Modern baby shower invitations

Modern baby shower invitations should be geared more towards the new mama to be. Sure, a baby shower is the celebration of the coming of a new baby. But I think it should also be the celebration of a woman becoming a mother. The shower should be just as much about showering the mama-to-be as it is about the baby. How about not only bringing a gift for the baby, but also a few luxury gifts for the Mama. Say, gift certificates to the spa for a pedicure and massage. :-)
Sounds like a good idea to me! And I'm sure she deserves it too!
These modern baby shower invitations are meant to be made for the baby shower celebrating both Mama and the new baby.

Materials needed to make these modern baby shower invitations:
8 1/2" by 11" cardstock or blank cards
2 different matching decorative papers
plain white printer paper
ribbon
glue stick, craft glue, or glue runner

To start making these invitations you will need to make a choice. Use cardstock as the base of your cards? Or go with the easy way out and use blank cards.

If you use cardstock you will start by having the cardstock cut in half. You can either cut them yourself with a good quality paper cutter or you can make it even easier than that and bring them to a local copy shop to be cut on a machine for you.

Set up the text for the inside of your invitations using a desktop publishing program or word processor. This text should be the "who, what, when, where, etc..." of your invitations.
whichever software you choose to set up your text, you will need to set up the document to be the same dimensions as your paper. For cardstock cut in half, the dimensions will be 8 1/2" wide by 5 1/2" height. If you are using a blank card simply measure the dimensions of the card when fully open and enter those dimensions.
When the document is at the correct size dimensions you will next set the page up two be divided into two halves. Do this by either setting a divider to the exact middle of the page, or with a word processor, set the page up into two equal columns. You will type the text for the inside of the invitation onto the right side of the card. Align the text to the center of the page. You can also change the text font to match the modern baby shower invitations theme. Now print the text onto your cardstock or blank cards. Make sure and select "options" or "preferences" when the printer window pops up. You will need to change the printer preferences to match the dimensions of the paper you are printing onto. Otherwise it will not print properly.

The last step is to decorate your invitations. Turn them from just a plain old baby shower invitation into the modern baby shower invitations. If you have chosen to make the invitations with cardstock then you must fold them in half first. If you are working with a very thick cardstock it may need to be scored before you fold them. If you own a sliding blade paper cutter they usually come with a scoring attachment.
You will need to choose two different matching decorative papers. One paper will serve as the background of the invitations and one will make the gift decoration for the invitation. The background should consist of a pattern that reflects a modern baby shower theme. The paper I chose depicts many hip stylishing looking pregger woman. It's actually a scrapbooking paper but works great for card making. It was made by Provo Craft an the title on the back of the paper is "pregnancy mon petit" (#42-4527) if you want to track down the exact paper I chose. The paper I chose to create the gift decoration was made by Francis Meyer and is titled "pink thin stripes" (5306-008).

First cut the background paper to match the front of the modern baby shower invitations. For a cardstock base card the paper will measure 5 1/2" by 4 1/4". For a blank card base just measure the front of the card when it is folded shut. The second decorative paper for the gift decoration should be cut into small squares. I cut mine to measure 2" by 2", but it is really up to how big or small you wish for it to be.

You will also need to create another text document for the front of the modern baby shower invitations. For this text you can simply print onto a regular 8 1/2 by 11" plain white paper. Open your software and set your page into columns. Type the words "Baby Shower" onto the page as many times as you can fit them spaced out by about 5-6 inches apart. Make sure and center the text as well as change the fonts to match your style. One way to keep some of the guess work out of this is to create graphic boxes in your document and center the text into the box. Then when you print the page out all you will need to do is use the box as a guidline to cut your text out.

Before you put all the pieces together I recommend creating the gift decorations first. Start by cutting out small lengths of ribbon that are just long enough to overlap the edges of the decorative paper squares. Use an adhesive to attach the ribbon across the paper squares to resemble a gift box. It is ok to use a craft glue but I recommend using a permanent glue runner to apply the adhesive to the ribbon. It is by far the fastest and easiest way to create paper crafts of all kinds.
Once the ribbons are attatched across the front of the "gift" use some small scissors or exacto knife to snip off the overhanging bits of ribbon. Now cut a longer length of ribbon to tie into a small bow. Glue the bow to the top of the "gift box" and snip the ends of the ribbon hanging from the bow so that both sides are equal.

Now to put all the pieces together to form your modern baby shower invitations. Start with the decorative paper meant to be the background of the invitations. Apply a thin layer of glue to the back of this paper and very carefully attach it to the front of the card. Next attach the white "baby shower" paper slightly centered towards the top of the card. It is ok for it to be a bit off center. The final step is to attach the gift decoration to the front of the card. Place it so it is slightly askew and also slightly overlapping the white paper as well. Done!

More tips and ideas for making these modern baby shower invitations...

* The easiest way to get a project like this done is to start by creating the text for the invitation first, printing onto white paper, and then bring that paper to a local copy shop to have copied for you onto the correctpapers. It saves alot of time and is less work. You can also have your papers cut while you are at it.

* Another great way to save alot of time is to use a glue runner to put the entire invitation together. It is soooo easy to use and there is no mess to clean up.

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