Baby Shower Garland

OK, I've completed the Pinterest Challenge.  Kinda.  I know we were supposed to do something for our own homes, but I am knee-deep in baby shower decorations, and I found it nearly impossible to shift gears and think of something for my house, so I went with something I was planning to make for the shower.  I figure it counts because it turned out so cute I want to make a modified version for C's room.  (For more info on the Pinterest challenge, see here, here, and here.)

On to the project.  Here is the inspiration pick I pinned on Pinterest:

Source: blog.creativityforkids.com via Andrea on Pinterest

Pretty cute, right?  But when I linked back to the website it came from, it was even more adorable.  See??

Source: http://blog.creativityforkids.com/2011/02/indian-inspired-elephant-paper-mobile/

I love the contrast of colors and simple design.  The baby shower theme we're working with uses elephants, giraffes, and turtles, and I knew I could make this work!  So I started designing my own garland. (BTW, if you want to make the exact garland above, go to the source link, and there's a tutorial right there for you)

I first sketched out the animals on cardstock to use as a template.  (I freehand-sketched based on what I found here, here, and here.)  Here's my cast of characters:

Then I set about tracing them on cardstock.  I traced eight of each, which ended up being way too many, but I'm glad to have the extras to use for other shower decorations. The giraffes went on pink paper, the turtles on light green, and the elephants on brown.

Once I cut out my animals, I laid them out on my ribbon, but realized there were missing a bit of pizzazz.  So, I got out my scallop and circle punches and whipped up some flowers using some coordinating scrapbook paper.  Here's the basic layout:

And here's an up-close and personal shot:

I absolutely love the coordinating polka dots.  Then again, I have a long standing love affair with polka dots.  Don't tell Patrick. :)

After I had it all assembled, I was quite pleased with it.  I wish I was able to get a fantastic shot of it, because the pics I took don't do it justice.  Oh well.

I hung it on our living room curtains so you could get an idea of what it looks like stretched out.

See the shadows of the giraffes on the ceiling?  Love.

Here's a closer view:

I think at the shower I'll hang it straight across a ledge, because in my opinion it looks best straight. 

So there you have it, my pinterest challenge complete.  Here's a breakdown of the cost and materials I used:

• 1 sheet Stampin' Up cardstock in Gable Green (already had)
• 1 sheet Bazzill Basics Paper cardstock in Pinkini $0.33 (on sale)
• 1 sheet Bazzill Basics Paper cardstock in Mud Pie $0.33 (on sale)
• 1 sheet Itsy Bitsy Ditsy scrapbook paper by Recollections in Cherry Pie $0.25 (on sale)
• 1 sheet mystery pink polka dot scrapbook paper (sorry, there's no info on it) $0.59
• 3 yards Celebrate It Basic Ribbon $1.99 (on sale)
• Stampin' Up Scallop punch (already had)
• Stampin' Up Circle punch (borrowed)
• Scotch Quick-Dry Adhesive (already had)

Total cost: $3.49 and about 2 hours of solid work time.