Photo Baby Blocks

It seems like forever since I designed these dies! It was back when my daughter was expecting her first baby. Now that she has had her second one, I have lots of pictures to organize! I decided to make a stack of baby blocks to commemorate the birth of baby Hunter, using the new Blocks/Cubes die from the Cherished collection.

The blocks are super versatile and also a great value because it allows you to cut all three blocks (as seen in the photo) with one pass through the Big Shot- 2.5", 2" and 1.5" (two pieces of matboard make a set of three blocks). The blocks may be used for so many things- you can use them as gift boxes, for storage, as art blocks, for photos or to commemorate special events (like having a new baby in the family!)

To create the blocks, die cut two pieces of matboard. Print photos on your home printer in black and white cropped to squares and printed in sizes to fit on the blocks. You can also use color photos but I did black and white because I thought color might be distracting. Plus I was near the end of my color ink cartridges in my printer!

Apply the photos to the blocks using a glue stick.

Use markers, stamps and inks to decorate the squares of the blocks. (I used my new Clearsnap ColorBox Blends inks for this project- it's a new kind of applicator which helps keep your hands clean while inking! The soft sponge tip allows the ink to get in spaces where traditional ink pads can't. It's also really easy to distress the edges with this new tool). For the squares with photos, I brought a little color in by lightly inking around the edge.

 I also used some of my new CraffitiDirect clear stamps designed to match the Cherished dies to decorate the blocks. The mini animals fit great on the smaller blocks.

I used permanent black markers to letter the baby's name and birth date, then colored it in with Copic markers. The Monkey & Lion and Elephant & Giraffe Framelits Sets were also used to decorate the blocks.

After decorating each square, assemble the blocks. Fold over each score line and form into a "U" shape. Hold one in each hand facing each other, rotate one hand 90 degrees and fit blocks together. The blocks will stay together without adhesive but you may want to apply double sided tape to each tab and assemble for a more permanent bond.

And here's the star of the show! Welcome little guy- Mimi loves you...