Happy 7th birthday using punches

It's my nephew's birthday next weekend but since we can't get together then, we celebrated in advance  yesterday. I did mean to make him a lego brick card but forgot all about that and instead put together this punch-art boy (who is almost as cute as my nephew is!) Come and have a look:

This is such a handy card to have up your sleeve for primary school birthdays and uses just a collection of punches, some bright designer paper and a stamped sentiment. It can be adapted for a girl quite easily by adding a pony tail or bunches made with the bird wing from the 2 step bird punch.

My nephew will be seven years old so I made an easy badge for the punch art boy using the pennant punch for the '7' and mounted it onto a couple of layered circles.

This bold cartoon-style needed a strong sentiment to balance it out and the happy birthday from Sassy Salutations fits the bill.

Here's what you'll need for this card
Stamps: Sassy Salutations
Ink: Tempting Turquoise
Card stock: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Basic Black, Rose Red smooth card stock plus Early Espresso Core'dinations card stock
Punches: Pennant, Modern Label, 2 step Bird, Owl, 1/2", 3/8", 1", 2 1/2" circles
Other:  Patterns designer paper stack in Brights, paper snips, stamp-a-majig
I CAN ORDER STAMPIN' UP ITEMS FOR YOU AND HAVE THEM DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR ADDRESS IN THE UK. I'M COMMITTED TO PROVIDING EXCELLENT CUSTOMER SERVICE AND AM ALWAYS HAPPY TO OFFER HELP AND ADVICE. TO FIND OUT MORE OR TO PLACE YOUR ORDER, JUST SEND ME AN EMAIL OR GIVE ME A CALL ON 01280 820593.
• It won't be long before the new annual catalogue is here and to make way for the new items some of our favourites are retiring. Click the links to see the STAMPS and ACCESSORIES that are retiring - some at amazing prices! Sale items are never around for long, so contact me as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

We had planned to meet up at Wendover Woods for a picnic yesterday but having seen the weather forecast, I suggested travelling a bit further west to chase the sunshine. We spent a lovely day in Bourton-on-the-Water, a pretty little Cotswold village with chocolate box cottages and pretty little bridges over the river which runs alongside the main street. There's heaps to do there but we opted for a visit to the model village and the model railway - pure nostalgia for my children and me, and a new experience for my nephew! "It was always such a treat to go to Bourton-on-the-Water," said my daughter afterwards. "It was up there with Christmas!"

Happy Monday and I'll see you tomorrow,