TUTORIAL: make your own (free) hangtags

 

Using FREE online photo editing from Picnik & FREE prints from my local Walgreens (when I signed up for a photo account) I was able to make new hang tags for my Etsy Shop items for, you guessed it, FREE!!

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This tutorial was written using hang tags as the subject, but really the possibilities are endless... gift tags, scavenger hunt cards, festive garlands, you name it!

First off, I would like to say that I am sure there are a million ways to do this (some probably much easier) but this is just how I did it.  I would love to hear your suggestions and ideas!

OK, lets get started...

Tip: you can click on any of the images to enlarge

First, go to Picnik.com and upload a photo (any photo will work) that is at least 600x800 pixels.

When the picture has been uploaded, it will open in the "edit" tab, like the one above of my youngest son.
Next, Click on the "create" tab.  UPDATE: All of these features are now located under the "Edit" tab.

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Once the "create" tab is open, click on the button that says "stickers."
Then, scroll down, and click on "basic shapes."
Select the square (#1 above), and then select a color (#2 above) (you can always change it again later).  For the purpose of demonstration, I went with gray.

Resize the (gray) square by clicking and dragging until the entire photo is covered.

Now, we are going to crop our photo to the correct size.  Click on the "edit" tab and then click the "crop" button. 

EDITED: Crop the image to 4X6 from the drop-down menu (not 600x800, like in the image above).  I like to make the image at least 800 pixels on the long side.

And now the fun part - designing the tags! 
I decided to make 3 rectangular tags per page, so I clicked back to the "create" tab and then scrolled down the "stickers" until I found the "basic shapes" again (#1 above). 
Once I created the size of rectangle I liked, I right clicked on it and duplicated it (#2 above) so my tags would all be the same size. 
TIP: make sure you leave a border all the way around the outside, so that none of the tags get cut off when printed (I found this out the hard way). 
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As you can see, I went ahead and added more elements to the tags...  I added a second square inside the first to create a white border.  And then selected the colors I liked (shown above).

Then I edited the text (shown above) found under the "text" button.
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And finally, I added a few graphic elements found by clicking the "stickers" button (shown above).

When you are satisfied, click the "save and share" tab and then click "Save Photo."
Now the only thing left to do is PRINT!
Many of you probably have nice photo printers at home that would provide a more convenient alternative to driving to pick up photos, if so, feel free to skip the next step.  But if you are like me, and the thought of paying for a printer cartridge sends your blood pressure sky-hi, then a short jaunt to the photo shop might not be so bad after all!

For all of you with a printer-cartridge phobia, go to Walgreens.com (if they are in your area) and sign up for a photo account (so you can get your 25 free photos). 
Then upload your hang tag image and select "order prints" (it might be best to only print one the first time, as a test print, in case you need to do some additional editing)  My 4x6 photos were ready to pick up in 45 minutes.
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Gather your supplies: scissors, hole punch, and string/ribbon.

cut them out,

punch the holes,

and string them up!  I used my trusty twin, but some colorful ribbon would be extra cute!
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 the finished "tutorial tags" and pink hang tags designed for a cowgirl costume from my Etsy shop. 

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the original tags I made for the Cowboy Costume in my shop.

I hope this TUTORIAL was helpful, I would love to hear your feedback!

thanks for visiting - come again!

 

  

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Update: here are other hang tags I have made using the same technique.
    
Gifts for Kids:

 fort kits

 

Valentine's Day Gifts:

 

"we make a great pair"

reusable hot/cold packs

 

 Teacher Gifts:

birdseed ornaments

 

bread bags