DIY Newborn Shadow Boxes – a Memorable DIY

This is a great design idea for a baby keepsake frame from Aimee, at The Crazy Craft Lady. A simple and effective design - perfect for displaying and treasuring those special keepsakes and moments. 

https://thecrazycraftlady.com/newborn-shadow-boxes-for-the-twins/

You won’t believe how easy it is to make the perfect customized newborn shadow box.  Learn how to make a personalized baby shadow box with a few basic supplies and keepsakes

Sae

 

I have seen some pretty creative newborn shadow box ideas lately, and knew this was something I wanted to do with our twins.  There is a little corner in the hallway outside their bedroom; I felt like this would be a perfect place to display some newborn mementos.

Enter my decision to make two newborn shadow boxes with all of our keepsakes from the hospital.

Here’s what I kept:

• Hospital hat and kimono top (the ones given to us by the hospital)
• The footprints from their “souvenir birth certificates”
• Ankle bracelet identification tags – I used two in Miss. B’s shadow box, since the back of hers had a stamp that reads “twin #2”
• The identification card from the hospital bassinet
• The socks the babies wore home from the hospital (so small!)
• A photo from the night they were born – I edited the pictures and reduced the color saturation level by about 50%

I bought two shadow boxes from Michaels during a BOGO sale as well as pink & blue scrapbook paper and two little wooden letters – R and B.  

I painted the letters pink and blue to match the paper I would be mounting some of my keepsakes on.

First, I arranged everything on the back board – walking away and coming back with fresh eyes to make sure I liked the positioning of all my items.  I decided to do a mirror image of my first arrangement in the second shadow box.  This way the boxes are not too similar.

I displayed my two newborn shadow boxes outside the nursery.  This was for several reasons.  One: I’m not a big fan of hanging newborn pictures in the nursery itself.  I think the nursery should be a room for the babies to grow in, explore, and enjoy.  Two: I wanted to keep the shadow boxes close to the nursery as a reminder of how much they have grown and changed.  Three: The corner just outside the nursery was pretty empty looking.

My sister gave us a collage frame filled with newborn and baptism pictures, which I decided to hang on the opposite wall from the shadow boxes.  I love this project, and constantly find myself looking over at the keepsakes and telling myself I can’t believe just how tiny they were, and how blessed we are to have two happy and healthy babies in our lives.

3D Displays - Fixing Keepsakes to a Shadow Box Frame

If you have something special that you want to display in a deep box frame, you may be wondering what you should use to fix the item(s) to the back of the frame.

There are a number of options, which we've listed in this post, but depending on what your keepsake is, it may be worth further research to ensure that it won't get damaged or eroded by your chosen method.

• Sticky Velcro can generally be used for lightweight items and some heavier items - the back of the packet should give you an indication of the weight that it can carry.  The Velcro can be pulled apart - using one part to stick to the back of the frame and the other part to stick to the keepsake - allowing you to fix the two bits of Velcro together.
• Sticky fixers are a simple and effective way of securing lightweight items in place. Again you should get an indication of the weight they will hold from the packet and you will find a whole range including permanent and non-permanent fixers. Have a look around to see which is best for your item .  We use permanent sticky fixers to hold our chunky wooden letters securely on walls and they can hold a good weight.
• Glue - there is an abundance of different kinds of adhesive on the market - it may be worth visiting a craft shop to see what is available and what is best for your keepsake. Glues will range from normal PVA, paper glue, hold melt glue to many more.
• Strong or permanent glue such as superglue may be best for heavier items, such as baby castings.  You may even find that a builders’ adhesive works well for really heavy items - but if you are not looking for a permanent solution or are framing a precious or valuable item, this is not the best option.
• Screws can be used if you want to hang something from inside the frame, such as a medal or necklace.  Try to use a small screw to avoid going through the back of the frame. You can always cover the strew head with a button or embellishment such as a bow.  
• Sewing items is an option if you are looking to add fabric to the back of the frame. This could be another option for medals or perhaps displaying spoons. You would need to sew the item onto the fabric before fixing the fabric to the back of the frame, as the mdf back will already be stapled to the box of the frame.

Creating a shadow box frame is a great way to display cherished keepsakes that remind you of those special moments in life.  If your looking for a deep shadow box frame - we have lots of colours and sizes available on the website.

Keepsake frames - Baby T-Shirt and Trainer

Wedding Keepsake Frame - Pictures, Table holder, rose petals
used on the tables and mini version of brides flowers

Good luck with your project!  Please feel free to comment with any other ideas you may have or any experiences you have had when creating 3d displays.

FKS x

Personalised Gifts ideas for Children - Direct to your Door

The rain may be threatening any chance of going to the beach for the day and has most definitely got in the way of barbecue season, but it won't stop Birthdays and Christenings and babies are still being brought into this world every day. If you have presents to buy and don't fancy being caught out by an inevitable shower, let us do the work for you.  We have added lots of lovely new handcrafted and personalised products to our website, helping you to shop in the comfort of your own home. We have lots more wooden name plaques for boys and girls.  Prices start from £7.50 for the mini wooden hanging plaques to £18.00 for the larger 3d plaques with more detail. Name plaques are perfect for birthdays and christenings, as well as new baby gifts.  Or you can do what we've done with them and buy them for your own children.  The kids love them, and they look great on bedroom doors or walls.  See the range of Name Plaques available on our website. We have also introduced a range of beautiful and unusual personalised magnetic noticeboards.  Who said noticeboards need to be dull?  Inspired by a fabulous poster style noticeboard in Costa Coffee (of all places) we fell in love with this range and wanted everyone to know about them. They are available in different designs for children, or you can even personalise the noticeboard with your own photo or your child's artwork.  An ingenious idea and a perfect gift for parents or grandparents.  Prices start at £48.00 for these truly unique keepsakes and you can see the range here.
Unique Gifts and Keepsakes for all Occasions, or Just Because....!
Keepsake Frames Create gorgeous and unique displays of your most precious memories with our modern range of keepsake frames.  We have lots of sizes and colours, so take a wonder over to our website to see the whole range.	Fingerprint Jewellery Beautifully handcrafted, fine pieces of silver jewellery with a child's handprint, footprint or fingerprint. We have jewellery that mums, dads and grandparents will love. Fingerprint / handprint Jewellery	Wooden Letters We have lots of styles of wooden letters for babies, boys and girls.  Lots of sizes available too - have a look at our wooden letters.

Different Types of Box Frames

There are really only two different kinds of box frames that you can buy and it's important to know the difference as it will have an effect on the finished look.

Deep Rebate Frame

 The first type of frame is a deep rebate frame.  These are made from one piece of wood (a deep rebate moulding) rather than having a box fixed to the back of them.  Not only do these frames have a modern and contemporary feel, but because they are made from one piece of wood you have the option of either hanging them to the wall or leaving them to to stand on a shelf or windowsill.  They look great from the side, so if you are hanging it from a wall you won't need to worry about the side profile.

Box Style Frame

The second type of frame is the box frame - these use a standard moulding for the frame face and have a box fixed to the back of the frame.  The key advantage to this type of frame is that you can get a greater depth, giving you more flexibility as to what you can frame.  For the deep rebate frames, choice is very limited for all aspects: colour, style and depth, as there are not a lot of deep rebate mouldings on the market.

We still use contemporary mouldings for our box style frames and the box is only visible from the side view.  Because of how these are made we can also look into bespoke requests for our customers (something we can't do for the deep rebate frames) - whether the request is for a different colour frame or different dimensions - including depth, we can usually help.

Visit our website to see our complete range - and please feel free to get in touch with any bespoke requests.

Thanks for reading :o)

New! 12 x 16 Inch Deep Box Frames - New Colours

Our 12 x 16 inch box frames have proved so popular that we have added another two colour options to our range.

12 x 16 Inch Deep Beech Box Frame

12 x 16 Inch Deep Beech Box Frame

Here they are: Silver and Beech.   These form part of our 55m deep range - they have a box fixed to the back to allow for the extra depth that may be required for your special keepsakes

Don't forget to visit our website to see our full range of keepsake box frames.

Looking for Ideas for Keepsake Frame Displays?

We have set up a new photo album for those of you who want to frame something special but need a few ideas and a little inspiration to get you started.  We have a range of images, some that we have put together ourselves and others that customers have sent in to us.  The key themes are baby keepsakes and wedding memorabilia, but if you are looking to frame something completely different you may still find the album useful.

View our Photo Album Now

If you have already decided what to frame and how to display it, but you still need to find the right frame, check out our range of Keepsake Frames, which are available in various colours, sizes and depths.

NEW! Extra Extra Deep Shadowbox Keepsake Frames

Our new EXTRA EXTRA DEEP keepsake frames are perfect for framing 3d keepsakes and memories.  These particular frames are made with a box fixed to the back, to allow for the extra depth.  Internal depth is 55mm and the frame is approx 9 x 11 inches.  Great value product at a great price: £19.99.

See website for more details and to purchase: Extra Extra Deep White Keepsake Frame; Extra Extra Deep Beech Keepsake Frame; Extra Extra Deep Oak Keepsake Frame

Just what Keepsake Frames are for!

Here's an email we received from a customer who bought one of our Keepsake Frames.  

I wanted to share it, as for me it completely sums up the reason for our keepsake frames - to display cherished items that hold great value and sentiment to us.  I love this picture, for the reasons explained by the customer below.  You don't have to frame something that is still completely perfect and in tact as more often than not, it is items such as the teddy bear that have been used and loved and are therefore worn out, that remind us of the most precious times.  

"I just wanted to let you know that I wanted the frame to put a little teddy in that my now 19 yr old son used to carry everywhere. 

It is completely without ears - has hardly any arms and legs but was so loved and I thought it would be a lovely way to preserve what there is left and to look at to remind me to wonder where all the years have gone.

Many thanks he fits perfectly."

So a huge thank you to our customer for not only sharing the story but also the picture of the bear in the frame.  If anyone else is happy to share their images, please email us at info@forkeepssake.co.uk.

If you are looking for a deep box frame to display your cherished keepsake, visit our website to view our range.  Thanks for reading!

Tips for Baby Keepsake Frames. 1. Choosing the Keepsake and Frame

If you like the idea of framing something special and sentimental to you, but don't know where to start, here's a few basic tips to help out.  Since my website is geared to babies and children, this is where I will focus, but the same tips will apply to anything.

1) Choosing the keepsake.  What is important to you?  Do you have something in particular that reminds you of cherished times or a special occasion?  For children this might be christening gifts that end up getting hidden away in a box, or a baby's first shoes, a comforter, the hospital band, a first nappy, 3d baby castings, a booty.....

2) Making sure you get a frame that fits.  If you are buying one of our empty keepsake frames, you will need to measure the items prior to purchase to make sure they will fit.  Depth is probably the most important factor here as it can be the most restrictive.  We have a range of deep box frames in three different depths.

3) Mount or no mount... that is the question.  How do you want your keepsakes displayed?  Are you going for a less is more approach and framing a lone item?  If so a mount would look great.  If on the other hand you have several items to frame and you need the extra space, then you probably won't need the mount.  If you do decide on mount, you can get more than one opening to split the display (e.g. photo on one side and a shoe on another). 

4) Choosing the frame colour and style.  Where is the frame going to be displayed?  Which room?  Do you want it to stand on a shelf or windowsill or hung on a wall?  What decor will it need to match?  By considering all of these questions, you will narrow down the colour and style that you are looking for.

Check out our website www.forkeepssake.co.uk to view our range of deep shadowbox style frames (Empty Keepsake Frames) that have been designed specifically to display baby keepsakes.

Productive weekend!!

Well thanks to my very helpful husband taking the girls off my hands for the last two afternoons as well as letting me hoard the computer all weekend, I've managed to work on some more designs for my website.  I've had the ideas all along, but it's just finding the time to create them.  Now that I have pics I'll be adding them all to my site over the next few days.

I've managed to create some more 3D name frames for girls, canvas names for girls and lots more single letter names for boys.  Still have lots to create for girls but I will get there.  If only you could buy time!!

Will update with images and links to the website when they are finally on.  Hoorah!!
Don't forget to check out our other products at www.forkeepsake.co.uk. These include: 
Keepsake Frames, Baby Casting Kits, Wooden Wall Letters for Girls, Name Frames for Boys, Personalised Canvases for Boys.

Silver Keepsake Frame for Christening Keepsakes

If like me you've had numerous gorgeous gifts and keepsakes for your child's christening or baptism and are to reluctant to hide them in a keepsake box, why not display them in a keepsake frame?

Set in a shadowbox style box frame, they make a stunning display and the frame can be co-ordinated to complment any room in the house.

We have a range of Empty Keepsake Frames at For Keep's Sake.  Our deep box frames come in a range of 3 depths and various colours. 

We can also frame your keepsakes for you, in the designs specified in our website.  If you have a more bespoke request, please email us and we'll do our best to help.

Don't forget to visit www.forkeepssake.co.uk to see our complete range of products which include baby casting kits, name frames, wooden nursery letters and more.  Thanks for looking!

Keepsake Frames for Baby Shoes - What a fab idea!!

I've always had a thing for shoes. Shoes, shoes, shoes. I own so many pairs, but since having two little girls, I just don't get the opportunity to wear them out as much as I used to!!




So has having children numbed this obsession at all? Nope, it's simply evolved it - I now love baby shoes!!
So you can imagine how reluctant I am to either throw away my favourite beautiful baby shoes once they have been outworn, or hide them away in the loft for no-one to see - what's the point?

Instead I have opted for framing them! They look fantastic in deep box frames either on the wall or left to stand on a shelf or windowsill. But for me, they had to have a cool and contemporary feel to so that they would complement my modern home.

This is how our 'Keepsake Frames' were born, incidentally. Why stop at baby shoes? Not everyone has a thing for shoes. But most, if not all mums, will have something that is special to them that they are not quite ready to let go of. Hospital bracelets? Baby's first outfit? Little castings that they have made of their baby's hands or feet? Keepsake Frames are the way forward.

Visit www.forkeepssake.co.uk to view our range of personalised gifts and keepsakes.  View our range of Keepsake Frames, which are deep box frames designed specifically for displaying baby keepsakes.