Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Mom's B-day Present

February is truly a month of lovely celebration as both of parents' birthdays are on this month in addition to Valentine's Day.

This year with my newly found passion for crafts, I have decided to make the gifts myself instead of just thoughtful purchasing one.

I started thinking carefully what would be something that my mom would love and one image popped in my head. She used to make a collage of photos of the family around her vanity. As we moved into a new house, she started decorating more often with pictures of the family.

Photos have been very valuable in my family history because when we immigrated to Honduras from South Korea, all our family photos were lost. So as a family, we deliberately started taking lots of pictures and collecting them.

SO, I wanted to make a photo gallery that she could hang in the house to remind her of all the family.

Materials I needed for the project:
  1. I went to Goodwill and purchased seven frames that were all the same size (I got really luck)
  2. One bigger frame to serve as a header of the gallery style frames
  3. Spray paint (black lacquer and primer)
  4. Ribbons
  5. Glue gun
  6. Nice foam lettering that said "Our family"
  7. Gift wrapping paper (it was velvety thus more resistant to tearing)
STEP No.1: Dissemble, Prime, Spray Paint
   
The frames were not meant to be hung, so it had the stands in the back, so I had to dissemble, tear the stand from the back piece, clean the glass, and later prime and spray paint the frames. After spray painting, let it dry.
STEP No. 2: Deck out the torn cardboard backing with gift paper

I found this beautifully ornate gift paper at Goodwill and decided to wrap the cardboard backings to hide the damages. The gift paper was velvety providing the extra resistance to tear.
Step 3: Assemble and Connect

I taped down the ribbons on the carpet to give me an estimate of the distance I wanted between the ribbons as well as where in the frame I wanted them to connect. I laid the frames on top to estimate the distance between the frames. Once I was satisfied with the assembly, I taped the photo inside the frames, and placed them facing the floor under the ribbons. I hot glued the ribbons to the back of the frame. Also added the foam lettering that said "Our family" on the header frame. For better hanging, I made a triangular hanging strips for the top frame.
Step No.4: Test, Enjoy, and Mail
    
And Voila, a CRAFTACULAR gift for my mom!!! I posted the article today because today is my mom's birthday and just in case the present did not arrive Honduras on time, she could see what I made for her.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAMI~!!

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