May 28, 2014

DIY :: How to Make a Photo Strip

Photo craft projects are some of my favorites.  If you are looking for a heartfelt gift for a friend or family member, a handmade photo strip may just do the trick.

Photo strips are a great, inexpensive way to memorialize a wedding, baby's birth, shower, pregnancy, graduation or as a treat on a birthday, Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, an anniversary or Christmas.  The possibilities are endless.  They are super easy to make and, best of all, you can use your home printer. 


What you will need:
  • White card stock, 1 sheet
  • Black card stock (or the color of your choice), 1 sheet
  • Scissors
  • Paper cutter (optional, but makes the job go more quickly)
  • Adhesive (I looooooove this glue)
  • A recycled jewelry gift box, or even a little bag
  • Digital photos
  • Computer
  • Google's Picasa, or other photo editing program
  • Printer


I also used a scoring board that I bought at a local craft store with a coupon.  If you have one, use it, but don't buy it for this project. 


Choose your photos.  This takes the most time.  I selected "save as" and saved each contender in a folder on my desktop.  I then edited each using Picasa, a free program by Google.  You can download it HERE.  It allows you to crop, resize, darken, lighten and convert your photos to black and white, or sepia.

After selecting, editing and printing your photos on white card stock, cut them out so that they are uniform in size.  Place them in a row on your black card stock so that you know how many fit.  Or, you can do math.  Cut out your strip of black card stock and fold it like an accordion, making sure that one photo fits in each frame.  Use glue to adhere your photos; one in each frame.


Your super cool photo strip should look something like this.


Place your fabulous photo strip in a gift box or bag, along with some paper grass, and perhaps a piece of candy and a silly toy.


Wrap with ribbon or baker's twine, add a little note and watch the recipient's face light up with glee when he or she opens their little handmade heartfelt photo strip gift.


For more photo craft ideas, follow my Pinterest board HERE.

Happy crafting!

~Merrill


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