DIY Giant Photo Booth Style Photos

This is another one of those inspired by Pinterest projects.  Ahh...where would we be without Pinterest? I've been dying to do this ever since I was inspired by these two photos.

I first saw this from the film “The Joneses”:

Then, I saw this from Girl In Air:

I knew I wanted to do something similar but I wanted to use pictures of all five of my kids in one column. This is how I did it:

First, I took some close-ups of each of them. While editing my photos I made sure to adjust the shape to square (cd cover) using Picasa and also to add a thick black border.  

 I went online to Staples because you can get black and white engineering prints for only $1.97 each!  The site is not very user friendly.  You have to make an account then log in and upload your photos.  As of right now, I cannot remember my username and password (I hope I figure it out soon)! 

When you search for the photo to upload, you have to start typing in the name of the photo to upload.  So, just a heads up to name your photos and don’t just use numbers or you will have a hard time.  After uploading the photos for the project select black and white prints and 18 x 24 size.  You can choose the larger prints but they cost more.  Also make sure to select to fit to page.  Preview and make any changes needed then go to checkout.  Don’t bother trying to save because I was never able to open up my saved project or go back to it and had to start all over.  For my five prints plus shipping was @ $20. 

After the prints were delivered, I went to Home Depot and bought a piece of 4 ft. x 8 ft. foam board ($11).  The board I got was 1/2'” thick.  I had them cut it in half (2 ft. wide).  I knew that the board would be a little bit too long so I laid out the photos and marked with pencil to determine how much to cut off.  I cut off the excess with a razor knife. 

Then I sprayed the board with spray adhesive and placed the picture on top.  I used my brayer to smooth the photo over the board.

The only problem I ran into is that I ran out of spray adhesive about half way through. Instead of waiting until I got some more, I used mod podge to adhere the photo to the board.  It worked okay but not as well as the spray, especially around the edges and corners.  So, if you do this, make sure you have plenty of spray adhesive!  I left it to dry overnight.

The next morning, I painted the sides and anywhere any white was showing with black acrylic paint.  I left that to dry all day.

I love it! 

The whole thing is about 7.5  feet tall!  I still haven’t mounted it to the wall. I plan on using command strips. They should hold it without putting any holes in the wall.  I just couldn’t wait to show YOU!  I love seeing the kids like this, larger than life. I know in the blink of an eye, this moment will be over and they’ll be grown. 

By the way, this still counts as Five For Friday since there are five pictures and five kids!  Yeah, I can do that. :)

Linking Up:
504 Main
The Shabby Nest
Cheerios & Lattes
Tatertots & Jello
Too Much Time
One Creative Mommy
Young & Crafty
Craft Junkie Too
Six Sisters Stuff
Funky Junk Interiors
Be Different, Act Normal
Tutus & Tea Parties
Whipperberry
Craft-O-Maniac
CRAFT
The Girl Creative
Sumo's Sweet Stuff
Between Naps On The Porch 
Sew Can Do
Keeping It Simple
The Dedicated House 
Sarah Dawn Designs
Today's Creative Blog
Tip Junkie
My Girlish Whims
Savvy Southern Style
Sew Much Ado
Someday Crafts
A Glimpse Inside
My Romantic Home
Finding Fabulous
delicateCONSTRUCTION
At The Picket Fence
Little Becky Homecky