You’re going to LOVE this project! If you have dreamed of printing photo books for your family, but are too overwhelmed to actually get them done… you HAVE to try this simple photo placemat project.
It doesn’t matter if your camera roll is cluttered. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have fancy design skills. Best of all… it cost less than $6 total.
the quick backstory
Earlier this year I had a consult with someone who was sharing that she feels bad her family has no photo books. Then she casually said “I am proud of myself for making a photo placemat for my kids every birthday though… we use them all the time and my kids love them!”
Hold up. Tell me more about the photo placemats!
She picks several photos, puts them in a collage, and prints as a laminated 11×17 paper. The kids use them all year long, and on a birthday the whole family uses the old placemats of the birthday child. Isn’t that just SO fun?
I immediately wrote “Birthday Placemat – 11×17” on a post it and it’s been on my desk patiently waiting for the next birthday so I could start this new tradition with my family!
how to make a photo placemat
Don’t overcomplicate this- the beauty of this project is that it is simple. Here’s what you need to do:
- Add 15-20 favorite photos of your child to a new album on your phone.
Pro Tip: If you frequently favorite photos in your library, you can make this even easier by searching your “child’s name, favorite” in the search bar.
- Export this album and upload the photos to Canva.
Pro Tip: In the Apple Photos program on your Mac, select the whole album, and choose File/Export to make sure you get the full-size photo file. Don’t have a Mac? You can download an album from iCloud.com.
- Create an 11×17 document and lay out your photos/text on the page.
Pro Tip: Use my free Canva template to make this even easier!
- Download your finished design from Canva. Save as PDF for best quality if you have a free Canva account.
- Send to print! I ordered from my local Fedex Kinkos with these specs: 11×17, single-sided, on the standard paper, with glossy lamination. It turned out great!
So simple! You can definitely do this!
There are so many possibilities with a photo placemat! Birthdays, Christmas memories, surprising a special visitor, a milestone anniversary, making the grandkids smile when they come over…. the list goes on! For $6 these can certainly be more single-use, but they’re high enough quality to last much longer.
Well… are you going to try making a photo placemat?
Don’t forget to download the totally free photo placemat Canva template to save some time on your project. At Canva you can customize the colors, text, fonts, and more!
Want hands-on help with this project? During a 45 minute consult we can screen share and I can assist with this project start-to-finish.
