Family Vacation Memory Crafts

Enlarge photos from a recent trip and make foldouts: an accordion type, formed by taping photocopies together, or an origami-style version, using a bone folder to make sharp creases. These inserts, pasted into an ordinary journal, add an element of surprise to the story of the trip and convey some of the city's grandeur.

A video from your vacation can be transformed into a keep-at-hand photo flip-book for repeated enjoyment.

A homey take on the traditional locket, bottle caps inset with small black-and-white pictures from your travels can be used as thumbtacks or magnets.

Don't stash away or discard maps from your favorite vacation spots. Use them to make these handy coasters and you'll be reminded of that special destination every time you reach for one.

To make these mini travel photo pages, slip a piece of heavy card stock into an airmail envelope. Using a utility knife, cut out face of envelope, leaving backing and decorative border intact; repeat with 4 more envelopes. Cut photos to size; insert into envelopes. Stack envelopes; glue all flaps together using an archival glue stick. Cut 1 envelope-length slit along 1 edge of scrapbook page. Slip flaps through; fold over, and tape to opposite side to secure.

A photograph captures a place with precision. But when it comes time to paste the images in a book, why not organize your experience a little more impressionistically? This collage tells the story of a trip to Vienna. After a trip, you can make a series of collages consisting of pictures you've taken and objects you've collected along the way -- anything from a restaurant napkin to a packet of sugar. Then photograph all the collages and arrange them in a leather-bound book for a presentation that unfolds like a movie.