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20 Vacation and Memorykeeping Crafts

20 Vacation and Memorykeeping Crafts

Aaron Dyer

Pause, and recall: A family trip to the beach, a dinner party with friends, a special holiday or anniversary. With the curated remnants, you can turn your favorite memories of vacations, parties, or a baby's first years into a cherished keepsake.

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Glass Votives and Vases

Love the look of sea glass? Us too. For a waterside-inspired look, wrap decals around pale-glass bottles and votive holders for charming table decorations.

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Map-Lined Shadow Box

Aaron Dyer

To corral all the ticket stubs, sand dollars, and souvenirs carefully collected from your last vacation, consider these two options: If you want to display your treasures, line the bottom of a shadow box with a map of the place you went and arrange items on top.

Glass shadow boxes, from $39 each, westelm.com

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Photograph Jewelry

Linda Pugliese

A seashell pendant makes a lovely natural backing for landscape photos. The images take on a dreamy, painterly quality when printed on decal film and smoothed onto the shells. Thread them with leather cord for necklaces that are far more stylish than your average seaside souvenir.

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Photo Throw Pillows

Linda Pugliese

Who says you have to leave the beach behind? You can personalize your home décor with printed photo fabric that can be sewn into pillows; these beach and boat scenes go beautifully with blue-and-white patterned fabrics.

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Mapped Box

Aaron Dyer

If you'd rather stow them, wrap the map around the lid of an acid-free box. Either way, your mementos will be protected, organized by location, and easy to find on your next trip down memory lane.

Lineco Museum Quality black drop-front boxes, from $22 each, aifriedman.com

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Map Artwork

How to Make the Map Artwork

Hand-stitch the route you took on a vacation, and frame it. You’ll have a gallery of getaways and a reminder to look back fondly on family adventures -- including that time the car broke down.

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Recipe Box

Keep treasured dishes in the family by scanning and printing original recipes from everyone's most beloved cook.

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Summer-Themed Postcards

Joseph De Leo

Whip up these clever homemade postcards, then drop a bit of summertime into the mail for your friends.

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Memory Flip Book

A favorite digital video can be transformed into a photo flip book for repeated enjoyment.

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Vintage Album Covers

How to Make the Vintage Album Covers

To add a classic touch to your photo album, replace a plain cover with one of our vintage-inspired templates.

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Memory Quilt

How to Make the Memory Quilt

Some items -- like a baby's first bib, or the blanket she came home from the hospital in-- are too precious to give away. Instead, turn them into a baby memory quilt.

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Bottle-Cap Magnets and Thumbtacks

James Merrell

Make Bottle-Cap Magnets and Thumbtacks

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

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Photo Centerpiece

How to Make a Photo Centerpiece

Pay tribute to an honored guest, or display holiday memories on your seasonal tabletop with a set of photo-frame lanterns.

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