IN MEMORY OF
This is a great layout for memorializing a war hero who gave his/her life for our country. The elements create an aged, antique feel that is very subdued.
A photo of the war hero
Sheet music for a patriotic song
An orange pekoe tea bag
Acid neutralizing spray
A dark brown mottled pattern or textured paper
Dark brown solid cardstock
Metallic tiles or tags
Metallic star brads
Scissors or craft knife
Glue stick or photo mounting tape
Journaling tag
Fine tipped marker pen
If your photo is new, take it to a photo processing center and have it made into a 5X7 in a sepia tone.
Take the first page of sheet music for a patriotic song, such as, “Proud To Be An American,” or simply, “Taps.” Make a brew by steeping the tea bag in hot water. When you have a weak tea, pour it into a tray. Take the page of sheet music and lay it front-down in the tea for just a moment so that it gets wet. Carefully remove it and place it against a window. It will stick to the glass and stay there, where it will dry flat. Carefully peel it from the glass when it is completely dry. It should now have a stained, antique look. Spray it with acid neutralizing spray.
Lay the sheet music angled on the dark brown background paper. Affix it with glue or photo mounting tape.
Matte the photo on the dark, brown solid paper. Trim to a 1/8 inch border. Lay the photo on top of the sheet music, off-centered on the page. Attach the photo with four, star-shaped brads (one in each corner).
Get three metallic tiles or plates with single-word sayings, such as “honor,” “valor,” and “patriotism.” Attach them to the page along side the photo.
Take the gift tag and journal on it. Put the person’s name, the dates of birth and death, and any other information you wish. Or, put an inspirational saying, such as, “Better to die on one’s feet than to live on one’s knees (Dwight D. Eisenhower).”
Attach the gift tag with a star-shaped brad, just below the photo, slightly overlapping it.
STARS AND STRIPES FOREVER
This general layout can be used for any type of military theme, either to feature a layout, or a single photograph.
You will need:
Blue cardstock
Red cardstock
White cardstock
2" star die cuts or paper punch
die cut letters
Small white star stickers
glue stick
craft knife or scissors
ruler
pencil
Cut one 3" strip of blue cardstock and affix it to the left side of the red cardstock page vertically. The upper and lower left corners should be even.
Cut 2" strips of white cardstock. Lay them across, horizontally. They should start where the blue strips end and go to the edge of the red cardstock. Space them evenly down the page. Use a ruler to make sure you have them even and level. When you are satisfied with their placement, glue them into place.
If you have a 2" star paper cut, make some stars from the white paper. If not, you can use pre-made die cuts. Lay the stars down the page on the blue strip. Space them evenly. Affix them with glue when you are satisfied with the placement.
Use your die cut letters to spell out your page topper or title, such as, “Making America Proud,” or “All American Hero.” If you are putting the die-cut letters across a red stripe, use white; if you are putting them across a white stripe, use red.
Matte your photo(s) on the remaining blue paper. Use the white star stickers to form a border around the matte(s). Lay them over the red and white stripped section. Don’t cover the blue strip with stars.
When you are pleased with their arrangement, glue them into place.
