Baby Love

A friend of mine is having a baby and I have made/am making three cards for her – one for the baby shower, one for our workmates to sign at our staff afternoon tea and one now ‘under development’ for the actual birth. It means a lot to me to give this friend handmade cards as she has been one of ink & whim’s greatest supporters – even voting on the ink & whim name when my crafty ideas were still in their infancy. She bought a load of journals and cards the weekend before my first stall, giving me the confidence that I needed to feel as though I wouldn’t flop on trading day, and she visited me at this stall bright and early so that I would see a friendly face in the crowd. She is also beautifully honest in her feedback of my designs – it is a real friend that can be truthful about the things that don’t quite work out! Needless to say (but I will anyway!), her friendship is greatly appreciated.

Over the years I have given this friend handmade Christmas and birthday cards, which were all given with love, but a baby is something very special and so I wanted something very special to give her. So, thinking cap on, I thought about what I could do that would best fit.

My friend and I first bonded outside of work with sushi. After work and before evening events we would skip down to the local sushi train and delight in the beautifully prepared delicacies – her; fresh salmon nigiri, me; hot salted edamame beans. Our mutual love of sushi was complemented by a mutual love of Japanese textiles, and so I decided that origami paper should feature on the card – an origami-bundled baby. The bundle ended up in a similar shape to a babushka doll, which was a lucky accident, seeing as for my last birthday my friend (recognising my love for all things babushka upon seeing the decorations around my home) gave me a babushka scrabble-tile pendant.

The second card had more of a vintage flavour. I browsed the insides of some of the Little Golden Books that I had collected for journal making (pics to come, I promise!), and found a sweet-faced Eloise Wilkin illustrated baby to feature on the card. Looking at the publishing info, I saw that the LGB book was from the same year as my friend was born – a very special coincidence*. These were matched with some stars and scalloped, recycled card.

So, now I’m up to the third card and I’m still playing with ideas. At this point I’m pretty sure that cotton scraps and buttons will be involved – maybe I’ll use some of the same fabric that she’s used for her new nursery’s curtains? I have a few weeks until the baby is due, so plenty of time to come up with something extra special.

And you know how I mentioned how incredibly supportive my friend was of my crafty efforts? Upon opening each card (amongst a crowd of clucky and cooing women), she took the time to mention what I do, promote my website and announce that I take orders! At the end of each present-giving ritual, she leant over and said, “I hope I see this design at your next stall!” So, at my friend’s request, adapted versions of each card are below – handmade with love.

*Apologies also to my friend regarding the publication year of this book. I may be good at gluing, but I’m hopeless at maths and so I apologise for adding two years to your age…