If you create a photo collage poster as a centerpiece decoration for your next special occasion, it will be the talk of the party. Here are 10 easy tips and tricks for making this memory-filled tribute in pictures.
Joining Basics
1. Start with a large poster board in the color of your choice. This will be the background of your collage. Cut the card stock, if necessary, to fit a large, standard-size frame. You can check the typical dimensions of the frame at your local stores, to make sure it is cut to a compatible size.
2. Select photos and make COPIES of them. It is important to keep the original photographs. This is especially true with old images that can be difficult to replace. Ask everyone at the party to contribute snapshots of the guest of honor, so you have a good selection.
3. Decide on the theme or layout of the collage and arrange the photos. When it finally looks the way you want it to look, take a digital photo of your design. In this way, you can recreate the composition, if something is disturbed when pasting.
4. Glue each photo to the poster board. Glue sticks or rubber cement are good options.
5. Finish your collage. You may want to use a sealer like Mod Podge. You can add embellishments like stickers, ribbons, feathers, beads, fabric, artificial flowers, or anything else that is complementary. Put in a frame, if you like.
collage layout ideas
You can of course glue your random photos all over the cardstock and it will be a nice tribute to the guest of honor. But it’s just as easy to create a truly unique party collage that stands out.
6. Convert it to a number. If the celebration is for a birthday, arrange your photos in the form of the age of the guest of honor. For example, for an 80th birthday, you would draw a large 80 on the cardstock. It doesn’t have to be perfect because you’re just using it as a guide. Place your photos evenly over the eight and zero you wrote on the board. This works for any age and is also great for a 50th anniversary.
7. Create a shape. Draw a big heart on your background, then cut and paste your images to fit the shape. Overlap slightly so you don’t see the pencil marks. This is especially nice for a wedding, anniversary, or sweet 16th birthday, but can be adapted for other occasions. You can even decorate it using cardstock or foam core in gold or silver. Any simple shape can be used for this idea.
8. Make it about the memories. Enlarge a photo of the guest of honor and cut out the background. Place the image in one corner of the poster. Draw a large cartoon thought bubble over the celebrant’s head to indicate that these are his or her thoughts. Fill the cartoon bubble with pictures that represent your memories of him.
9. Focus on your favorite things. Expand the concept of photography to show images of your interests and hobbies. What food, sports teams, music, movies, places do you prefer? Is he a hiking, skydiving, skiing guy or is he a couch potato glued to his remote control? What is he known for? Find clipart on places like Google images that represent your personality and hobbies and include them in this tribute.
10. Make it like a timeline. You can create a poster with columns showing different years or decades. Or, you can make individual posters that focus on a particular time in the person’s life or marriage. For example, if you were doing this exhibit for someone turning 50, you would have a section with photos of him in the 1960s, followed by one dedicated to the 1970s, then the 1980s, and so on. In each category, write captions with dates that highlight that person’s milestones in that decade. You may also want to include interesting or important dates in world history to include on the timeline.
It doesn’t matter if you are planning a big birthday party, a golden wedding anniversary or any special occasion. A photo collage poster is a wonderful way to honor the celebrant and inspire memories in guests. It’s fun and easy to do. And everyone will love it.
