Vintage Christmas Ornaments

Family Tree Projects & Gift Ideas

By Sue Thornton, Photo Organizing Solutions

 Recent research shows that we take 380 billion photos a year!  We share those photos with family and friends to the tune of 200 to 300 million photo uploads a day!  Amazing statistics, and those numbers will likely increase as we go forward.  Everyone has a camera with them nearly every day, i.e. your smart phone or camera.

For those special people in your life, I recommend several types of projects and gift ideas you can do for your family or friends this holiday season.  Now is the time to start deciding what you want to do this holiday season.  Here are a couple of ideas:

1.        Family Cookbook or Recipe Cards

This is likely one of most overlooked heirlooms in our families.  Special dishes can tell a lot about the people who made them or the regions, cultures or religions they came from.  Collect some of those family recipes which have been handed down and have them put into a digital printed book for each member of your family.  Remember that special cake that Grandma always made for family dinner occasions?  Share with your family.

2.        Photo Calendar

Calendars make wonderful gifts and are easy and inexpensive to create.  You just need 12 photos of your choice.  These are wonderful for family members who live far away and don’t get to see each other very often.  Or you can create a calendar that commemorates your ancestors with old photos, birthdays, marriage dates, etc.

 

3.        Personalized Tree Ornaments

I love this option myself because I can take a favorite photo from years past of my parents, or children, or pets and give those as gifts.  They are fun and easy to make, don’t take a lot of time and are inexpensive.  We do round, rectangle, hearts, snowflakes, oval shapes in aluminum or ceramic.  Check out examples at www.photoorganizingsolutions.net.

I am dedicated to helping you preserve your family history photographs and projects.  Check out my website, www.PhotoOrganizingSolutions.net for more information and sign up to receive my newsletter. 

 

 

Preserve Family Photos & Other Items

Found in my box of 'stuff' from grandparents!

 

A couple of old photo albums of my family.

 

Do you have boxes of older family albums?  Do you want to preserve those items for future generations?  Here are some ways to do this yourself, or even to find someone to help you with the project.

If you have some of the older type of scrapbooks from the 1940’s and the photos are put on with photo corners and descriptions are in white ink, you can still preserve them.  We take those books, scan the entire page and then you can actually make a digital book of those pages.  Easy, and you can then make copies for other family members.  What a great gift to give loved ones about their heritage.

It is so important to scan those pictures and to save them because the longer the photos are in boxes, attics, or garages they will continue to deteriorate.  The other issue is the possibility of losing those photos in case of a home fire, water damage, or other disaster.

Check out my website, www.PhotoOrganizingSolutions.net , and sign up to receive my newsletter.