photo blocks

My fun crafty project this Christmas was to make photo blocks. It originally started when I saw a shutterfly catalog back in November that advertised their photo blocks. They were very cute, but were also $25 a pop. There was no way I was paying that much (because of course I wanted more than 1 block), so I set out to figure out how to make these for less.

I found some wooden blocks (just normal kids ABC building blocks) that were a good size to work with - 1.75" square (Entire set of 50 blocks bought on ebay for less than 1 shutterfly block. Score!)

I painted the top and bottom of each block with black paint. (random note about these: I left them on the counter for a day to dry thoroughly. Even though I was the one who painted these and I knew exactly what they were, every single time I saw them out of the corner of my eye, they looked like ice cream sandwiches or some other yummy treat. Squint your eyes, you'll see what I mean.)

While the paint was drying, I went through our old photos. My plan was to make one photo block for each year. I started with 2005 when Samuel was born, and made a block for each year all the way through 2013. I resized the photos on the computer to make them the perfect fit for the blocks. I also made all of the photos b/w for a consistent look. Each block holds 4 photos for the year, and I added the date to one of the photos. I tried to pick normal everyday life scenes, not necessarily school pictures or posed shots. 

I used mod podge to attach the photos to the blocks. Then, when they were dry, I sprayed them with a clear sealer to prevent discoloration and to keep them intact longer.

I love how these turned out. I took all 9 of them and put them in a glass bowl, which I am going to leave as a centerpiece/conversation piece on our dining room table. The kids love the blocks, too. They like to look back at when they were really little and see how much they have grown. 

As a variation to the photo blocks that will stay out year-round, I also made a set of Christmas ornament blocks. For most of these (except ironically the one shown below), I put only one picture for each year, so each block covers 4 years of christmas photos. I made 3 copies of each of these ornaments - one to display on our tree, and a copy each to put away for Samuel and Becca to have when they are grown up and have their own trees. They will each end up with about 4-5 ornaments total, since each block spans 4 years (assuming, of course, they still allow me to take funny pictures of them when they are older.) The ornament blocks were made the same way as the ones above, just with the addition of an eye hook and a ribbon for hanging. 

I made a total of 19 blocks this year (the 9 b/w ones above, 2 ornaments for grandparent gifts, and 8 christmas ornaments for us/the kids) all for about $25 (blocks on ebay, black paint, eye hooks, ribbon). I still have about 30 blocks left over as well. Moral of the story: much much cheaper than if I had bought these through shutterfly.

I had a lot of fun making these. So much in fact, that I am going to offer them as a new product on my etsy shop. If you know anyone who wants a photo block like these, feel free to send them my way!