Mosaic Photo Collage

I was put in charge of making the photo display for my sister-in-law's bridal shower. I wanted to make them something that could be hung in their house after the shower.  I saw this idea done on a 12x12 scrapbook page, so I thought I could do it on a canvas.

I started by laying out the pictures on an 18x24" canvas. I used 4x6, 5x7, and 8x10 photos.  This was a rough lay out to try to get an idea for what photos would fit and how the colors would blend.

 The photo squares are 1-inch squares.  To figure out the spacing, I cut the bottom inch off of the bottom row of pictures.  After laying them out on the canvas, I knew where I have to cut inches off of the sides of the pictures to get them to fit.  I did this for the bottom row and one side.

 I used Mod Podge to glue the squares down. After the bottom and side rows were down, I filled in the bottom row of photos.

 Once I got to the middle I had to do a lot of checking to make sure that the white spaces were lining up from all directions.  Jumping ahead and creating a line in the middle was a good reference.

 I kept their faces and bodies in tact, but where there was a full square inch of dead space in the background I took it out and replaced it with another photo or a random square of background.  This is what created the blended photo look, rather than just square blocks of photos.  This close up shoes how photos blended together:

After all of the squares were in place, I put a thin coat of Mod Podge over the top to seal it and give it a finished look.

Here it is covered with Mod Podge--Don't worry, it dries clear!

Here is the finished product!  It turned out well, and displays about 13 of their engagement photos!