How to Paint Indoor Wooden Letters - Wooden Wall Letters & Name Plaques

Personalised Dinosaurs and Giraffes... finally!

In one of our recent posts we shared our new designs for wooden name plaques.  You may recall that we mentioned they were the first of a new series of designs - with many more coming.  This is still the case, but it's taken a little longer than anticipated, following what I can only refer to as a creative block!

We were so pleased with the owls, birds and elephants that we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to make sure that the next part of our project - i.e. the giraffes and dinosaurs - came out just as well. 

It took a couple of weeks to get this far:

We had selected the potential colours that we liked and then....... nothing.......

.......until now. 

Hurrah!

Personalised Dinosaurs Gifts / Name Plaques

Keeping in theme with our dinosaur wooden wall letters, we thought it made sense to stick with green and beige and spots!  The look just as cute on their own as they do together.

Personalised Giraffes Gifts / Name Plaques

We thought we'd try out the giraffes in beige and cream - but they can of course be painted in blues or any other colours. We love the small splashes of colour on them that really brighten them up.  The giraffes would make fab gifts for new babies and christenings.

Well, after such a long wait, we hope we didn't disappoint....!

FKS x



Box of Delights!! And the next projects!

When I opened the door to finally see the postman standing in front of me with a large parcel, I knew it could only be one thing.  The box of wooden shapes that I had been waiting, not so patiently, for. 

Since launching our new range of personalised name plaques (shown at the bottom of this post) and personalised Christmas decorations, we've been dying to get our hands on more shapes so that we can come up with even more designs, in time for the busy festive season!

So here it is..... and there is more to come!!  I can't wait to get working on these and have a feeling that my hands / hair / clothes will be covered in splashes of paint all weekend!!

 

These are four of the next designs that we will be working on. 

 

 

We have set the standard with our owls, elephants and birds - and we are hoping to achieve the same with all of our new designs....!

 



Personalised Name Plaques - For Keep's Sake

 

 

Wish us luck!! Will post pictures as soon as they have been completed.

 

FKS xx

www.forkeepssake.co.uk

All kinds of Christmassy....... Well it is October!

Now that October has arrived and there is a chill in the air, it seems a litte more acceptable to mention .... Christmas!!  It didn't back in August when we were getting our initial ideas together and it still didn't last month, probably because I was finding it difficult to let go of Summer (an annual ritual for me!). 

But now..... it feels right.  And I'm quite excited!!

We sourced some gorgeous free standing wooden shapes that were perfect for the job and with a splash of paint and a touch of For Keep's Sake sparkle, we have come up with some very festive personalised Christmas Decorations.



Free Standing Personalised Reindeer - Christmas Decorations



Free Standing Personalised Snowman - Christmas Decorations



Free Standing Personalised Christmas Tree Decorations



Free Standing Personalised Sleigh - Christmas Decorations

 

Free Standing Personalised Gingerbread Man - Christmas Decorations

 

It may have taken until now to write a post about our christmas decorations, but I couldn't help showcasing them at a Fundraiser last Friday morning, where we had a stall (and even sold a few!) :o)

Other Projects

As well as getting festive, last week was also spent creating some bespoke wooden wall letters for some very special little people in my life (one of which has not been born yet - let's hope they were right when they confirmed the sex!).  I'll be featuring these in next Monday's post as I'm hoping to get some photos of them on the walls of their new homes.

Craft Fairs

We have a few craft / christmas fairs coming up over the next couple of months but we're also looking into getting a regular stall for a local artisan market.  In hindsight we could have picked a much warmer time of year to get a regular spot - something to note for the future!

So lots going on, as usual.  I'm off to visit Handmade Monday and see what has been happening over there.  So until next time.....

FKS xx

My First Handmade Monday Post! Owl Name Plaques

As one of many many websites around that sells personalised name plaques for kids, we've always tried to create something different to the norm. We generally avoid using traditional rectangular plaques and instead use either a wooden letter (the initial of the child) or wooden shape for the plaque base (shown below). 

So I'm sure you can imagine my delight when I stumbled across these gorgeous little wooden owls.  I obviously had to have them and without any real thought as to how I would design them, I knew I wanted to add them to our range of name plaques.

 

So after a few visits to craft shops and lots of time in the studio (not to mention the whirlwind of destruction that was left in the wake of my 'creativity') this is the finished result. Both are hand painted and I found some perfect fabric for the middle of the large owl. 

 

Personalisd Name Plaques - Standing Wooden Owls

 



Because the colours on the fabric were too bold for the small owl I used some beautiful patterned paper instead. I finished both with a few sparkling gems, for a little bit of extra detail. I was really pleased with the outcome and have already listed them on the website.  Even 'big rabbit' seemed to take a shining to the owl.

 

 

It's not just the owls I have been working on, I had also fallen slightly in love with a pair of wooden birds and elephants too.  Here's the before and after photos of these two:

 

Personalisd Name Plaques - Standing Wooden Birds

 

Personalisd Name Plaques - Standing Wooden Elephants

So that's what's been happening behind the scenes, I'm off now to see what everyone else has been up to on Handmade Monday.

FKS x 



Gifts under £15 - Christenings, Birthdays, New Babies

When you want to buy something special for a new baby, Christening or birthday, it can be really difficult to find unique gifts that don't cost the earth.  That's why we've put together this list of 10 items - to help you along your way.

All of these high quality gifts are made in Britain, some are handmade and all of them cost less than £15!  To purchase any of these gift ideas, use the link below the image.

Football name plaque £12.50

Number 1. This funky metallic blue football name plaque would make a perfect gift for any football mad boy.

The plaque is made from an acrylic letter which is 22cm high and is decorated with the child's name and footballs.  Cost is £12.50 + P&P. 
 
 

Children's Name Plaque - Fairy £12.50

Number 2. A pretty pale pink fairly name plaque, which any little girl would love to have on their bedroom door or wall.

The plaque is made from an acrylic letter which is 22cm high and is decorated with the child's name, the fairy and sparking gems for a touch of bling! Cost is £12.50 + P&P. 

Space 3D Door Name Plaque From £6.50

Number 3. This door name plaque is really unusual and looks really effective on a bedroom door.  Rather than being fixed to a base, all parts are individual and together create a great 3d effect.

The metallic letters are 5cm high and come with spaced themed accessories.  Prices start from £6.50 + P&P.

Butterfly 3D Door Name Plaque From £6.50

Number 4. This door name plaque is one for the girls and again is made from individual letters and accessories.  Another fab addition to a little girls bedroom!

The pink letters are 5cm high and come with a large butterfly and several smaller butterflies. Prices start from £6.50 + P&P.

Door Name Print / Plaque £13.50

Number 5. This gorgeous little door name print comes in a white frame and looks great on either a bedroom wall or door. This frame measures 16.5cm x 21.5cm.

The cost for this personalised name frame is just £13.50 + P&P and will make a great gift for birthdays, christenings or new babies.  Or just because - who says you need an occasion for a great little gift like this?

Door Name Print / Plaque £13.50

Number 6. And for the boys, we have this beautifully designed boat name frame, which is bound to be loved by a little boy. Again the frame measures 16.5cm x 21.5cm. 

The cost is just £13.50 + P&P and will make a great gift for any occasion. 

 

First Tooth Pewter Trinket Gift

Number 7 and 8.  The next two make perfect gifts, bought either on their own or together, for new babies or christenings.  These gorgeous pewter trinket boxes have either "First Curl" or "First Tooth" engraved on the lid and the alphabet engraved all around the outside of the box.

First Curl Pewter Trinket Gift

The diameter of each of these boxes is 3.5cm and they come with their own separate cream organza bag.

They are £10.99 each.

Wooden Name Plaque - Owl £7.75

Number 9. If you're a lover for all things "owl" you'll love this little guy. 

This gorgeous wooden hanging plaque is hand painted (any colour), decorated and personalised with the child's name. It's made from high quality MDF wood and costs just £7.50 + P&P.

Wooden Train Name Plaque - £7.75

Number 10.  And last but not least, is another of our hanging wooden name plaques.  Most little boys love a transport theme, so just for them, is this little wooden train plaque.

Again, hand painted (any colours) from high quality MFD this 3d wooden train plaque is personalised with the child's name and costs 7.50 + P&P.





So that's our top 10 under £15.00 - I hope we've helped to ease the chore of having to find that perfect present, without spending a fortune or hours on the web or in the shops. We have lots lots more on the website, so please pop by to visit us at www.forkeepssake.co.uk and see what other wonderful gift ideas we have.

xx

Wooden Name Plaques For Girls: New Cute Hanging Name Plaques

2012 promises to be an interesting year, with lots and lots of new products available to buyt on our website.  Over the last few months we have already been adding to our range of personalised gifts for kids, baby gifts and christening gifts, so we'll dedicate our next few posts to highlighting these. 

First up is our really cute hanging name plaques - which can be used on doors, bed posts, on walls - anywhere you think they would make a lovely addition.  We have already introduced a number of different wooden shaped plaques, including a gorgeous owl, cupcake and heart - there will be more to come. 

Each wooden plaque can be painted almost any colours to make sure they will go with the existing nursery or bedroom decor.  Plaque size is approximately 10cm high - these would make a perfect little gift for new babies, christenings, birthdays or just because....

We also have the same size mini plaques in 10cm high letters - using only the initial of the name, but including the name within the design.  These wooden letters are chunkier than the wooden shapes at 12mm thick, and whilst being small look very prominent.  They can be painted any colour or design (where size permits) have a look at our girls wooden letters to see what designs are available. 

Each of these hanging name plaques come with ribbon to hand, but can be sent with sticky fixers instead if you'd prefer to attach them to the wall.

Prices are: Small Wooden Name Plaques Shapes: £6.50 each and the Small Wooden Letter Name Plaques: £7.50 each.  All are handpainted, handcrafted and lovingly made to order.  Despatch is between 7-14 days, depending on stock levels.  For more information or to purchase please see: personalised gifts for girls: name plaques.

Let us know what you think, we'd love to hear your comments.  We are always open to new ideas, so if there's anything particular you're looking for, just let us know.  FKS x