Newborn Baby Boy Scrapbooking Page Idea

Looking for some easy newborn baby boy scrapbooking page ideas? If so, you'll find over 100 easy-to-make scrapbook page ideas right here on this blog! You can find them all in my scrapbooking category.

The scrapbook layout idea that I'm featuring today utilizes two 4x6" photos and inexpensive embellishments. This page takes less than 1 hour to make. Frugal and cute!

Newborn Baby Boy Scrapbooking Page Layout Idea

The background is a solid sheet of pale blue cardstock. The 4" by 12" border (on the left of the page) was cut from a printed piece of scrapbooking paper. The ABC print is on a cream-colored background and the ABC's are accented with animals. To finish off the edge of the border, I cut a 1/4" by 12" long strip from lime green scrapbooking paper and glued it down the right edge.

I matted the two photos on the same lime green colored scrapbooking paper, to give the page that cohesive look. I used lime green printed chipboard alpha letters to spell out BABY JAXON and added them to the page using small glue dots.

I had two gel-type self-adhesive glossy stickers and I added one that says "A Little Bundle of Joy" to the right of the word BABY at the top of the page. I added the second gel-type self-adhesive sticker to the right of the bottom photo. It says 2 Cute 4 Words. Right above that is a little pair of yellow mittens that I had leftover from an embellishment sticker pack. To the left of the top photo are the matching little yellow baby hat and yellow baby booties. Cute!

The color scheme for this newborn baby boy scrapbooking page was lime green, pale blue, yellow and cream. I love those four colors together for newborn baby scrapbook layouts. If you're doing a baby girl page, you could substitute pink for the lime green and that would look equally as nice!

Note: You can click on the images in this post to open them in a new browser window and in an enlarged size. This will allow you to see the details up close.

Scrapbooking - Newborn Baby Boy Layout Idea

Back on September 5th, 2015 I was blessed with the birth of my second grandchild, a baby boy! My daughter named our new little prince Jaxon and the name suits him well. He has the cutest little smile, gorgeous thick dark hair and pretty eyes! He's so handsome!

A few weeks ago I finally had some time to sit down and work on some newborn baby boy scrapbook pages. Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing those scrapbooking layouts here on my craft blog. You can also find previous baby girl layouts by looking in my scrapbooking category.

Newborn Baby Boy Scrapbook Layout Idea

For this particular layout I had three 4x6" photos which I slightly cropped down so that all three photos were the same size. I matted two of them onto a strip of pale blue cardstock, leaving an 1/8" edge around the photo strip and then matted them again on yellow cardstock, leaving a 3/16" edge.  I repeated this for the third photo.

I used a piece of pale blue printed scrapbooking paper as an additional photo mat and overall, it measures 11 1/2" by 9 3/4" in size. I centered that piece onto another piece of printed scrapbook paper (blue with pale lime green & yellow polka dots) which was the 12x12" background paper. See photos.

At my daughter's baby shower they had blue baby footprint confetti on the tables which I saved. I added the confetti to the page by using tiny glue dots...just scattered them around the page.

I had a bunch of baby themed embellishments leftover from other layouts and I wanted to try to use some of those up on this page. I placed a BABY BLOCK 3-dimensional cardstock sticker under the photo on the left. Beside that one is a 3-d sticker embellishment of a stork. Above that same photo I used a gel sticker that says Precious Little Baby and a 3-dimensional cardstock sticker that features baby balloons. Those balloons say "Welcome New Baby" on them.

To finish up...I found some alpha stickers in my stash that perfectly matched the colors of this layout. The alpha stickers are round with the letter inside. I matted them onto yellow cardstock squares measuring 2" square and then inked around all of their edges with seafoam green ink. I spelled out the word BOY with them and added them to the page using adhesive foam dots.

I like how this newborn baby boy scrapbook page turned out. It only took me an hour to make, I used up all left-over supplies from other pages and it's cute. It doesn't have a slew of clutter on the page. I left the three photos pretty much shine & speak for themselves.

Note: You can click on the photos in all of my posts which will open up each image in a new window and in an enlarged size. This will allow you to see the details up close.

DIY Baby Boy Baby Shower Ideas

My daughter is expecting her second child later next month and it's a boy! I am super excited to be a grandmother again and I look forward to spoiling this new bundle of joy once he arrives. Previously when she was pregnant the firs time around we had a very large & catered baby shower. This time around we decided to have a simple baby shower and did most of the decorations, party favors, table centerpieces and food ourselves.

Today...I wanted to share some very simple & frugal baby boy baby shower ideas with all of you.

1. Blue Punch! You can buy all kinds of punches these days that are blue or you can make your own. You can whip up a batch of blue Kool-Aid too! For the ice...we used flavored water so that added additional flavor the drink! Display your punch in a glass beverage dispenser so that your guest can help themselves.

2. We went to our local dollar-type of store and picked up one medium sized yellow rubber ducky and two smaller sized yellow rubber duckies. We were looking for blue ones which we've seen before but couldn't find any on this particular trip. With that said...I think the yellow ones pop & just look better! To keep them from falling off the top of your beverage dispenser stick some two-side tape or little self-adhesive scrapbooking glue dots on their bottoms. Cute!

3. Instead of doing a big fancy baby shower cake we elected to do cupcakes! This was a co-ed & family-style baby shower and a lot of children were in attendance. We baked the cupcakes ourselves and added a little bit of blue food coloring to the batter. We simple used a cream cheese frosting on top and added blue sprinkles to some of them and left others plain. Super simple to do!

4. The "Ready to Pop" popcorn bags were a big hit with the party guests! We purchased little food-safe party bags at our local dollar-style store and microwave popcorn. We popped it and then left it cool. Measure out about 1/4 to a 1/2 cup and place it into the bags. (avoid using popcorn with a slew of butter or flavorings as it will look greasy & oily in your bags...plain or light butter is best!). We made our own tags from scrapbooking cardstock and used a glue stick to glue them together. Punch a hole in the corner and write your message onto the tag. Finish up by tying the tag to your little popcorn bags!

5. My husband had seen numerous posts on Pinterest for making a fruit basket out of a watermelon. Some of these included designs for turning the watermelon into a baby buggy (stroller). He looked them over and then came up with his own simple concept which is shown in the photo. Is it perfect? No, but it's darn cute and everyone loved it! You will need to pick up a watermelon, a cantaloupe, pineapple, blueberries, green seedless grapes, strawberries and any other fruits that you want to use. We do suggest making it up no earlier than the night before or very early in the morning the day of. You want your fruits to be ripe and crisp!

Note: You can click on the images in this post and they will open up in a new window and will automatically ENLARGE so that you can see all of the details close-up.

Over the coming weeks I will share some additional ideas that we did for her special baby boy baby shower. Everyone in attendance had a great time!

Baby Gender Reveal Party - The Balloon Box

My daughter is pregnant with baby #2 and is due late this Summer. Recently they held a baby gender reveal party at their home and revealed the sex of their new baby to all of their party guests (family and friends). She found a really cool idea online and used it at the party.

She took one of her best friends along with her to an ultrasound and had the technician print out the photo and label it if it was a boy or girl on the back. The technician placed the photo into a sealed envelope which her friend kept with her. In other words, my daughter had no idea if she was having a boy or a girl until the party!

The Balloon Gender Reveal Box

1 large cardboard box
Pink, Black and Blue Markers
Pink or Blue Helium Balloons
Pink or Blue Ribbon

The box needs to be decorated in a baby girl and baby boy theme. Her friend kept the box simple as you can see in my photo. In private...she read the contents of the envelope and place the photo back inside a new sealed enveloped and tied the envelope around one of the ribbons on one of the balloons. Depending on the sex of the baby...that will determine the color of your balloons and ribbon. In our case...all of the balloons were blue!

Seal up the box...you can either just fold-over the flaps on the top or use a little bit of clear shipping tape but you definitely want to make sure that the balloons are securely inside the box. We also recommend that you fill up the balloons no more than 10 hours before the party as you don't want them deflated.

The box is now ready for the party and it is best to take the box outside and let the new parents open it up in front of their party guests to learn if they are having a baby boy or a baby girl! (or in some cases, one of each!).

Very inexpensive and fun! The parents loved this idea and all of the guests enjoyed it too! Most importantly, have fun at your gender reveal parties and don't stress yourself out by having elaborate & fancy parties where people can't have fun and enjoy themselves.

Free Craft Project - Frugal Tooth Fairy Drawstring Bag

My little grand daughter spends a lot of time at our home and at her other grandmother's home and she is finally at the age where she is starting to loose teeth. As grandmother's we both wanted little Tooth Fairy Bags at each of our homes so that when she loses teeth...the Tooth Fairy can leave her a present at our homes too.

A few months ago I went out and bought a really nice Tooth Fairy pillow for her which she keeps at her house. For the grandmothers we decided to make our own little frugal Tooth Fairy bags. Here is how we made them. You will only need basic sewing skills to make one.

Supplies Needed:

(2) Pieces of Fabric each measuring 4" by 6" in size
(1) Piece Satin Ribbon 1/4" by 8" in size
(1) Scrap of White Terry Cloth (old wash cloth works well)
Red Embroidery Floss & Needle
Scissors
Sewing Machine & White Thread

For the tooth applique...we simply free-handed our own tooth shape and then cut it out of white terry cloth (an old wash cloth or towel). Using 3 strands of red embroidery floss, hand stitch the white terry cloth tooth to one piece of fabric (in our case, floral fabric). We did an outline stitch around the edges of the tooth and then made french knots for the eyes and hand stitched a mouth.

Fold over 1/2" on one short edge of each fabric piece to the wrong side and use your sewing machine to make a hem. You will thread the satin ribbon through there later to make the drawstring for the bag. Place the wrong sides together on your fabric pieces and machine sew three edges together (hem edges at the top) to form a bag. Once done, thread the satin ribbon throw the casing you made earlier to make the drawstrings and knot each end so that they don't pull throw the casing and don't unravel. (sorry...took the photo before we did this part so our drawstring is missing from the picture).

Your simple & frugal drawstring closure Tooth Fairy bag is done! It is big enough to hold money or a few little trinkets that the Tooth Fairy leaves behind. A great way to use up all of your little fabric scraps too!

4 Do-It-Yourself Baby Shower Table Centerpiece Ideas

When it comes to hosting a baby shower for a new mom-to-be you don't have to spend over your budget when it comes to baby shower table centerpieces. Matter of fact, I think the best table centerpieces are ones that you (yourself) create.

Here are four great Do-It-Yourself Baby Shower Table Centerpiece Ideas

* Purchase a box of wooden ABC blocks at your local toy store or baby store. Take these wooden ABC blocks and stack them up on the tables in pretty pyramid shapes. Once the baby shower is over, the new mom-to-be will have a stack of baby blocks for her new little one to play with.

* Purchase a revolving countertop spice rack that has clear glass jars (no labels on them). Fill them up with pastel colored candies, baby theme'd confetti, diaper pins, etc. You can print out your own custom baby theme'd wording and stick on label onto each filled spice jar. Add a big fluffy bow to the top and sit it on the main table at the party. Once the party is over, the new mom-to-be can keep the spice rack and use it for spices once the "decorations" have been removed.

* Purchase a few clear glass mixing bowls or cake pedestal plates. Fill them up with all kinds of things like pastel colored holiday ball shaped tree ornaments, baby confetti, pastel color candies, pastel colored marshmallows, pastel lollipops, cookies, cupcakes...all kinds of things can be used as fillers. Place them on the tables as centerpieces. Use your imagination and get creative!

* Purchase white, ivory or pastel colored pillar style candles. Print out some custom candle wrappers from online in the design, colors and wording that you would like. Wrap the labels around the candles and secure them shut with a glue dot. These are for decorative use only, when ready to burn you will need to remove the paper labels. In addition, you can purchase glass candle plates and pretty paper ruffled doilies at your local dollar store and really get creative with this idea.

When it comes to hosting a baby shower, you don't have to break the bank with party decorations. You can think outside-the-box and hit your local dollar store & craft supply store and make them yourself!

Moms Are Loving the Mombo Nursing Pillow!

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Comfort and Harmony. All opinions are 100% mine.

We found out last month that our daughter is expecting child #2 in about 6 months and we are really excited to become grand parents again. Our first grandchild was born 4 years ago and since then...we have been waiting for this exciting news!

We are very hands-on grandparents and spend a LOT of time with our grand daughter. She is over at our house at least 4 times a week and it will be no different when grandchild #2 arrives in early Fall. With that said, I have already been out shopping for new baby supplies and products.

Our daughter will again be breast feeding the new bundle of joy and I am thinking about getting her the mombo nursing pillow that I have been hearing a lot about. I saw a bunch of positive reviews on this infant nursing pillow online and I think it will be the one that I purchase for her to use.

The nursing pillow has a 2-sided design called FirmaSoft and each side offers a different nursing experience. One side is perfect for when you are breast feeding the baby and the other side is perfect for when the baby is just lounging around on your lap. Current moms are stating that it's a really comfortable baby nursing pillow and they love that it comes in 3 styles (standard, deluxe and nude).

Another thing the moms are liking is that you can buy a lot of different covers for the nursing pillow to fit your mood and style. I bet they have one that would coordinate with my daughter's nursery style pretty nicely. I like the idea of having several nursing pillow covers because when one is dirty, you will have a back-up one that is clean.

I learned that the Mombo nursing pillow is the only one that offers a vibration action which I would imagine helps to soothe and calm a fussy baby. Our last grand baby wasn't fussy at all, but that is a great option to have in a nursing pillow for sure.

I spotted the Mombo pillows at Toys 'R Us and at Babies 'R Us...have you all seen them? Have any of you used them? I would love to hear your thoughts about them!

You can follow Comfort & Harmony on Facebook and/or follow Comfort & Harmony on Twitter for additional information and to learn more about this wonderful product.

Scrapbooking: Precious Baby Girl Easy Scrapbook Layout Idea

It has been about 3 months since I had any time to scrapbook and that is thanks to us moving into our new home back in January of this year. I finally dug out some of my scrapbooking supplies and got busy scrapbooking a few of my grand daughter's newborn pictures.

The photo's in this layout are of her when she was barely a month old and they were professionally taken by a well-known baby photographer here in our area. I wanted a quick, easy and very clean scrapbook layout that wasn't too busy or too cluttered and I think I accomplished that.

Today I am sharing one of the pages I made and the coordinating page will be shared here on my blog next week. That page is very similar to this one but has 2 photos, journaling block, a few embellishments and a mini birth announcement.

The page I am sharing today has 4 photos (3 wallet sized ones and one 3" by 5" photo). The color scheme for this layout is light pink, dark pink and pale yellow. It is done in the 12x12 format (size). I matted all 4 of my photos onto dark pink cardstock and trimmed them so that only 1/8" edge remained around each photo.

The focal point of this layout is the 3 wallet sized photos which I matted onto a shelf of paper (pink, yellow and purple printed plaid paper) with a scalloped edge. I off-centered the 3 photos across the paper shelf. I accented the left side with a pink & white sheer bow with a mini clear flower shaped button in the center.

The layout has 2 borders...one across the top and one across the bottom as you can see in my photo. I used rub-on words (Precious Baby) for my title and the rub-on words (It's A Girl) as accents. In the top right corner of the layout I made a flower out of 5 round pink buttons and the center of the flower is a larger peach colored round button. I drew a stem using an olive green marker and used 2 leaves (rub-on) to finish off the flower.

This is the left-side page of the 2-page layout and next week I will share the coordinating page which has a really cool journaling tag and pocket on it. Thanks for reading my blog and checking out the baby girl scrapbook layout! You can click on the photo in this post to enlarge it to see the details.

Homemade Baby Shower Gift Ideas That You Can Make!

Heading to a baby shower this Spring? Looking for a few homemade baby shower gift ideas? Well, we have some for you today! If you crochet, knit, sew or just love general crafting, you should be able to gather a few gift ideas from the list below. Enjoy!

1. If you knit or crochet you can purchase a few skeins of yarn and make the mom-to-be a new baby blanket. If you know the design and/or colors of the baby's nursery, we do recommend you work one up to go along with the nursery theme. When it doubt, stick with the tradition white, mint green or yellow. In addition to the baby blanket, you could knit or crochet a baby sweater, bib, hat or a few pairs of baby booties.

2. If you enjoy sewing you could make many new things for the new baby. Mom's always appreciate baby quilts, baby bibs, burp pads, changing pads, diaper stackers, diaper bags, tote bags and other items that a baby needs regularly. If you are pressed for time and have a limited budget you could make a few burp pads for only a few bucks.

3. All new moms love to display photos of the new baby so head to your local craft store and purchase a few blank picture frames. Head on over to their craft supplies aisle and pick up some baby themed supplies, a glue gun and some glue sticks. Once home you can hot glue a lot of different baby themed items around the picture frame and give it to the new mom.

4. If you are pretty crafty you could whip up some new nursery decorations for the baby's new room. Moms love hanging new baby theme'd items on the walls, sitting new items on shelves, bookcases and dresser tops. Most moms pick out a color scheme and theme for their baby's nursery so try to work within that style. Wall hangings, mini quilts, homemade stuffed animals, baby blocks, teddy bears, etc. all make nice homemade baby shower gifts.

How to Make a Tutu :: Quick and Easy Instructions

How to Make a Tutu
By Mariana Patrick

I've always dreamed of having daughters and doing crafts with them. I grew up with crafts all around me and I knew it was something I wanted for my daughters. I knew I wanted to create a lifelong bond with them and what better way to do that by coming up with an activity they'll always remember doing with their mommy. I never thought it would be to make tutus. Now that my oldest daughter is 6, I'm beginning to teach her the basics of making a tutu.

I was having trouble thinking of a birthday theme for her and she came up to me and said to have a tutu making party! Why didn't I think of that? It's the perfect theme and the perfect activity because the girls will learn a new skill and have a party favor to take home!

PREPLAN:

Cost of Roll/spool: $2-$3 (you'll need 2, maybe 3).

Precut elastic and sew ends together for waistband or use an elastic headband instead of sewing.

Precut the tulle strips days before the party. To save time, lay a cutting mat down and roll out at least three rolls evenly on top of each other. Start at the 0" mark on the mat and measure out the strip length. Let's say you want the tutu to be 10" long... cut about 22" to compensate for the knot you will be tying. Place a quilters lip edge ruler where you will be making your cut. Carefully roll your rotary cutter over the tulle fabric using the ruler's edge as a guide to make sure you have a straight cut. You will need to cut about three to four strips of tulle for each inch of waistband.

FOR THE PARTY and for each guest making a tutu:

Step 1: Slip your elastic waistband around a paper towel roll that will hold the elastic in place. If the elastic fits loosely around the paper towel roll, use sewing pins to cinch up the elastic until it fits snug.

Step 2: Have the girls fold a strip in half and bring it behind the elastic waistband to form a loop.

Step 3: Bring the ends of the tulle strip up and through the loop and pull the ends down to tighten. Make sure they don't pull it too tight as it can overstretch the waistband.

Step 4: Continue tying slipknots or show them how to tie regular double knots around the entire waistband. They will probably use about 60 strips of tulle. Try to tie at least 3 knots per inch of your waistband measurement.

Step 5: The fun part!!! Embellish. Supply them with tons of embellishments... Glue or pin flowers an tie ribbon around the waistband. And there you have a finished tutu and a successful birthday activity!

Learn everything you need to know to make beautiful boutique quality tutus including 10 different variations in my complete step-by-step instructional course. You will not find a better or more affordable course on the Internet for how to make a tutu. I've been selling my guides since 2007 and have thousands of satisfied customers who have taken the skills learned from my ebooks and started their own successful tutu boutiques! ~ Mariana Patrick

Candy Bar Baby Shower Party Favors

I just had to show you all this picture of some candy bar baby shower favors that were made for my nieces baby shower a few weeks ago. Aren't they cute? Her mother purchased them from a crafty seller online and had the wrappers custom printed. The front of the candy bars has my nieces name (first, middle & last name). By the time you all see this post she will have been borned!

I love how my sister-in-law then hand wrote thank you messages (thank you for attending the shower) onto pink paper, rolled them up like a scroll and used glue dots to stick the paper scrolls to the corner of each candy bar wrapper.

I think they are too cute and so much cuter than those plain candy bars you see at showers these days! Congrats on the new baby girl Ashley!

Butterfly Theme Baby Diaper Cake

My 26 yr. old daughter has finally taken an interest in crafting and today I am sharing a photo of a diaper cake (the second one she has ever made) with all of you. She made this butterfly theme'd diaper cake for my nieces baby shower last weekend. I think it is totally cute!

She did an excellent job making it and as a crafty mommy myself...I am very proud of her! She found these sparkly butterfly wings from a child's costume shop and put them on the backside of the cake...totally cool! Sorry the photo isn't too great but trust me...the baby diaper cake is absolutely gorgeous!

Everyone who was at the baby shower remarked how cute it was and my daughter has been getting orders to make more since that time! She has surprised me with her creativeness when it comes to making homemade baby diaper cakes!

How To Make A Three-Layer Scrapbook Diaper Cake

Scrap booking and diaper cakes meet with a winning combination.

You will want to watch Barb's cool YouTube Video:



This three layer cake can be easily modified to fit any theme for Baby. Tried of the same ole diaper cakes? Do you love scrap booking and just itching to try something new? You'll just love creating a cake like this then. There are no rules to bind you, just use your imagination! If you can dream it , you can make it! The recipient of this gift will be amazed because it will be one of a kind, you simply ask the baby shower giver what the New-Mom -To Be theme is and create, go wild!It's fun!

Items used to make the cake are:

Poster broad or you may use card stock if you can find pieces large enough
Fabric
Lace
White rosebuds
Pink paint
Chalked ink (pink) to stamp on lace flowers.
Hand sewn lace flowers ( either purchase them on Ebay, or make them.I made mine and it's simple.You can find instructions on Youtube.
Diapers -size one "luvs"
Mixed color of shred to match theme.
Double sided tape
Hot glue

To construct your cake, you'll need to cut three and a half strips of poster broad.
Bottom layer - takes one and a half lengthwise and 5 1/2 inches in height.

Second layer-takes one strip and you want to make this one 5 inches in height and about 6 inches round ( you may cut some off) Just hold the ring over bottom layer and eyeball where to cut off excess.You just want to make sure the second layer will not overlap bottom layer.( Think cake when eyeballing it:)

Third layer- takes about a little over a half of the strip and should be 4 1/2 inches in height and about 5 inches in roundness.It's always best to cut a little over than be short, then just eyeball how far to take in end of strip to make sure the layer does not overlap the second layer.

Next take your fabric and measure out enough fabric to cover strips, but leave an inch or so bare on one end of each strip.Next wrap and secure fabric on the inside of strips with double sided tape ( no one is going to see the inside) You may iron the fabric too. Check once again where you'll secure both ends together to form a ring, or layer. Take a strip of double sides tape and put on end of poster broad, insert that end into the other side where the fabric is and hold a few seconds till secure.

Embellish them now with your flowers, strips of lace or whatever you choose, let dry good.Next you'll add diapers. Make sure you pack the diapers in tight so there is no room to move ( Very important). Complete all three layer. Stack them and add shred, and your done!

You may also want to position your bottom layer on a cake plate before adding the other layers! Most of all have fun and create!

May be reprinted with Authors bio intact - Copyright Barb Ireland 2011
http://www.makeadiapercaketoday.com/

Tips for Putting Together a Baby Shower

Tips for Putting Together a Baby Shower by O Quinn

More well liked than bridal showers baby showers are almost a necessity as baby’s needs can break the bank.

Here’s how to make it fun for all guests.

It is considered in bad taste for the pregnant mother or any of her relatives to throw the shower. Ask a close friend to throw one instead.

Let your guests know if the baby’s gender is already known. If it’s not known let the guests know in the shower invitation so they can shop accordingly (if they would be so kind).

Decorate the baby shower with baby accessories which are then presented to the expectant mother or couple at the end of the baby shower.

Diaper cakes, while ever so popular, are also practical because they are made from cloth diapers and decorated with baby accessories. These items will become well used once the baby is born.

Do include the father in the baby shower if at all possible. Many men turn their noses up at the word “baby shower” but this can be made fun so they are not upset they came. Also if the father is part of the shower invite other males so he is not left out.

Don’t overwhelm your baby shower guests with games. More than five and it’s overkill. These are not toddlers who need you to direct their day. Some other ideas can be let the guests mingle with each other and the guest of honor. Have an activity where the guests each write out a lovely piece of baby wisdom on decorative cards to give the mom-to-be. She can read them aloud once they are done and keep them in a decorative tin for future reminiscing.

Some fun baby shower games include...

Word scramble: Scramble up words of baby items and give your guests a few minutes to figure out what they are. Make them hard words too. Don’t let them off easy with words such as crib or bottle.

Guess the baby accessory: Find some not so common baby items and have people guess what they are used for.

Ask questions from common childhood stories. Such as “What was the second pig’s house made out of in the Three Little Pigs?” or “Who were the three lazy characters in The Little Red Hen?”.
Baby’s are precious. Visit Infant and Baby Needs for great tips on shopping for gear and caring for these tiny precious lives.

Quilting Tips | Baby Quilt Safety - Using Buttons and Bows in Baby Quilts

Baby Quilt Safety - Buttons and Bows By Sharon Camp

Little girls and their baby quilt just go hand in hand with buttons and bows - right? Think again.

Those pink and lacy decorations create a baby quilt with the little girl or princess touch. A bow here or a few small buttons there are lovely adornments. How could these few, simple additions, which dress up the baby quilt, become such a hazard to a baby or a young child?

A child loves to play with anything they can touch and pull on. No matter how securely you place and sew on the buttons with good quilting thread. Over time they will wear with the constant everyday child's play and eventually be pulled off. The buttons can be easily be swallowed by the child.

Ribbons and bows can also become a problem but they do not have to be detached to become a hazard. Babies can twist their little fingers in and around the ribbon cutting off the circulation to their small hands or even the toes. During sleep these small fingers and toes can be caught in the bow causing the same loss of blood flow to the extremity. Even though, as in a button, the quilter might securely attach the bow to the baby quilt, over time these bows and ribbons will also become loose and break from overuse. Depending on the length of the ribbon, strangulation could result if the child were to put the ribbon around their neck.

If you plan to have the quilt as wall hanging with all the buttons, bows, and other attachments that would bring out the best of your work because little fingers will not have access to these tiny little parts, think carefully. As you secure these attachments to the baby quilt, do so with quilting thread and be sure you have knotted them tightly in place. Many families place a wall quilt over the baby's crib or cradle and having any of these attachment falls off would be dangerous to the child. If the quilt hangs low enough for a toddler to crib and those ribbons are within their grasp, these become a source of enticement to pull and play with them. Hence, the problems that result in cutting off the circulation or possible strangulation are still within the baby's reach.

Little girls with their buttons and bows are probably best left to story books until they are older. Safety should be first when designing your baby quilts.

Come and choose one our handmade children's quilts, a lasting keepsake, a unique birthday gift, or Christening gift, for that special "little one." Visit my website: http://www.uniquebabyquiltboutique.com/ and chose of one unique handmade children's quilt from my collection for your child's birthday or other special event.Sharon Camp, The "BabyQuiltLady," has been quilting for over 30 years.

Baby Shower Tips for a Fabulous Baby Shower by: Barb Ireland

Baby Shower Tips for a Fabulous Baby Shower - by Barb Ireland

A baby shower is a day full of joy and anticipation for the mom-to-be and all her family and
friends. It’s a time to get together and share in the happiness of a new baby coming and to
show how much the mom means to you. It’s also an opportunity to help prepare for the arrival
of their new bundle of joy. But how can you make the shower memorable and something that
will be long remembered?

One of the growing trends you find at more and more showers are diaper cakes. Diaper cakes
are baby shower gifts that are shaped like a “real” three-layer cake, but made from diapers,
blankets and other useful items. A diaper cake is a fun and rewarding hot new product for baby
showers, baby gifts, and also other celebrations. You can make your own or order one at http:
//www.makeadiapercake.biz

In addition to the diaper cake, you also want to have a party that is fun and memorable. Here
are some other ways you can “wow” your guests at a baby shower.

Make candle favors ~ Buy scented votive from your favorite craft store, tulle circles and ribbon.
Take the votive center. Put this in middle of tulle circle and then bring all ends up and secure
with ribbon. Make a nice bow and you have great gifts for guests.

Make bath salts~ Buy muslin bags, Epsom salt, and fragrance oils. Most items you can buy
from craft stores. Salt can be bought at your local supermarkets. Combine salt and fragrances
and stir good and place in the muslin bags. Beautiful way to say, “thanks for coming.”

Make Specialty Cupcakes~ These aren’t the kind you eat, but instead made from a washcloth.
You then fill with candies, coffees, teas, or more small bath items. Everyone will remember
this one and be talking about it for a long time after the shower.

Spoons — In center of tulle circle, place kisses on spoon part and wrap up the tulle over spoon
and secure and handle with ribbon. Place these at table for guests.

Make your own soap favors. Your craft stores sell complete kits. You then simply buy some
tulle circles and place favors in middle and then tie up with ribbon.

Most of all have fun and create your own style your mom to be and guests will remember for
forever. Everyone will love the personalized attention you gave to the party.

Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diapercake biz, MAKE A DIAPER CAKE. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.

Quick and Easy | Baby Shower Party Favor Ideas

A few weeks ago I attended one of my nieces baby showers and her mother had made these adorable little girl theme'd baby shower favors so I wanted to share them with all of my craft blog readers.

For the pink plastic baby shoe party favor she purchased those at her local craft store and then used a perm. marker to write the baby girl's name on the bottom of the shoe. In the center is a piece of mesh tulle and she wrapped up silver and pink colored Hershey Kisses in that and tied it shut with a pink satin ribbon bow. The final item is a pink plastic umbrella that is filled with small candies and she simply printed out a tag that says "Thank You" and tied that onto the umbrella with pink satin ribbon.

These are excellent ideas for baby shower party favors...especially for those who are not too crafty or don't have a lot of time to invest into making other types of party favors.

Halloween Party Cakes | Holiday Fun For All

Halloween Party Cakes - Holiday Fun For All
by: Barb Ireland

Halloween will be here soon. Goblins, ghosts and ghoulish fun too. Halloween also brings with it the start of the Holiday Season, pumpkin patches, and that warm fuzzy feeling that winter is on the way. Many families celebrate with a huge bash for friends and family and even the neighborhood kids. Bobbing for apples, yummy goodies, and dressing up in costumes are just some of the fun to be had.

On my Youtube channel, I like sharing how to make my creations, guaranteed to make any party a success. You can makeyour own Halloween Cake, not the sugary kind with those extra calories we don't want, but one with all your kids favorite goodies (and yours too). You can make a cake for any age, putting their favorite surprises in it. Plus, why limit it to only a party at home? Why not, make a cake and surprise your office or even send one to your nieces and nephews?

This unique design can be customized for any size party and with your imagination you can design it for any holiday event. In fact, why not also bring a Halloween Cake to the office and spice up the day or surprise your favorite nieces and nephews. You're be their favorite aunt for sure after this.

Here are just some of the ideas for your cake:

1. Put your favorite games, stickers, Halloween-themed popcorn, and other party ideas for all to enjoy. Then they can take right from the cake and it makes a great centerpiece.

2. If you know of someone with a new baby or even a toddler, put a cute costume in your design and include a Halloween bib, and other special baby items.

3. For the office - Use the template available on our site and shred for a good base. Then add in Halloween themed coffees, candy, notepads, pens, popcorn and more for your next party cake at the office.

4. Safety cake - All kids need to be extra special careful at Halloween. You can design a cake with Halloween safety items, such as flashlights, light sticks, Halloween Trick-Or-Treat bags, etc. Tuck in little gifts, games, candy or toys for the kids too. It's Halloween; you want it to be loads of fun.

5. You can welcome a new puppy or kitten by using kitten or puppy Halloween outfits and then include a disposable camera to take pictures of them in their cute little outfits. Halloween themed chew toys and other items new pet owners will need for their kitten or puppy.

Whichever you choose, you'll be delighted you made this cake and put a smile on their faces young and old.


About The Author

Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, www.makeadiapercake.biz Barb has been designing diaper and towel cakes for the last ten years,and taught others for the period of five years.

Scrapbooking | Loved By All Baby Girl Scrapbook Layout Idea

I made this layout a couple of weeks ago in the 12x12 scrapbooking format and I wanted to do something a little different with this one. These 3 photos are of my grand daughter and she was 1 month old and it was her first Professional Photos that were taken of her.

I had a piece of medium orange scrapbooking paper that had a large pink flower in the top right corner but wasn't sure what to do with it. I decided to take some white puffy paint and outline the flower and while the flower was still wet I sprinkled on irredescent fine glitter and I really covered all of the white puffy paint so it really shimmers when the light hits it. I placed a metal framed round flower disc into the center of the outlined flower. My pictures really don't do this any justice but it's beautiful how it turned out.

I had 3 photos of the wee one which were all wallet sized so I matted them onto black cardstock and cropped them down so that 3/16" of a border remained. I decided to stagger them diagonally across the page. I used my Cricut to cut out LOVED BY ALL from black cardstock on the #1 size setting for the title of my page and placed them near the bottom left of the page using a glue pen.

I had 3 clear adhesive word stickers that I used...the Bottles, Bibs & Booties which I placed above photo #1, Little Diapers above photo #2 and Butterfly Kisses above photo #3. I then added 2 glittered cardstock & chipboard stickers to the layout...a baby buggy under photo #1 and New Born Baby under photo #3 and that one is accented with 2 tiny dark pink brads. To finish it all up...I had some gel alphabet stickers so I spelled out her name and placed that under photo #2 on the black cardstock border.Overall...I am very pleased with this layout and I am going to try using puffy paint and glitter on some other layouts I plan on making next week as I am pleased with how that flower turned out.

Scrapbooking Baby's First Haircut 12 x 12 Scrapbooking Layout

first official haircut at a local salon back in December 2010 and I wanted to mark the event by making a scrapbook page. I did this 12 x 12 layout in yellow and blues as I love those 2 colors together.

I started used a piece of 12 x 12 yellow scrapbooking paper with small blue swirls printed on it for my background. I took a coordinating sheet that was blue with yellow swirls and cut it down until it measured 4 3/4" by 12" and glued it to the right hand side of my page. I then took 1/4" wide blue rick rack ribbon and glued that along the two edges. I used bright blue letter stickers and spelled out MY FIRST HAIR CUT and attached them to the page. I had a sheer yellow fabric pocket and placed her lock of hair inside it. I then attached a yellow ribbon bow and pink satin ribbon rose to the top center of the pocket to add interest.

I cropped down my photo of my daughter and grand daughter and attached a cardstock yellow frame to it and then mounted that onto light blue scrapbooking paper and trimmed the edges to leave a 1/4" border. I then placed it onto my page (top left). Right above my photo is a 3-D embellishment word that says MEMORIES. To the right of the photo is another 3-D embellishment that says BABY'S FIRST HAIRCUT. Underneath the photo I used stickers to spell out her first name. I then had 2 pretty 3-D embellishments that had princess and hair quotes printed on them with ribbons and brads attached and used foam dots to attach them to the page under the photo.

This layout took me approximately 40 minutes to make and I think it came out pretty. My grand daughter's favorite color right now happens to be yellow (it's the only color word that she can say so far) so the yellow layout is appropriate. I also staggered my sticker letters so that they were not spot on straight as I wanted it the wording to be more child-like.