DIY photo collage for birthday of friend, husband, child, mother. Templates, ideas

Photos preserve moments that will never be repeated. That is why personal and family photos carry a deep meaning for any person. Receiving a photo collage for your birthday means immersing yourself in these significant moments of life once again.

Original Collage Ideas for Birthday Gift

A collage of photographs presented to the birthday boy or girl on his or her birthday helps to create a festive atmosphere. Such gifts are always discussed. Guests are happy to look at photos where the hero of the occasion is small or captured in a funny situation.

In terms of the value of the gift, a collage indicates that the gift was thought out and that time and effort were spent on it.

Paper photo collage

If the donor has a desire to approach the process creatively, then humorous masterpieces may appear. But even a simple thematic selection of photographs, arranged on a white sheet of Whatman paper, can be a great gift.

A paper collage made from photographs is the simplest collage option.

Collage with matchboxes

An ordinary thing, like an empty matchbox, becomes a good option for source material in skilled hands.

This type of photo collage has many advantages:

• Economical. You can make it from scrap materials. For decoration, you can use leftover colored paper, postcards, jewelry, ribbons and braid.
• It is easy to select the frame size for any photo. In home photo albums, all photos are usually the same size. But a collage looks better when there are many different-sized photos. Experimenting with photos and boxes, you can find the perfect size.

Making a collage from matchboxes is not difficult, but it will require perseverance and accuracy. One evening will be enough.

To work you will need:

• Empty matchboxes – 72 pcs.
• Photos.
• Thick cardboard.
• Glue, scissors, paint, brush.
• Colored or wrapping paper, old postcards.
• Decor.

Stages of making a collage:

1. You should start work by preparing the boxes. You will need 12 pieces with lids and 60 without. 12 whole boxes will serve as the top and bottom frames.
2. Next, you need to lay out the boxes in the form of a rectangle, where the long side will be formed from 12 boxes laid horizontally. 6 boxes are laid along the width of the rectangle. The first and last rows are made from whole boxes.
3. The next step is to select photographs. and determine where they will be located. If necessary, adjust their sizes to the sizes of the boxes. This is where the most difficult part of the work ends.
4. It is necessary to glue the boxes onto a sheet of cardboard. To do this, draw the borders of the rectangle on the cardboard so that the template does not skew when gluing.
5. You need to take each box separately and glue it. On some, you need to cut off the sides so that you can place a larger photo.
6. After all the boxes have been glued, you should align the cardboard borders to the borders of the resulting structure.
7. Next, paint the inner and outer edges of the boxes., and also completely cover the first and last row of whole boxes with paint.
8. When the paint dries, you need to glue the photographs into the places chosen for them, trimming them if necessary.
9. Boxes not occupied by photographs should be decorated. You can glue colored paper as a background. and then decorate the resulting cells with any small items you have in the house: unnecessary jewelry, buttons, flowers, herbarium.

A collage of birthday photos can be signed with wishes for the birthday boy. To do this, use the first and last row of boxes.

Photo collage in the form of puzzles

A collage of birthday photos can be easily made in the form of puzzles. This is an original version of making a photo collage, as it can actually be disassembled and assembled. And if you make the parts the same shape and size, then the photos can be swapped at your discretion.

To make a puzzle collage you will need:

1. Puzzle piece blank form (10 cm * 10 cm).
2. 4 photos.
3. White and red paper.
4. Thick cardboard.
5. Glue, scissors, stationery knife, scotch tape, rope.

Stages of work:

1. Using the puzzle piece template, transfer its outline onto white and red paper and then cut it out. You need to make 2 puzzles of each color.
2. Next, you need to assemble the 4 puzzle pieces together and glue them onto a sheet of cardboard.
3. The cardboard should be cut along the outer contour of the parts.
4. A photograph must be glued in the center of each puzzle.
5. If the collage is supposed to hang on the wall, then you need to glue a rope to the back of the cardboard using tape. The work is ready.
6. If the photo collage is to be taken apart and put back together, the cardboard should be cut along the contour of the puzzle pieces.
7. If you want to place more photos, you can use the back side of the cardboard. To do this, cut out 2 more pieces from white and red paper and glue them to the back side of the cardboard.

 

The final step is to stick on 4 more photographs.

What size should I make the collage?

The size of the collage will depend on where it will be hung. Especially when it comes to large items. There is no point in giving a large collage if the person does not have a free wall for it. The design of the collage is also important. For example, if it is in the shape of a heart, then its place is in the bedroom.

Accordingly, you should find out how it can be placed in the bedroom.

How many photos will be needed?

The number of photos for a collage depends on the size of the work, the available photos and the chosen design. Even a few photographs in an original design can look interesting. The event for which the collage is being prepared also matters.

For example, If it is a birthday, then often the photographs indicate different periods of life. For a child, this is growing up by the years. For an adult, it is important events such as school, college, wedding, birth of children, and others. Therefore, the number of photographs should be such as to show the person’s “life path”.

Are inscriptions necessary?

The inscriptions on the collage allow you to make the gift more original.

People with a sense of humor can come up with funny comments for photos. You can write your wishes on the collage for the occasion of a festive event. If the collage is made for a colleague or on the occasion of graduation from school or college, then the inscriptions will serve as a reminder of past events and people you haven’t seen for a long time many years from now.

How to Make a Collage Using a Template: Materials and Tools

When creating a collage, there are several issues to consider:

1. Subject of work.
2. Selecting a base or template.

The value of a collage is that it can be made from scrap materials. Therefore, it is possible to use different bases for the template. For example, wooden surfaces or plastic ones. Large or small photo frames will also do. The template can be made from corrugated cardboard. It is suitable if you need to cut out a base of a complex shape.

Even an ordinary wall can become a base.

If you stick photos directly to the wall, you need to use double-sided tape. Or you can come up with original ways to attach photos. To make photo collages, you will need the following tools: glue, regular and double-sided tape, scissors, a stationery knife (for cutting thick cardboard), a ruler.

Any things that can be used for decoration can be used as materials for a collage. Usually the materials are limited only by the performer's imagination. However, the main ones include: paper (white and colored), cardboard, paints, photos, various pictures, postcards, beads, buttons, artificial flowers, leftover ribbons and other decor.

Master class on creating a paper collage

Making a photo collage for a birthday is easier than it might seem. Even a person who is far from creative can handle a simple collage, where the basis is ordinary cardboard or Whatman paper, and the photos are selected in the same size.

 

To work you will need:

• A sheet of Whatman paper, you can use the remains of a roll of wallpaper, both the clean side and the side with the pattern.
• Photos of the same size. The quantity can be any, the main thing is that it is a multiple of 4.
• Glue with a brush.
• Double-sided tape.

Stages of work:

1. It is necessary to arrange the photographs in even rows. By rearranging them, you should choose the most harmonious option. placing photos on paper.
2. The accuracy of the work depends on how accurately the sizes of the photographs and the drawing paper are adjusted and how even the rows are (for this, you can barely draw guide lines on the paper).
3. After all the preparations are done, you need to stick the photos on double-sided tape or glue.
4. The collage will hang on the wall. To prevent dust, sunlight and time from damaging your photos, it is recommended to use decoupage technique.. Namely, paint the entire surface of the collage with one or two layers of PVA glue or special glue for decoupage. This will add shine to the surface and will protect the collage from external adverse effects.

You can attach the collage to the wall using double-sided tape, or thread a rope through the upper corners of the collage and hang it on a nail.

Collage in a wooden frame

As a wooden frame for a collage, you can use any frame you have at home, for example, from a photo, painting or mirror, or make one yourself. The master class uses a ready-made purchased frame for collages.

Materials required:

• Wooden frame.
• Scrapbooking paper, or you can use colored paper, wrapping paper, magazine cutouts, etc.
• Rhinestones, flowers, buttons, lace, glitter and other details that your own imagination will suggest.
• Photos.

Video demonstrating the process of creating a photo collage with frames:

Stages of making a collage

1. First of all, you need to decide on the placement of the photos. The placement may depend on the time stages, the size of the photo, the presence or absence of sufficient materials for decoration.
2. If necessary, photographs can be signed.
3. The empty spaces not occupied by photographs should be filled with colored or other paper. The best result can only be achieved by experimenting, trying different placement options.
4. Further, also experimenting, it is necessary to try different decor options.
5. Once the optimal collage option has been found, you need to photograph the resulting project and remove the decor from the photo.
6. The final step is to glue photographs and colored paper into the wooden frame.

Lastly, you need to attach the decor to the collage using glue, using the saved photo as a guide.

Collage Design and Decor Ideas for Mom

A collage for a gift to mom on Mother's Day is usually made on a family theme. These can be photos of the mother and children separately, or general family photos., photos from family vacations and holidays. These photos should evoke warm feelings. This idea can be used when there are few photos.

The collage wins due to the originality and simplicity of the idea. The photos in the collage are selected in such a way as to show the mother her achievements in family life. Photos selected in the same style or from the same photo shoot look especially organic.

Original collage for a child

A collage for a one-year-old baby usually features photographs showing the baby's growth month by month. A collage will also help you to cope with the festive decoration of the room for the baby's first birthday. For older children, the idea is the same, but the stages of growing up will be counted in years.

Collage as a gift to your wife or husband

The simplest idea for a collage for a husband or wife, including for a wedding day, is to use wedding photos. These photos are usually taken in a single style, so you can make a beautiful collage without additional decor. Other romantic photos will also work.

They can be laid out in the shape of a heart directly on the wall in the room using double-sided tape.

Before attaching photos, it is worth making markings on the wall. The lack of free space on the wall is not a reason to abandon the idea of ​​a collage. An original family tree will allow you to change the foliage from the photo, in accordance with the events happening in the family, and holidays.

Collage for a friend's birthday

On a collage for a friend, you can place joint photos as a keepsake, or photos related to some common events. Friends usually have secrets, so the photos can be accompanied by inscriptions that will be understandable only to the author and the person for whom the gift is being made.

You should avoid photos where the birthday boy or girl looks bad or where the event might cause a negative reaction in them. A collage of birthday photos is a simple and original gift that will attract the attention of all guests at the party and will remain in the birthday boy's family archive for life.

Author: Vorobyova Nadezhda

Article formatting: E. Chaikina

Useful video about photo collages

You can see some original ideas for placing photos in this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcdTDPBZKQ4