<p>I promise I’m not spying on you! LOL</p>
<p>How about: </p>
<p>Paint chip coasters [645</a> workshop by the crafty cpa: return on creativity: paint sample coasters](<a href=“http://craftycpa.blogspot.com/2011/07/return-on-creativity-paint-sample.html]645”>645 workshop by the crafty cpa: return on creativity: paint sample coasters) Or google “paint chip crafts” for many more ideas.</p>
<p>Hand dipped candles.</p>
<p>Lots of reunions have tshirts commemorating the event. If you don’t want to have them made up beforehand, it might be fun to decorate a tshirt or scarf or canvas shopping bag.
Lots of ways to do it- paints- trims, buttons etc. </p>
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<p>It would be fun to have every single person do a handprint (different colors) on all the tees. That would be really special.</p>
<p>What about those reusable shopping bags? You can get plain ones and then decorate them with any number of things. They would be useful, and everyone would think of the vacation every time they went shopping.</p>
<p>Shopping bags is not a bad idea, especially the memory factor. Will think about that one!</p>
<p>Do you have artists in the family that could set up and periodically supervise painting projects? Everyone could get a small canvas and do their interpretation of the same scene at your location - like a lake or cabin.</p>
<p>In GS, for camp, all campers were encouraged to bring as many swap items as there were supposed to be campers. Each camper came home with lots of swaps that could be added to a hat, vest, shopping bag or whatever. They were often small craft items handmade with a safety pin for easy attachment.</p>
<p>Interesting idea Marilyn. One of our family members is an amateur artist, and my son’s GF is a graphic artist but there’s an awful lot of us that are more stick figure painters… and I’m afraid that would be much more expensive complicated then what I’m thinking of. Really interesting though!</p>
<p>A possible technique for decorating the shopping bags (or T-shirts or other fabric/paper items) is gelatin printing.</p>
<p>[url=<a href=“http://www.tulsaworld.com/article.aspx/Ideas_to_keep_kids_busy_this_summer/20130701_43_d2_cutlin727056?subj=43]Ideas”>http://www.tulsaworld.com/article.aspx/Ideas_to_keep_kids_busy_this_summer/20130701_43_d2_cutlin727056?subj=43]Ideas</a> to keep kids busy this summer | Tulsa World<a href=“instructions%20at%20end%20of%20article”>/url</a></p>
<p>I’ve never tried this, but the possibilities seem endless. You could use those foam letters from your craft store to spell words commemorating your family reunion and to personalize each item. Just remember to reverse letters and words in gelatin to get a readable end product.</p>
<p>Fabric pens are available in an amazing array of colors and prices, as well as tips. They may be less intimidating and more familiar to folks. Stencils can also be cut into potatoes or carrots that can be used to stamp patterns, using appropriate markers or paint.</p>
<p>My brother-in-law did a project with my brother’s family where they made prints from fish on t-shirts. They were really cool looking. Lots of instructions on the web.</p>
<p>Another year he had them do paper mache masks of their faces. They are kind of creepy!</p>
<p>One craft D made that we still have on our kitchen wall is a clock, made with a plastic plate as the background for the face, small animals out of self hardening clay that were glued on with a glue gun which she handmade for each numeral, and the hands and guts of the clock from a small clock. </p>
<p>The plate had to have a hole drilled into it so that the clock could be assembled with the hands on the surface of the plate and the mechanism and batteries behind the plate. Otherwise, each person has total discretion as to what they decorate their clock with, the plate they use, etc. it was an interesting project from about a decade ago.</p>
<p>Fish printing is called gyutaku and has a long history in Japan.</p>
<p>The clock is interesting, but I’m not going to give anyone a heads up about the craft idea. I’m just going to have the materials there and people can do it or not. I wouldn’t want to be stuck with 20 clocks if it didn’t go over.</p>
<p>Inexpensive: Potato stamping. Cut a potato in half and carve a design on the flat part. Use (fabric) paint or ink pads to stamp paper or fabric. Some ideas you can stamp: notepaper, stationery and envelopes, pillow cases, wrapping paper, tablecloths, tote bags.</p>
<p>In addition to individual items, you can also get one tablecloth and have each person contribute their stamp to it. Add names and dates with Sharpie. Use the tablecloth for future family events. (Picture it on a small table for sign-in book for wedding showers, baby showers, etc.) As years go by, have new in-laws add to it. Also any new babies born into the family can add to it when they get old enough.</p>
<p>How about personalized coasters!?</p>
<p>Super easy, super cheap, very usable.</p>
<p>Buy:
<p>Have on hand any of the following to cut and decorate the tops of the tiles:
Random family photos
Maps/travel brochures (maybe of the vacation spot you are visiting)
Pretty scrapbook paper
Sports team logos
Magazines</p>
<p>Mod Podge the photo (or scrapbook paper, map, whatever) to the top of the tile. Coat the top of the photo with mod podge as well (thin even coat). Let dry an hour or so - sand lightly. Repeat for a total of three coats. Apply felt circles after final drying. Voila! A set of personalized coasters for cheap - great for homes, kids rooms, the boat, cottages, dorms, etc. </p>
<p>This is an activity ALL ages (preschoolers with guidance) can do. Is usable. Fits in a suitcase. They can make one to use on the vacation to “mark” their drinks or make a set of 4 to take home.</p>
<p>Some examples:
[url=<a href=“http://pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=tile%20coasters]Pinterest[/url”>http://pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=tile%20coasters]Pinterest[/url</a>]</p>
<p>I made a set for my son for Christmas with maps of his favorite places - he loves maps.
I made a set for S’s GF using cute scrapbook paper.
Made a set for my brother’s boat using photos he had taken of his boat.
D made a set for her best friend using the logos for his favorite beer brands.</p>
<p>I really think this could work for you!</p>
<p>Love this idea! May try it too! Had not heard of mod podge. Could also glue cork or afix heavy felt on the unpainted side to be kinder to table surfaces.</p>
<p>I find myself thinking that a small photo printer and a digital camera and some scrapbook pages might provide the most fun. You could even encourage people to label photos and write a few comments and make a family page to share.</p>
<p>abasket, I LOVE your idea and think I may do that as #2 craft. </p>
<p>I had a wake up call when I went to Michaels yesterday and found out the price of mosaic tiles and realized how many I would need for a picture frame. Even ordering them from amazon would have been very pricey. The frames themselves were a deal ($1.00 each and I had a 25% off mobile coupon for total purchase) so I got a couple of dozen of them, but decided that we could just draw on them and add stuff like buttons, glitter jewels, and whatever else I can find around the house. </p>
<p>dmd77, I would go with your idea of the scrap booking page, but my SIL is a creative memories consultant so she’ll most likely be making a book for all of us. I like the idea though, and I think it would be great for another family.</p>
<p>I posted a link to those coasters in post #21. You can probably purchase the tiles a lot cheaper at Home Depot or Lowes. They usually have some boxes that have a few broken tiles, which they sell for less.</p>
<p>Yes, I mentioned that I recently paid .17 cents/tile at Home Depot.</p>
<p>Sorry for the repeat idea! :)</p>