Today’s project comes to you courtesy of my daughter after I told her I wanted to make a gift tag. She suggested a cute lamb, but I don’t have a stamp image of a lamb. So instead I chose the Darling Donkeys Stamp Set which you can currently get for free as part of Stampin’ Up!’s Sale-A-Bration promotion.

A TAIL OF SEVERAL DONKEYS

My project began with small scraps of card (some VERY small) and a Tuxedo Black ink pad. From the Darling Donkeys Stamp Set I chose the donkey with the rose and set to work stamping him multiple times.

On Smoky Slate Card I stamped the whole donkey twice, plus his head once more. Then on some Seaside Spray Card I stamped his nose and mouth. before stamping the rose head onto Rococo Rose Card.

To add additional colour to these images I used some Stampin’ Write Markers. From the 2019/2021 In Colors collection I used the Rococo Rose Marker to add a little to the stamped rose image. Then for the rose leaf and stem I chose the Pretty Peacock marker. Finally on the donkeys’ nose, mouth and hooves I used Seaside Spray.

Next I used a Basic Black Stampin’ Write Marker to colour in his mane. Then I finished off the colouring with a White Stampin’ Chalk Marker to brighten the donkey’s teeth.

With that all done I set to work cutting out the various parts of the donkey images. Rather than trying to explain all the layers, here’s what everything looked like once I was done…

Notice that I didn’t fuss about with the tail, but instead cut just the ends. After all, I like fussy cutting, but not THAT much!

Before going any further I placed all the pieces into a jar so I couldn’t lose them. Then I was ready to get to work on the tag base.

TAG YOUR IT

I began with a 2″ x 4″ strip of Thick Very Vanilla Card. Then using a Blending Brush I added a light coat of Seaside Spray ink over the top two-thirds. At the bottom of the tag I used a Blending Brush to add Old Olive ink for the ‘ground’.

With that done I was ready to turn the strip into a tag with the help of the Detailed Trio Punch. First I punched an oval hole at the top of the strip. Then using the corner rounder option I shaped the top left and bottom right corners.

Towards the top of the tag I then stamped “It’s your birthday!” from the Darling Donkeys Stamp Set, leaving plenty of room to add the donkey image below.

Now it was time to start putting everything together, but I needed that donkey stamp and Tuxedo Black ink pad one last time.

I had decided to do something a little different with the donkey’s tail so I didn’t want that part of the image. Instead, after inking up the stamp, I covered the tail with a piece of sellotape before stamping him onto the tag base.

Next I cut a small piece of Linen Thread, folded it in half and twisted the strands together. Then I used Multipurpose Liquid Glue (Tombow) to attach one end to the donkey stamped onto the gift tag where the tail should have been. Then with more liquid glue I covered that donkey with the largest fussy-cut piece. Now one end of the twine was secure I used a little liquid glue to sandwich the other end between the two fussy-cut ‘tail end’ pieces.

That left four more fussy-cut pieces to glue directly onto the image on the gift tag.

Finally I threaded some Linen Thread through the hole at the top of the tag and tied it in a simple knot. With that my first project using the Darling Donkeys Stamp Set was done.

This tag did take a bit of work but the finished result really is worth it. The 3D layers are subtle but will stand up to being touched, as will the loose tail. This could be one time when the tag keeps the child interested as much as the gift it’s attached to.

PRODUCT LIST

SALE-A-BRATION – Darling Donkeys is only available during the 2021 Sale-A-Bration promotion and cannot be purchased. To get this stamp set simply place an order for $60 (before shipping and taxes), then when prompted select this item as your free choice. For more information see the 2021 Sale-A-Bration Brochure.

Note – In previous years Stampin’ Up! have added new items to their Sale-A-Bration offerings part-way through the promotion. This year as there will be a second Sale-A-Bration promotion in July/August we have been advised that there will be no additional items in January/February.