Since starting back to school full-time a couple of weeks ago, I’ve not had a lot of time for creative projects, but I did schedule in a bit of time over the holidays for a couple of fun projects that I’m certain you could easily duplicate (with your own photos, of course, because your relatives would be saying, “Now who are these wild looking children?” if you used mine).
First, we needed thank you notes, of course, for Christmas, and I always like to use photos for cards I’m sending relatives, since we live so far from any of them. Which is probably why they’re so generous with my kids…the hooligans seem so pleasant in photos, you just want to give them gifts!
I used a photo from a trip to the Space Needle a couple of weeks before Christmas. It was the day before my eldest son’s birthday, and we thought it would be fun to experience a little Christmas in the city. We had a great time exploring the Seattle Center, riding the Monorail to Westlake Plaza, and generally absorbing the sights and sounds.
In Photoshop Elements, I chose a vintage effect, then an inked edge. I used a fun font, Return to Sender, for the “Thank You!”. I printed these at home on white cardstock, because I wanted to get them in the mail before school started, but I could have ordered them online or from Costco for less than $10 for a set of 8, had I allowed time for delivery. Maybe next year.
You could also use an online photo-editing program if you don’t have Photoshop. I love PicMonkey, but there are loads of others. They’re free to use and a lot of fun, if you haven’t tried them. Then you just save your creation to your computer and print however you’d like.
The other project I made was a planner for myself. Costco offers inexpensive planners that have the format I like…the whole month at the beginning of each set of weekly ones. The weekly ones have times listed, which I use heavily to schedule in schoolwork around the family schedule. I know I could buy a planner for half price now that 2014 is well underway, but I wanted a cover that held significance for me.
For the last two years, I’ve made a “manifesto” of goals/resolutions for the new year. I use a basic format from the first year, then add and delete to fit the current year. I printed it to fit the 11×17 frame that hangs over my desk, but then I wanted it on my planner, as well.
Happily, at Costco Photo online, I could choose a planner with the entire cover as one photo. I simply uploaded the jpeg file and put it on the front of the planner. Inside is a space for a dedication, so I placed a photo of our family there.
I’m really happy with both of these projects, and I’m hoping that someday soon I am organized enough to juggle my class load, shuttling the kids around, and managing the house so that I can actually spend time being creative! I think I can, I think I can…..
