teacher appreciation gifts

I absolutely love giving Heritage Makers for Teacher Appreciation Day or year-end thank-yous.  Other popular gifts are flowers or gift cards, but I don't like how those are used up and gone (and forgotten) before the summer is over.  

Especially when the teacher is excellent, and you want to truly thank her/him for being fantastic for your child, I feel like something heartfelt is just irreplaceable.  And guess what--the same price as you'd pay for flowers or a gift card.  I love that.

Here are some of the books I've made over the years for some really fabulous women.

These are from just my child, with the whole book completed by him/her.  

I've also made books from the entire class as teacher thank-yous, and those are equally wonderful!  The teachers always think it's the best thing they've ever gotten.  Because it is!  

These are not all the books I've made, but they give you a good idea of the possibilities.  I will admit I have made more than one teacher cry (and then I cry, too).  But teachers deserve something special and heartfelt for all their amazing work!!

I have made mostly 5x5 hardbound books (about $26), but I've sometimes made 8x8 books if all the class is contributing (they're about $37, so only a few dollars per person).

And they're WAY BETTER than flowers!!

UPDATE 2022:  Heritage Makers is currently being updated to a new software platform that doesn't require Adobe Flash to run (which Adobe discontinued at the end of 2020).  I also recommend Forever as an excellent company with heirloom-quality books and a photo privacy promise.  Something great about Forever is that is has three different print platforms, from "easy button" to quick and simple templates to full digital scrapbooking with total flexibility and creativity, and you can learn about the options here to find what fits you best. 

ADD VIDEO to your Heritage Makers project!

I heard a comment, "I feel like I'm in The Jetsons!"

It's true!  You can actually add a QR Code (video) to your Heritage Makers project!  I'm pretty sure this year I'm going to be sending out the coolest Christmas card I've EVER sent!!!!

Want to learn how?  IT'S SO COOL!!!

UPDATE 2021:  Head over to How to Put Videos in Photo-Storybooks and Digital Scrap Pages to learn all about it and see what QR codes look like on your pages.

(P.S.  The QR Code above is just a "dummy" one with the Heritage Makers logo in the middle.  It won't scan anything.)

Also, here are the basic instructions for using a QR Code in a Heritage Makers project.

1. Record a short video greeting (less than 3 minutes is best).  Use a webcam, phone, video recorder, etc.  
2. Upload the video to your YouTube account.  You need to do this so your video has a URL.  QR Codes are generated by URLs, and when QR Codes are scanned, they will send the person scanning it to that specific website or URL.  With YouTube, if you choose a "private" setting, only 50 people can view the video.  If you choose "public," it's unlimited.
3. Once your video is in your YouTube account, copy its URL.
4. Using a free QR Generator website such as qrcode.kaywa.com or www.quikqr.com, paste the URL code into the QR Generator.  It will create your QR Code.
5. Once your QR Code is created, right-click on the QR Code.  Choose "save image as" and save it to your computer just like you'd save a picture.  Save it as a PNG file.    
6. Upload the QR Code to your Heritage Makers account, treating it just like a picture.  Use it in your Heritage Makers projects just like you would a photo.
7. TEST YOUR QR CODE BEFORE YOU PRINT IT IN YOUR PROJECT!  You can easily find a QR Code Scanning app for your smartphone.  You can scan it from your computer, which I personally think is amazing.
8. When using your new QR Code in your Heritage Makers project, don't make it smaller than about 3/4 inch - 1 inch.  The smaller it is the less readable it will be.  Use the "ruler" option in the "view" pull-down menu to measure 1 inch.
9. When using a QR Code in a Heritage Makers project, be sure to include right in the project some directions on how to use it.  Some people won't know.  

*priceless* - Why Photos are Worth So Much!

A friend of mine posted this on Facebook.  Neither she nor I know the people mentioned here, but it could be anyone among us, and it poignantly describes why photos are indeed priceless.  It also describes why *I* do what I do.  

It's for all those people who take pictures and don't know what to do with them.  

It's for all those people who would like to have time or an easier way to publish their pictures.  

It's for all those people with a story to tell and a life to share.

A letter on my door step. portraits are more than paper.

Posted by jeaninethurston on January 2, 2012  Original post at http://fototails.wordpress.com/2012/01/02/a-letter-on-my-doorstep-portraits-are-more-than-paper/

There will be no portrait photos in this post.  This letter wasn’t mailed – it was at my doorstep when I got home a couple months ago.  I read it, I cried, and read it again – probably a hundred times by now.  It wasn’t easy to read – and honestly, as much as it validates what I do for a living – I wasn’t sure I was going to share it either – Until today, when a past client said that my print prices were too expensive.  If you choose to read through the letter, you will know why I’ve finally chosen to share it.

July 2nd, 2011

Jeanine - 

Today I am writing for a couple of reasons.  I have some quiet time at the moment and need to get a couple of things off my mind.  I will leave this for my husband to deliver to you when he is ready.

You photographed my wedding, you photographed my first pregnancy and my first baby.  I contacted you awhile back to photograph my 2nd child and family.  After getting prices and realizing I would want all of the pictures as we love your work – I decided against spending $500+ – which is what I normally spend for portraits and prints with you..  Please know it is not because I don’t value your amazing eye, or how much we love the experience.

That week that I decided to NOT do a session with you, this is how I spent some money.

On Sunday I called and cancelled our session.  Monday I went out and got my hair cut ($39+tip), and colored ($65), Thursday I had my nails done ($24), my family went out to dinner at a somewhat expensive restaurant for no particular reason costing us $79 + tip.  This was just 4 days since canceling our session, already totaling over $200 for un necessary things.  My nails only lasted about 2 weeks, my hair is gone, and seven weeks passed when I got the phone call from our doctor.  It was not something I expected and the cancer has spread very quickly.  I will be leaving my husband, my 6 year old girl and my now 2 year old – not by choice.  It is very hard for me to talk about it which is why I need to write you.

I watch your Facebook page and your posts about the value of a photo and if I could give back all of those things that I purchased this few weeks after I cancelled my session with you, knowing what I know now, and have that session, well… I would do it in a heartbeat. 

Now my time is done and there are no more chances for me.  The next time someone cancels a session – my wish is that you forward this letter to them.  Time is fragile, it is gone before you know you had it.  If you charged $200 for one print it wouldn’t be enough for what it is actually worth.  I cringe to think that my priorities were a manicure over a memory to pass onto my babies and husband.

My love and thanks for what you have given us from past photos.  I am so sorry that I did not see it as more than paper until now.

Karen L.

Preserve your photos and memories in high-quality pages here.

Follow Photo & Story Treasures on social media here:

  

Short on time? Five QUICK gift ideas!!

Thanks for visiting!  2023 UPDATE:  Heritage Makers and Snap2Finish became YPhoto under Youngevity (which purchased Heritage Makers in 2013).  YPhoto uses only templates, so the creativity showcased here is no longer available there, and they also no longer have capability to print previously-created projects like these from the old system. 

Best-in-the-industry quality and photo privacy is required for anything recommended here by Photo & Story Treasures, and we highly recommend Forever for:

·        creative digital scrapbooking applicable in a variety of photo products using Artisan software

·        easy photo-memory books using free AutoPrint and Design & Print software programs

·        private, permanent, secure, and guaranteed photo and video cloud storage (triple-backed-up and bank encrypted)

·        white glove digitizing services for old memories like VHS tapes, slides, old scrapbooks (scanning), 8mm film, audio tapes, and much more

Learn more here to  find similar products at top-quality with a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

_________________________________________________

IDEA #1:  Canvases!  

These are so popular right now, and I LOVE the quality of the Heritage Makers canvases.  They are GORGEOUS.  There's no other word for it.  These come together SO fast!  A few background papers and embellishments, a quote or title, and you're done.  Or use a template like these and you're done even faster!

IDEA #2:  Playing cards!

These are so much fun!  There are TONS of ideas (and tons of templates) for playing cards, such as Family Go Fish (matching), Family Rook, Get-to-Know-the-Family (fact cards), and MUCH more!   

I just made these as a gift for my sister's family.  They are dinner conversation starters. 

 

IDEA #3:  Tiles!

A craft project made from Heritage Makers individual scrapbook pages!  Tiles are so popular right now, too.  

Both of these are ones I made (though some are copied from templates or ideas "stolen" from others!), so I can transfer these to you to use, too.  The first is one 12x12 page divided into four 6x6 sections.  I cut it up and put each one on a 6.5x6.5 tile.  EASY and FAST!  (And a cheap but cool gift!)

These are full 12x12 scrapbook pages, which I've seen on 13x13 tiles, but you could also just frame these in 12x12 frames like I did.

IDEA #4:  Calendars!

These are SO CUTE!  There are a LOT available in the template gallery so that you don't have to spend any time designing.  Find one you like, put your own pictures and special dates in it (birthdays, anniversaries), and that's it!

IDEA #5:  Gift certificates!

Good, old-fashioned gift certificates!!  Know somebody who takes a lot of pictures? wants to write a personal history?  Chances are good they would love Heritage Makers!  A gift certificate gives them an account with some publishing points already in it so they're ready to publish anything they like.  

Here's how to get started!

a VIRTUAL Workshop to learn about amazing memory-keeping

Isn't technology amazing?!  I just presented my first-ever VIRTUAL Workshop!  What that means is that last night 5 people from other states sat in front of their own computers while I talked to them, showed them around my memory-keeping website, made a digital scrap page in front of their very eyes, and answered their questions.

They could have been wearing their pajamas for all I know.

Isn't that fabulous?!

And my dear friend Alena who was the host, who invited her friends to participate, didn't have to clean her house or prepare treats.  But she got to talk to her friends (in 3 states) all the same, and share Heritage Makers with them!  Plus she earned the usual Host Rewards (free stuff!).

This makes hosting a Workshop SO EASY!!  Contact me and let's have some fun and learn a lot while you get rewarded.  It's pretty amazing. 

UPDATE 2022:  

dads and grads

Fathers Day is coming up!  There are some really great gift ideas for dads and grandpas too. 

Create meaningful gifts of the heart that will never be re-gifted!  Just follow the steps right here.

And don't forget grads you know!  What about posters or canvases (use a "through the years" theme with pictures as the child grows up) and memory books (think "make your own yearbook")! 

Mothers Day gifts

Give your mom a Mothers Day gift she'll never forget.

Create meaningful gifts of the heart that will never be re-gifted!  Just follow the steps right here.

CHEAPEST & EASIEST beautiful family photo albums!

Thanks for visiting!  2023 UPDATE:  Heritage Makers and Snap2Finish became YPhoto under Youngevity (which purchased Heritage Makers in 2013).  YPhoto uses only templates, so the creativity showcased here is no longer available there, and they also no longer have capability to print previously-created projects like these from the old system. 

Best-in-the-industry quality and photo privacy is required for anything recommended here by Photo & Story Treasures, and we highly recommend Forever for:

·        creative digital scrapbooking applicable in a variety of photo products using Artisan software

·        easy photo-memory books using free AutoPrint and Design & Print software programs

·        private, permanent, secure, and guaranteed photo and video cloud storage (triple-backed-up and bank encrypted)

·        white glove digitizing services for old memories like VHS tapes, slides, old scrapbooks (scanning), 8mm film, audio tapes, and much more

Learn more here to  find similar products at top-quality with a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

_________________________________________________

My sister-in-law just finished a Heritage Makers book that I am SO impressed with!  She got a YEAR'S WORTH of scrapbooking done in a fraction of the time and for a fraction of the cost of traditional paper-and-scissors scrapbooking.

Price is big on everybody's mind, so let's break down the price and talk about the convenience later! 

My sister-in-law made an 8.5x11-inch book.  Books come with 21 pages, and an 8.5x11 book costs $60 at retail price (you can get a better price than that, but for the sake of argument, let's do the math using the retail price.)  That's  $2.86 per page, if you're assuming that the hardcover library binding is free!  (And again, that's at retail price, which you never have to pay.)  With this size book, you can fit about 6-8 pictures per page.

A traditional scrapbook page the same size would cost roughly:

• 20 cents per printed picture x 7 pictures = $1.40
• one sheet of cute scrapbooking paper = $0.59-$1.59 (though people usually use more than one sheet on a page)
• various embellishments (stickers, brads, buttons, vellum, etc.) = $0.50-$2.00 (that's pro-rated...don't forget you have to buy whole packages of these things; this also doesn't include other items such as pens and glue)
• some kind of page protector or sleeve for the page to go in = $0.15-$0.40 (depending on size & style)
• a book or binder for all the pages to go in = $12.00-$40.00

So let's estimate about $3.45-$3.90 for an average page, not including another $12-$40 for the book or binder that holds all the pages, or the glue/pens and other supplies that need to be replenished.  

Now the way my sister-in-law did her book was GENIUS.  She wanted to put all the pictures from the year into one book.  The book came with 21 pages, but you can add extra pages (maximum 99 pages total).  EXTRA PAGES ARE ONLY $1.25 EACH!!!  

If she'd made a bigger 12x12 book or 13x11 book, extra pages would only be $2 each!  That's less than what you'd pay to just print the pictures, with NO paper, stickers, etc.!!  So she really got a DEAL on her beautiful book.

The convenience factor was big for her as well, as it is for most people.  When you have scrapbooking supplies, you need a place to store them AND you need a place to spread them all out when you want to put your scrapbooks together.  She just had her 4th baby, so she really appreciated the fact that her Heritage Makers book was done all online.  She could work on it for 15 minutes here and there as she had time, and she didn't have to drag out boxes of supplies and materials every time she wanted to work on her book.

It was the cheapest and most convenient way I've ever seen a scrapbook done!  It was gorgeous, too!

Create your own treasures!  Just follow the steps right here.

More Home Decor: DIY wallpaper using your own photos!

Thanks for visiting!  2023 UPDATE:  Heritage Makers and Snap2Finish became YPhoto under Youngevity (which purchased Heritage Makers in 2013).  YPhoto uses only templates, so the creativity showcased here is no longer available there, and they also no longer have capability to print previously-created projects like these from the old system. 

Best-in-the-industry quality and photo privacy is required for anything recommended here by Photo & Story Treasures, and we highly recommend Forever for:

·        creative digital scrapbooking applicable in a variety of photo products using Artisan software

·        easy photo-memory books using free AutoPrint and Design & Print software programs

·        private, permanent, secure, and guaranteed photo and video cloud storage (triple-backed-up and bank encrypted)

·        white glove digitizing services for old memories like VHS tapes, slides, old scrapbooks (scanning), 8mm film, audio tapes, and much more

Learn more here to  find similar products at top-quality with a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

_________________________________________________

Okay, I couldn't believe this when I saw it--my friend Heidi made WALLPAPER from Heritage Makers posters!  She used it in her bathroom.

This is adorable!

There are pictures of her kids interspersed with cute jungle animals. 

She used two 12x18 posters to make a 6" x 72" border.  Then she cut the borders out and applied a universal wallpaper paste (can buy at Home Depot or Lowes).

Cost:  $12.95 per poster + $4 for wallpaper paste.

She made "wallies" this way, too, and just cut out individual squares (or you could do circles) and pasted them on the wall, too.  Cute!

For another theme (besides jungle), you could use her design as a template so the sizes are right, and then add your own pictures, artwork, style, etc.

One important thing to know:  SHE MADE ALL THIS USING ONLY HER OWN PICTURES AND HERITAGE MAKERS' ARTWORK.  She didn't have any special program on her computer.  It's just Heritage Makers.  So anybody could do this!

(And thanks, Heidi, for sharing both the idea and the photos!!)

Gift Ideas: Home Decor and Games

Thanks for visiting!  2023 UPDATE:  Heritage Makers and Snap2Finish became YPhoto under Youngevity (which purchased Heritage Makers in 2013).  YPhoto uses only templates, so the creativity showcased here is no longer available there, and they also no longer have capability to print previously-created projects like these from the old system. 

Best-in-the-industry quality and photo privacy is required for anything recommended here by Photo & Story Treasures, and we highly recommend Forever for:

·        creative digital scrapbooking applicable in a variety of photo products using Artisan software

·        easy photo-memory books using free AutoPrint and Design & Print software programs

·        private, permanent, secure, and guaranteed photo and video cloud storage (triple-backed-up and bank encrypted)

·        white glove digitizing services for old memories like VHS tapes, slides, old scrapbooks (scanning), 8mm film, audio tapes, and much more

Learn more here to  find similar products at top-quality with a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

_________________________________________________

Many people use Heritage Makers to make their scrapbooks because of the ease and convenience. No dragging out boxes of papers, glue, scissors, and stickers. No set-up, no take-down. Because everything is online, you can make one page at a time or twenty. AND you can print more than one copy without having to physically make the book or the scrapbook page all over again.

Many people use Heritage Makers to preserve family history, life stories of a parent/grandparent/child, love stories, adoption stories, etc.

But for today, I have seen some very fun gift ideas that I wanted to show you. Really amazing stuff!!!  A huge thanks to my friend Heidi for the ideas and the photos of her great projects.

First, home decor:

The prints, blocks, and clock are made from 8x8 or 12x12 individual scrapbook pages. (Then, in the cases of the blocks and the clock, the pages are cut.) The tin for the tin wall hangings is about $1 at your local refrigerator supply/repair store. The wooden cubes are about $3 at your local craft store. And the clock (an 8-inch clock) was $4 at WalMart.

I think these next items look like so much fun! Talk about a gift for someone who has everything! These are personalized FAMILY GAMES that she made from Heritage Makers posters and then mounted on foam board.

Check back on this blog for more ideas!   Happy Heritage Making!