Do you remember leafing through an ABC book as a child? It was really fascinating to look at those colorful letters and pictures, and what a thrill when you recognized them! It’s a baby shower gift that both mother and child will treasure.
If you would like to give an unusual alphabet book as a shower gift, then why not make one of your own? It would be even nicer if you could create one in a completely gender specific theme if you know whether the baby will be male or female. That would actually be simpler to conceptualize than you think.
You could make it out of cloth so that the baby can even chew on it if she wishes, but why not try making a pretty book like a collage on heavy card instead? It’s quite easy to do and it will provide an excellent excuse for the mommy to snuggle up with her baby for a longer than usual while.
All you need to do so are pieces of card, a puncher, a heavy ribbon or braided string of yarn, materials for decorating like paints or coloring pens, and either pictures that you’ve cut out or sheets of art paper to cut out in general shapes for the objects. Scissors with decorative blades can be a big help as well.
Pick a general color scheme to help you keep everything together. Then, choose the papers for the objects and the background according to that theme. You could get papers of different textures, like felt paper, handmade paper, even Japanese mulberry or rice paper. They’ll add an interest to the illustrations and give the baby something to touch as well.
First make a model of the book with sheets of bond paper. Use four sheets folded into quarters and then cut the sheets in half, crosswise. Discard one since just seven will be enough for the book.
Cut out the letters from the papers that you chose, using a font that you like on your computer. You can first print out the letters on plain bond paper in a large enough size for the book, about four inches high for the tall letters. Whether you use just lower case letters or a mix of lower case and capital letters only is your choice.
Then trace out the letters on the right side of the decorative paper that you’ll use. Press down heavily with your pen to mark the paper below. Then mark lightly on the wrong side of the paper the letters that you could easily confuse, like “p” or “d.”
Leave about 1/16” allowance when you cut out the letters. This is where you’ll put the black outline in the end.
Then, glue the background paper to the card, leaving an allowance of 1/2” on the side for the punch holes. Position the letters on top of the paper and glue on carefully as well. Don’t be generous with the glue since it can cause the paper to buckle up.
Arrange the cutout objects beside the letters, if you are using them. Then trace over the edges of the letters in a black or dark gray felt pen.
After everything is completely dry, punch holes in the spine of the book and thread ribbon through. Tie it up with a good knot to finish it off.