How to Make a Decorative Family Tree
- 1). Use a 2-inch oval or circle punch sold at scrapbooking, craft or rubber stamping to crop a head shot of each relative you want to include on the decorative family tree. Slip a photo face down into the slot along the bottom of the punch, and then turn the punch upside down so you can see the picture in the punch's oval or circular opening. Center the image in the opening and press the punch down with your palms to crop the photo.
- 2). Place the photos across two 12-by-12-inch pieces of card stock in a rich color like hunter green, brown or deep blue. Arrange the images to create the structure of the family tree, with the youngest family member on the bottom, his parents' photos directly above his and each of their parents' photos directly above those. Continue the pattern until all of the photos are in the proper position.
- 3). Affix the images to the card stock with double-stick tape, leaving at least 1 inch beneath each photo. Use a gold, silver or copper metallic leafing pen to draw a line around each photo as a decorative border.
- 4). Print each person's name, date of birth---and death, if applicable---and hometown onto a 1-inch-tall by 2-inch-wide piece of card stock or decorative paper that coordinates with the card-stock background. Trim the strips with scissors or a paper trimmer and affix them below each photo with double-stick tape.
- 5). Embellish the handmade family history tree with accents such as tree-branch stickers, small leaf-shaped die cuts or paper flowers affixed with adhesive dots. Connect the generations on the family tree, if desired, by using the metallic leafing pen, an opaque gel pen or craft chalks to draw lines or branches between the photos.
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