Decorating packages...

I have so much fun using my Cricut to decorate birthday gifts. Of course, gifts for kids are the most fun.  Recently my grandson turned 5 and here are the packages I decorated for him. The car and jack-in-the-box images are from Nate's ABCs.  I made the banner on the card by using a journaling guide to draw a curved line, and then I added a hand-drawn bow to each end.  I stamped the little pennants onto patterned paper, cut them out and glued them onto the line.

Here's a closer look at the little dog driving the car. The image does not have eyes, but I really wanted to add some - and I didn't want to use googly eyes. Instead, I used some gold liquid pearls and made two rounded mounds where the eyes would be. Once they were dry, I used a permanent marker to make a black dot in the center of each. I think they look pretty good!

Here's the little jack-in-the-box. He is so much fun! I added some rosy chalk to his cheeks, nose and palms for a little dimension. I also added some sparkles to the blue star but it's tough to see them in the photo.  If you look closely, you'll see that I should have rotated him 180 degrees on the package because the pattern on the wrapping paper is upside down. Oh well - I don't think a little 5-year-old cares two hoots about that! Had this package been for an adult, I would have taken the jack-in-the-box off, rewrapped the package (if necessary) and then adhered it correctly.

Here's just a little closer look at that banner on his birthday card. Please excuse the shadow. I need some photo-taking training!!  I stamped "Happy Birthday" in the corner and added his name with letter stickers.  If you'd like to see the card inside the envelope, check out my post about it here.

Thanks for stopping by today. Rember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day!

Cheryl