“It’s the most wonderful time of the year,” sang Andy Williams in his 1963 classic hit of the same title. And we cannot agree more about that: Christmas is a special occasion where everybody shares the joy of this spectacular holiday with each other, from a close family member, a distant relative or even a friend or work colleague.
But let’s face it; love is not the only thing we love about Christmas. Who doesn’t want to rush downstairs to the living room on Christmas Day and find those gifts surrounding the Christmas tree? One of which might happen to be a stylish Christmas-themed photo book.
Whether it has pictures of past holidays or memories of events from the last year collected by family members or friends, a Christmas photo book will definitely bring back fond memories and fill your heart with joy even years after it was received.
Even though many people deviate from the usual concept of a Christmas photo book by adding pictures taken throughout the year – to close out the year this way – it is best to stick to traditions and collect photos related to the holiday.
In this category the options available could be virtually anything: the first Christmas, a selection of photos taken during previous holiday seasons, a book about the meals you made during Christmases gone by, the presents received or given to your loved ones throughout the years and so on.
Another intriguing idea is to turn the photo book into an illustrated advent calendar with one picture per page accompanied by some short text. Speaking of which, there are no restrictions on text so long as it maintains the warm glow of the holiday spirit; try including short stories, quotes, entire lyrics from the greatest Christmas classics, recipes, or even a single word to represent how you feel.
The only thing that is more or less fixed is the color scheme of the book. Whether you find the Christmas templates ideal or you prefer the DIY method, remember to use colors associated with the holidays, such as red, green, gold, silver, brown, and of course white.
We briefly touched on the subject of creating a photo book from pictures taken during previous Christmas and holiday seasons, but due to its immense popularity it’s something that we should discuss in much closer detail. The best place to begin is to consider the order, perhaps opting for the good old chronological order – though maybe give it a little twist by styling it like an advent calendar.
Another way to make the photo book unique is by determining the subject. Focus on the entire family by including those annual pictures where everybody is huddled around the Christmas tree or the dinner table. Or, if you are a young couple spending your first Christmas together, try the ‘comparison approach’ where pages alter between having pictures from your past Christmases and those of your soul mate.
However, if you want to hit jackpot, make children the subject of your book. Since virtually every moment – whether it’s opening presents, visiting grandparents, meeting Santa to sit in his lap or just playing in the snow – is usually recorded, you can create a time machine showing how much the kids have changed, making it an ideal gift for parents, other relatives and the now-grown-up children alike.
A photo book is a perfect Christmas gift regardless of whether it is given to family members, friends or anybody else you care about. However, be sure to follow certain guidelines in order to make the present a tremendous success.
Perhaps the most fun – and maybe even most overlooked – approach for creating your holiday photo book is collaboration: invite as many people as possible to either add photos to the would-be book or to suggest themes, layouts, additional decorations and more.
Although any idea related to Christmas and/or the person the book is intended for is a good idea, it is best to reach a consensus that satisfies all needs. However, keep in mind that it’s best to decide everything before starting the design process, since only a few photo book editors allow users to collaborate on a project in real time.
But if you have absolutely no idea what to include or you want to avoid disappointment then switch to plan B: gift vouchers. With these your loved ones are given an exceptional opportunity to build their very own Christmas photo book in any way they want.
Christmas is such a popular theme that it is impossible not to find an online photo book builder without it. But if you pick one of our favorite companies from the following three – Mixbook, PrestoPhoto and Shutterfly – then you will definitely not be disappointed.
Founded in 2006, Mixbook has established its position as one of the best photo book editing services on the market. One of the reasons for the company’s impressive reputation is its nearly flawless editor that helps you quickly craft the photo book of your dreams.
This editor includes over 700 designs, layout options, and other customizations to make your photo book unique. Mixbook also offers a reasonable range of size-to-cover pairings, with eight sizes and four cover options.
For affordable pricing and shipping, you receive a quality product within one to three weeks. Mixbook is present in the U.S. and the UK, and ships internationally. It’s even possible to reduce the price by waiting for one of the occasional discounts Mixbook runs on its website or refer Mixbook to a friend and get 40% off for each successful referral.
When it comes to preserving our most cherished memories, we usually strive for quality by putting them into a personalized photo book made out of the best materials possible. Unfortunately, photo books, and not just the more prestigious ones, became quite expensive over the years – and not all customers can afford a book that might have the price of a weekend shopping trip. This is when a photo service like PrestoPhoto enters the mix. You have probably never heard of this company, but you should; without doubt this is the photo book company that sells its products with the best prices possible. And you might be wondering: do I get anything for this cheapness? Yes, you do: PrestoPhoto is not only cheap, but versatile too with its record breaking amount of 21 photo book sizes. Plus, this is probably the only company that lets you decide the binding technique of your photo book. So, if you are looking for a photo book builder which can create super cost-friendly products for you, then PrestoPhoto might be worth checking out.
Well-renowned for its high-quality photo books, Shutterfly has a knack for bringing memories to life. Since its early days in 1999, the company has developed an impressive product range that includes photo cards, stationery, prints, calendars, gifts, and photo books that can be customized to your liking.
Shutterfly grants users full creative control when building their photo book. There are preset themes to choose from, as well as the option to have a book made for you with your photos and a theme of your choice. If you choose to craft the photo book yourself, then it can be created with the versatile editor, either from a desktop or mobile device.
Letting creativity run free, there are over 200 themes to choose from with an assortment of different paper types, sizes, and covers. Once your book is customized to your heart’s content, it can be ordered for affordable prices starting at $24.98. Plus, there are ways to lower this price through seasonal offers and bulk orders.
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