Holiday Specials and Deadlines

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Five Tips For More Flattering Portrait Photography

The right angles and light can make all the difference!

Click here to read the full article posted in Popular Photography.  Make the most out of your family photos!

great motto!

Honor Your Family Hero this 4th of July...

Interviewing that member of your family is a great way to honor him/her and make him/her feel appreciated.  Check out this link to get the ball rolling.  HERE you will find a resource that supplies questions along with a lot of great tips on how to conduct an interview.

Next, preserve what you've learned in a beautiful hard bound book!  Here is a great example...

Click HERE to see the full preview!

I am always here to help get the ball rolling!

The Impact of Sharing your Family Stories....

Great information from http://lifebio.blogspot.com/2009/03/saving-your-familys-stories-why-its.html?m=1. it is dated 2009, but is still great information!

Sharing stories encourages a closer, more meaningful relationship with your children and grandchildren. Family's stories are worth telling because you may be able to describe people, times and places that no one else in the family knows about. Lastly, you can help the next generation—inspiring, teaching and modeling strength and courage for them.

Although these are three very good reasons to tell your life story, you should also consider what happens if you don't tell your story. What is lost?

Here are three very important things that evaporate when family stories are not shared.

1. Relationships

Do you really know your parents and grandparents? One woman I worked with, Donna, didn't even know her mother's real first name until she interviewed her. She also felt a new connection to her grandfather—someone she had never known—as her mother recounted stories of him.

Genuine family communication has had some setbacks recently. Movies, TV, computers, video games, iPods and the radio have made family time more difficult to eke out and made it less likely that children will have opportunities to talk with older relatives.

Additionally, family gatherings may seem more and more rushed due to relatives living farther and farther apart.

We have to be intentional about connecting, via the phone or in person, if we can, to be sure the stories and the relationships are not lost. Whether you're a parent or a grandparent, godfather or godmother, uncle or aunt, take the time to tell other family members, particularly the children, who you are, what your family stands for, and how much you care about them.

2. Storytelling Opportunities

When stories aren't recorded, some great storytelling material is lost. It's easy to read our children or grandchildren storybooks, but think about closing the Dr. Seuss book so you can tell them one of our own.

I was away on a trip recently and I decided that I wouldn't miss story time with my children that night. So I shared a piece of my story over the phone. They laughed as I recounted my family's Chicago trip to an exciting international stamp convention (14-year-olds love these kinds of events). All six of us slept in the family station wagon at the most convenient truck stop parking lot and ate Lucky Charms on the tailgate in the morning. Family stories can make for great bedtime or story time material. Reminiscences can contain all the material you need.

3. Values and Beliefs

Stories communicate life experiences and teach the next generation right from wrong. Without family stories, kids miss out on a foundation that could impact them the rest of their lives. Your family could have a long commitment to education or public service or faith. The knowledge of your family's values and beliefs is a foundation for their lives.

As M. Scott Peck pointed out, "Life is difficult." Stories can convey the need for courage when trials and difficulties are encountered. Through stories of war, financial hardships, losses of one kind or another and the larger societal battles over civil and women's rights, our children can see that family members faced and overcame challenges—even death.

Stories can teach how hard work, discipline and strength are needed to accomplish goals.

Real life stories, from your own life and the life of your grandparents and parents, could have a huge impact on the lives of your children and grandchildren as well as future generations. It's time to close the generation gap. Don't lose or forget your stories.

A good read from From Daily Inspiration and Quotes

"There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you."

Maya Angelou - American Poet

Many children as well as adults do not consider themselves writers. Yet if you are a human being past the age of reason then you certainly have experienced an event, a moment, an incident, a revelation, an encounter with nature, a relationship, or a catastrophe worth writing. Such experiences are simply stories waiting to be told. Allow those stories a life, lighten your weight and awakened yourself for others. You matter and so do your experiences . . . Both big and small.

http://jctrois.com/dailyinspiration/quotes/

Calling all traditional scrappers!

Heritage Makers has officially announced a new TRADITIONAL line!  Our Memories for Life!  Books and pages are compatible with your Creative Memories albums.
Click here to view the full line.

Keep me, protect me, share me...

This video was not made by the company I represent, but it sure does get the same point across!  If you don't do SOMETHING with your photos and memories, who will?  The gratitude you experience preserving your family heritage can be life changing.

Highlight the GOOD memories!

Life isn't always fun - but remembering the fun times really makes you appreciate life!  What have you done recently to safeguard your memories?

Printing pre-designed pages with Heritage Makers...

If you design scrapbook pages in other programs and would like to print through heritage makers - here is a great tutorial that will guide you through the process!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3aB2PynfrY&app=desktop

Room for More!

Read how a founding member of Creative Memories is shifting gears and thinking in new ways!

http://www.scrapbookupdate.com/2014/02/25/rhonda-anderson-resigns-creative-memories/

Your Style, Your Way

March 2014 by Roxanne Buchholz, 
Studio Creative Team Manager

With the traditional wedding season quickly approaching, Studio Creative Team member Cassie Balser challenged the entire Heritage Makers Studio Creative Team to come up with a customized 20 x 24 wrapped canvas based off of her grayscale design map, “Happily Ever After Design Map,” template 119800.

Starting with a neatly organized grid, each designer was able to take this simple grayscale design and customize it to fit her own personal style. From Sara Wise’s whimsical, retro design to Michelle Bell’s elegant, transitional canvas, each designer’s personality really shined through in this challenge. With over 100,000 embellishments and papers in Studio, the possibilities for theme, style, and color are endless. Let’s take a look at each of the designer’s canvases below.


“Happily Ever After Design Map,” template 119800 and “Happily Ever After by Cassie,” template 119801



“Happily Ever After by Sara,” template 119607 and “Happily Ever After by Kari,” template 119799



“Happily Ever After by Michelle,” template 119891 and “Happily Ever After by Roxanne,” template 119853



“Happily Ever After by Leanne,” template 119767 and “Happily Ever After by Brooke,” template 119655

All of our wrapped canvases are on special this month with an additional 10% off at check-out, so think about those home décor projects that you’d like to get done. Are you or someone you know getting married this year? Or do you have special photos of your family that you’d like to make into wall art for your home? These canvases make lasting impressions, so get started on yours today. With our wide selection of templates and grayscale maps, you should be able to find the perfect fit just for you.

Great gift for little ones...

Click here to see a preview...

This is an adorable color book for a little one in your family.  

There are three size options and a matching deck of cards to boot!

Great Valentines Template...

Who do you know that would love to receive this beautiful card for Valentines this year?  The hardest part about personalizing would be finding the photos you'd like to add!  Click here to find out how!

To view this and many more templates, go to www.inspiringkeepsakes.com and click on Template gallery.

Start the New Year off right - Organize your digital photos!

Technology is great!  Organizing the results is not so great.  You probably have photos on your computer (maybe multiple), your phone, your family member's phones, even on kid's Ipods!  Here are some quick steps to help you stay organized when it comes to your digital photos.

Step 1: Consolidate! 
Get all digital files together in one place:  Set up a reoccurring appointment on your calendar to consolidate all your photos in one place.  This could be on a specific computer, or it could be using an online service.  Decide what will work for you and do it regularly!

Step 2: Delete! 
Since we have the capability to take multiple shots of one situation, we often do!  Take time to pick the "best shot" and get rid of the rest.  This is especially hard for new parents so remember, the more files you have, the more you have to organize, and the more you have to sift through when looking for a particular shot!  Delete, delete, delete!

Step 3: Organize! 
I recommend using a photo organizing software like picasa (free download) or IPhoto.  These programs will organize your photos by time and date associated with the file (so make sure your camera's information is correct!)  They will also attempt face recognition and you can assign tags to each photo (or multiple at once) to help easily access them in the future.  If you delete your extras it shouldn't take too long to assign faces and add key word tags.  Some key word tags I use are; Birthday, Siblings (a good shot of all 3 kids),  Cabin, Farm, School days (with the my son or daughters name included), Church, Girl scouts, Cub scouts, Baseball, and Football.  When deciding what keyword tags, think about how you may want to use your photos in the future.  Will you want to put together a sports book for you son or daughter?  Will you some day make a gift for a grandparent with photos of all the times you have visited?  Adding keyword tags takes some time on the front end, but will make it so much easier to search and find files later!

Step 3: Protect! 
Don't put your eggs in one basket no matter how safe you may think that basket is!  Have your photos stored in at least two, but preferably 3 places - one should be offsite!  I have all my photos on my IMac, backed up onto an external hard drive and we also have the online backup through Carbonite.  There is an app to access files from your smart phone with Carbonite.

Step 4: Share! 

Take the time to create some great projects with your favorite photos.  I complete a family yearbook, vacation books, school books, you name it.  I also decorate our home with our favorite timeless shots.  Why buy expensive artwork with no personal connection?  Take a great shot, add an inspirational quote an publish on a canvas, poster or metal print and you have a priceless piece for you home.