How to Create a Family Tree Keepsake

Your family roots are an important part of your background. They tell where you came from, how your ancestors lived and how your life was molded into the person you are today. It can also be important to your children. It's important to hand down family keepsakes because they, too, tell a story. You may even want to make one for your siblings to hand down to their children. Here's how.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Computer with all peripherals
• Scanner
• Picture frame
• Family information
• Paper
• Printer
• Blank address labels
• Colored writing instruments (markers, pens, pencils)
• Pictures of family members
• Pencil or pen
• Paper
• Ruler
• Editing program

How to create a family tree keepsake

1. Gather the materials you need and sort pictures by families. For example, If you have two sisters with children, place each family in a separate pile. Place all pertinent information for each family on top of each pile.

2. Choose a background picture for your keepsake. These can be different for each family or the same. Scan in the picture and name it. Open your picture-editing program and open the newly scanned picture.The object here is to lighten the picture so it is a faint image behind your title. Once you have edited the picture, save it. Close your editing program and open your printing program.

3. Print as many copies of the picture as you will need, giving one to each family. If you are making a different background for each family, print only enough for each member. After printing the backgrounds, choose a family to start your project with. On a blank address label, print a family member's name, birth date and where they were born. Place the label on the in the center of the left-hand side.

4. Place one label on top and another below and slightly to the right. This should now look as though you are creating a set of stairs. On the label above. write the first person's father. Write their name, birth date, where they were born, when and where they were married and, if applicable, when they died and where they were buried. Above and below the parents' labels, place two more labels for the grandparents and so on.

5. Draw a line from the first individual to their parents' labels. Repeat this for each generation. Continue with each person's own keepsake. Place each keepsake in a frame and give it to each person as a gift.

Tips & Warnings

• Use a different color of pen, pencil or marker for each generation you add one 1 specific page.
• Use a different color of pen, pencil or marker for the birth and death dates for each individual.
• If you can find a printer paper that already has a background you would like to use, you can. It saves you the steps of scanning and printing the background pictures.
• The author of this article is not a professional and is not responsible for mishap while performing tasks in this article.