like it Karyn and that your cousin is very proud of her new little angel.
Products used in making this card: ribbon, making memories metal tabs, buttons, craftrobo, felt flowers, rub on, Heidi Swapp ghost shapes, papermania rub ons, David Walker Bubble Stickers by Creative Imaginations, fine tip marker pen, Glossy accents by Ranger, Stickles by Ranger.
Thanks for looking and don’t forget to Leave a comment.
