Christmas Gift or Personalised Present Idea

I like to try and think of slightly different things for Christmas gifts.  Ideally unusual things that don’t cost a lot of money are good.  I thought you might find this idea of interest. 

This time of year you can get photo books from the online suppliers at a very good price, before the Christmas rush I guess. 
Top Tip - Always check out the special offers section of their website.

I did a photo book for my son and for my daughter a couple of years ago.  I started with their baby photos and went through the rest of their growing up until they were young adults.  It’ll be a lovely keepsake for them.


How it works

Once you decided which company you are using (use an online search) then log on, choose the book style you want and add in your digital photos to the online formatted book.

I have bought both soft and hard covered books.  Both are very good quality and the photos looked clear.

The online format allows you to add your photos and text boxes so you can explain where the picture was taken, etc or make funny comments about the picture.  There’s a range of page styles and colours to choose from.

Most of my photos were pre-digital so I had to scan them into a jpg file and use this for the book.  But if you are using digital photos the whole process is quite quick to do.


You can make this a bit quirky

Most book formats allow you to add a photo on the front cover.  Instead of a standard photo you could use a drawing of the person receiving the book and include some of their interests.

If you are not too sure about drawing you can do most of the items on the computer.  Use a photo of the person and place clip art images of their interest in appropriate positions using a graphics program.  Print this out and trace off the lines you want from the print off. 

You can add extra details or simplify the whole thing – just use your creativity.  Once you are happy with the sketch then scan it, save as a jpg, and you can use this image as the front cover of the photo book.  Add some text using a text box too if you want.


An example

If I was doing this for me I would think about my interests – painting, gardening, liking a glass of wine with dinner, walking, reading, and so on.  Out of that I would choose a few things to make up my drawing.

One idea could be with me sitting at a table with a big plate of food and a glass of wine and lots of flowers coming in through an open window.  Below the table a pair of thin legs with large walking shoes.  You could make this fairly realistic or more like a cartoon.

For this one I would just use a photo for the face and clip art for the walking shoes and perhaps the flowers.  The rest of the shapes can be drawn with a ruler.

Be sure to consider the format of the front cover of the photo book and to make your sketch in the same format (usually landscape rather than portrait) for the best result. 

You also have the choice of whether to make the sketch black and white or perhaps to add colour.  Adding colour would be good for anyone who supports a particular sports team too.

The sketch can be as simple or elaborate as you like.


Group Gift

If you are a member of a group you could make up a photo book including photos of meeting, trips or special occasions. 

If you've been to a wedding you could get photos from other guests and make up an ‘unofficial wedding album’ using these snaps. 

Should you decide to do a ‘group book’ just order one to check that you are happy with the result and then you can order additional copies knowing that the book is good.  If you find that a photo is too dark/light you will be able to change it before you place the bigger order of copies.

I hope you can use some of these ideas.  Digital photos are nice but it's lovely to have a hard copy version too.

Making Your Own Custom Artwork using Aperture Frames

Original painting and the final framed picture

Some of the options that could be used from the original painting.

Making artwork to match your décor is an interesting and easy project. This article looks at different options when using aperture frames. Aperture frames are widely available from home furnishing shops and other household stores.

An aperture frame comes complete with a mount (mat) cut to display photos. The size of the aperture can vary but usually they are photograph size, often 6 by 4 inches. The frames can be suitable for a single photo or for a number of photos to be displayed in the one frame.

These frames are a handy way to make your own artwork to display in your home. There are a number of options when using these frames, not including the intended method of using photos!

Landscape Option

For this idea you paint one piece of paper that will fill the whole of the frame. This works particularly well with frames that have more than one aperture. Once your painting is placed behind the mount it will give the effect of a range of matching landscapes.

You don’t need to get too worried about the actual landscape because the final piece will only show a few sections of the painting. I like to use a horizontal looking landscape with the sky, distant hills, closer areas painted in very simply.

Once the paint is dry you can place the mount on top to check the result. You can always add more detail if you want.

Top Tip – Make your painting larger than the final picture. This will allow you to move the pre-cut mount around your painting to give you a range of options to choose from.

Abstract Version

Using the same technique you could use just horizontal stripes instead of a landscape. If you include similar colours to ones used to decorate your room you will have a quick and easy method for creating matching artwork.

Paper Version

If you don’t want to paint anything yourself you could use a piece of gift wrap instead. Find a wrapping paper you like and use it, in the same way, in the aperture frame instead.

You could always try a piece of wallpaper from the room.

Fabric Option

It doesn’t have to be paper! Try using a thin fabric behind the mount for a different effect. Perhaps you could try some of the upholstery fabric from your room if it is not too thick.

Another option is buying an off-cut of a fabric you like or that has the colours you want to include in your picture.

The Final Finish

These ready made frames provide a range of possibilities for making your own unique artwork. The frames come in a good range of colours and woods too. Select the frame that will match the style of your room for a pleasing result.

The best part is that once you put the frame back together it is beautifully presented too. Amaze your friends with this easy way to make an original display. This would make a great gift too.

The Easy Way to Make a Special Present

We all know someone who is difficult to buy a present for. Someone who has everything they need and would not appreciate ‘normal’ gifts. Often this will be your parent or an older relative or neighbour, and they can be a problem to buy something for.

Well, this is a simple way to make a unique gift that they will be happy to accept. When you take the time to produce something that relates only to them and their interests it will always be happily received.

Use their Interests as a Theme

The idea is to make a picture that includes something that they are especially interested in. This could be a hobby or any other interest they have.

This is a quick and easy technique. You simply choose your theme (their hobby or interest), paint a silhouette of it onto a coloured background and frame it.

You could paint a coloured background onto a canvas panel or use already coloured paper. I noticed my local art store had coloured card that had a range of colours merging into each other, this would be ideal for this technique.

The theme of your silhouette is really the creative part. The easiest thing would be to use their hobby as the theme.

Look through some copyright free clip art until you find an image that you could use for the outline of the silhouette.

If they like fishing it could be a fisherman/fish/fishing fly. For a golfer it could be a set of clubs/golf hole with flag. For someone who likes to cook it could be related to cooking. If they are keen church-goers a silhouette of their church may be appreciated.

A lot of people like to receive a silhouette of their home. For car enthusiast a silhouette of their car is a good idea. In which case you could use a digital camera and take a picture of their church, home or whatever you have decided to include in the picture.

You really can use your imagination for this. When using clip art you have a huge range of options (probably too many!) to choose from. You don’t have to be great at drawing!

Also, you can use a computer graphics package to blend together two or three images for your final silhouette shape. Be sure to adjust the size of the final image to make it the correct size for the painting surface you have chosen, and print it out. As this is a gift you can make it whatever size you choose.

Once you have painted or found a suitable background, then trace around the outside edge of the image for your silhouette shape. Use carbon paper for this.

Fill it in

The silhouette shape can be painted in using acrylic paints – don’t make the paint too thin though! Another alternative is to use a permanent marker, not a normal marker as it will fade over time, and that would be disappointing for the person receiving the gift.

Silhouettes look very effective and traditional in black. However you could use a darker shade of one of the colours in the background for an alternative look. For example if the background was a pale green the silhouette could be in a dark green. This all adds to the uniqueness of your gift.

If you are using a coloured card it will be better to use a permanent marker as the water in the paint may cause the card surface to buckle.

Fill in the silhouette shape and leave to dry. Then frame the silhouette picture.

**A distinctive gift for a special person**

This type of personalized gift is always appreciated and shows that you have put some thought, time and effort into the present.

Another major benefit is that no one else will be giving exactly the same gift!

What about a card?

This is an excellent technique if you can’t find a suitable card.

You can make your own special card. It is most effective if you choose a very simple shape for the silhouette when using this method in card making. Cards are generally a lot smaller and look best when you use less detailed shapes.

Use this system and say goodbye to gift buying problems for that hard to please someone.