Is your Mom’s knick-knack shelf overflowing? Not quite sure what to get her for Mother’s Day? Why not go back to the old days when the best gifts were made from the heart? There’s still time to create an original project in MyCanvas. In addition to creating a gift that any Mom in your family will treasure, you’ll be preserving your family’s story at the same time.
Here are a few quick ideas for projects you can pull together in a short time.
Recipe Book
Every Mom has her own culinary specialties. Create a lasting testament to her prowess in the kitchen with a recipe book. You can either type in family favorites or scan original recipes to add authenticity. Include family photos and stories to make your book unique to your family. There’s even a recipe background. (Look under Backgrounds, and Misc.) Or choose from a huge collection of themed backgrounds. Your Mom’s famous chili would look great on a Western background. Have fun with it!
Photo Book
Grab those family photographs and compile them in a one-of-a-kind photo book. Books with a theme would be really fun. You could compile pictures and brief bios of some of the Moms in your family tree. Has your Mom spent her life in service of others? How about a book of photos of Mom volunteering with church, sporting events, school, or charities? Perhaps a book of tributes from all of her children would touch her heart. Fill it with photographs and personal notes and memories from children and grandchildren. What a great way to say thanks!
Family Tree or Record Poster
A family tree or record poster can literally be generated in minutes. Locate a meaningful record and pair it up with images and your own thoughts on the significance. For example, a passenger arrival record for an immigrant ancestor could be paired up with an image of the ship, of the immigrant, and perhaps a short text box explaining why they emigrated.
Another quick project is to use your member tree at Ancestry.com to automatically generate a pedigree chart poster. Add photographs or embellishments to make it a work of art.
Photo Collage
A photo collage poster is another project that can be created in minutes. The hardest part is selecting the photographs. But once you have loaded them to MyCanvas, you can easily drag and drop them onto your page to create a one of a kind masterpiece.
Tips
Here are some tips to help you with your project.
• Create a new picture album for each project. If you have more than one project going, it can be overwhelming having to go through a large collection of photographs. Individual albums make it easier to zero in on the photos your need for your project. To create an album, click on the Photos section in the left navigation of MyCanvas and then click the green + button to add a new album.
• Gather all your photos in one file on your computer. This makes uploading a snap. When it comes time to import the photos for the project, go to that file, select all, and MyCanvas will pull them all in at once.
•A recent enhancement allows you to choose custom colors for backgrounds. Click on the Backgrounds section in the left navigation and at the bottom of that section you’ll see a little eyedropper. Use the eyedropper to select a color from a photograph on the page and use that as your backdrop. The effect is really beautiful.
• Ancestry.com has added more than 2,000 new embellishments to MyCanvas, so do some exploring to see what’s new.
Whether it’s your mom, mother-in-law, grandmother, or your daughter, these are some great projects that won’t take long to create, and can still be shipped in time for Mother’s Day. And to sweeten the pot a bit, Ancestry.com is offering 25% off books and 15% off posters until May 1st. One caveat though, if you order between April 29th and May 1st you’ll have to pay for expedited shipping to receive your project in time. If you want delivery by Mother’s Day, make sure you order it by April 28. (Note: Premium books require an extra week. For more information on premium books, see the pricing schedule at MyCanvas.com. Click on “Pricing and Shipping Details” on the upper-right side of the screen.)
Click here to begin your MyCanvas Project.
You can read more about MyCanvas in these articles on the Ancestry.com blog.
> Welcome to new and improved publishing service at Ancestry.com
> MyCanvas blog
Or learn new MyCanvas tricks watching these archived webinars:
> Creative Gift Ideas for Moms, Dads, & Grads
> Using MyCanvas to Print and Share Your Family Stories
Other articles in the 20 April 2009 Weekly Discovery:
> Exploring the London Poor Law Records
> Family History Tip: Search for a Neighbor
> Photo Corner: John Lanier Williams and Mary Emma Booth family
