Sharing the love...

Sometimes, a project is important to me. Very important. As soon as I knew about my friends' baby coming, I was excited and started to think about this particular shadowbox. 

I have made several shadowbox at this point. Some have been just plain and simple decor items, but many have been gifts for babies, anniversaries, wedding, and milestones like graduations. Some come from the colours of a room, the theme of an event, but others are born from the people themselves. This is one of those. 

This couple loves to camp, to fish, to hunt- anything to be outdoors. Their announcement to the world that told everyone they were expecting was allow about the buffalo check... and there came the beginning of the idea. 

I used the Stampin' Up! background stamp Buffalo Check (retired) to make the red background as a base, as well as a wood grain piece of DSP In Good Taste as the background to fit in the frame, cut to 9x9. 

I used the animals from the stamp set Nature's Beauty and Rustic Retreat (retired), then coloured the pieces using Stampin' Blends. I love using the blends because they are so easy to make beautiful pieces that make me look artistic! 

The baby's initials - yes, WAR- were done with a retired die set of Stampin' Up! from a few years ago, Large Letter Framelits, done in Basic Black and Cherry Cobbler. I love layering colours like this as it stands out and allows for a bit more depth. A touch of Linen Thread and some embellishments, retired Magnolia Lane Cork Embellishments and some flowers from the dollar store, finish the look. 

I also used a lot of Stampin' Dimensionals to give the entire project more depth and layers. You can use dies to cut things out if they are available, or simply use a good sharp pair os scissors like the Paper Snips to fussy cut anything you choose. I try to keep a small border around the image as it is tough to cut exactly and precisely on all lines, and sometimes the lines are too thin to cut. 

Use the embedded links to check them out on my online store, and comment below to let me know what you think!