Family & Friends

I’m a bit of a pushover when it comes to stamp sets that you can use to build scenes. But until recently I had very few people images that I could add to them. So you can imagine how excited I was when I saw the Friends & Family Stamp Set.

It’s a 40 piece stamp set with bodies, heads and accessories that you can mix and match. The set is made of see-through photopolymer which makes it easy to line up the various pieces. One of the things I like about the set is that the images are not too large. As an example the baby will fit inside a 1″ circle punch if you don’t add a sentiment as I did today.

GIFT CARD HOLDER

I always think that a gift card makes a useful gift for new parents. So many things are needed, and babies grow so fast, that there’s always something to buy.

Not knowing whether this would be for a girl or a boy, I decided to go with a neutral colour. I began with a 5-1/2″ x 5-1/2″ piece of Soft Sea Foam Card punched and scored using my Envelope Punch Board. To make the envelope for a gift card holder I start with the card at the 2-3/8″ mark.

You can see exactly how I use the Envelope Punch Board to make the envelope in an earlier project video. The design of the finished project is different but the process for creating the envelope is the same.

Once I’d punched and scored the card I then used Soft Sea Foam ink to stamp ‘congratulations’ across the front in a series of diagonal lines.

With that done, all that was left was to fold the card along the scored lines and sharpen the creases using the bone folder included in the Envelope Punch Board. Then I folded in the side flaps and fixed the bottom flap to them using Multipurpose Liquid Glue (Tombow).

BELLY BAND

To hold the gift card envelope closed I decided to use a belly band. I cut a 1″ x 8-1/2″ piece of Shaded Spruce Card and wrapped it around the envelope. Then with the ends at the front I secured them to each other (not the envelope) using liquid glue.

Next I wrapped a piece of Very Vanilla 1/2″ Lace Trim around the belly band and secured it in place with a few Mini Glue Dots. Once again I kept the join at the front so I could hide it under the final embellishment

TIP – Tap the top of the lace with an Embossing Buddy to remove any excess stickiness from the glue dots coming through the gaps.

Over the join in the card and lace I then used liquid glue to attach some Vellum Cardstock punched out with the Starburst Punch. Then I added a layer of Sparkle Glimmer Paper punched using the 1-3/4″ Circle Punch.

Now it was time to go back to the Family & Friends Stamp Set.

Using Tuxedo Black ink I stamped the small baby image onto some Shimmery White Card. Then I added the ‘congratulations’ sentiment immediately below the baby.

Next I coloured in the image with Stampin’ Blends alcohol markers. I used light Daffodil Delight and light Crumb Cake for the hair. Ivory for the face and hands, with dark Petal Pink for a hint of rosy cheeks. I finished off with the light Soft Sea Foam for the onesie.

Finally I punched out the image using the 1-1/2″ Circle Punch and added it to the Glimmer Paper circle with Stampin’ Dimensionals. In no time at all my gift card holder for a baby girl or boy was complete.

I love how this project turned out and love the greens. I wonder though what colours you would choose for a baby-themed project where you don’t know if it’s a boy or a girl?

I’ll have some other ideas for projects using the Family & Friends Stamp set in future blog posts. But for today I have some other projects in mind…