Home And Family

Creative birth announcements are the perfect way to share your joy and elation with friends and family. With a little bit of time and effort, you can craft birth announcements that will have everybody buzzing.

Supplies you’ll need from:

* 8 1/2 by 11-Inch heavy weight paper or card stock in any color you choose.

* Some felt or non-fraying fabric in a contrasting color.

* Matching or coordinating envelopes that will hold a 5 1/2 by 8 1/2-inch finished card.

* 2 or 3 paper punches in various designs – heart, diamond and circle are good choices.

* Special shears or scissors that will cut a decorative border on the card, like pinking shears where the blades saw-toothed instead of straight. Pinking shears leave a zigzag pattern instead of a straight edge.

* Glue suitable for gluing fabric to paper.

* Small pictures of the baby.

Here’s how to make your one-of-a-kind creative birth announcements:

1. Use the pinking shears to create a zigzag border on the paper or card stock. Don’t trim off too much – try to trim only 1/4 inch or so.

2. Use the paper punches to create a perforated border on the front of the card. Alternate the punches in an attractive pattern.

3. Use the pinking shears to cut out 6 to 10 heart shapes from the felt. Shapes should be about 1 inch in diameter, but one should be large enough to hold a trimmed picture of the baby. You can draw the hearts on the reverse side of the felt to make it easier to cut them out.

4. Fold the paper or card stock in half crosswise to make a card 8 1/2 by 5 1/2 inches. Press the fold securely, so the card will lie flat.

5. Glue the large heart in the center of the front of the card. Trim the baby’s picture with the shears and glue it on the large heart.

6. Glue the smaller heart shapes on the front of the card in an attractive random pattern.

7. Write the relevant info on your creative birth announcements, including:

o Date of birth

o Weight

o Length

o Parents’ names

o Baby’s name(s)

o Baby’s gender (some names like “Taylor” are unisex)

Many people also include the grandparents’ names, the siblings’ names and the place of birth.

With just a little bit of time and some inexpensive materials, you will have created distinctive baby birth announcements with a personal touch.