As the name suggests, memory books are collections of personal memories of one or more people. They can have many themes, from a special event to a series of a child's "firsts" to a celebration of a person's life. They are usually paper-based and have the style of a scrapbook. However, as digital cutouts and personalized printing services become more common, digital keepsake books are gaining in popularity.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Deciding What to Do
Step 1. Choose a theme
Whether you want to create a real or digital memory book, the first thing to do is decide the subject of the work. Popular themes include:
- Family members: Create a book dedicated to a loved one. In addition to photographs, you can include text he wrote (such as letters and postcards), which he drew (such as your child's drawings), and any other objects subtle enough to fit in a book or scanner. You can also include documents relating to the person, such as report cards, a copy of the birth certificate or marriage contract, or a birthday card. If your child is small, you can start a memory book now and keep updating it over the years.
- Events: Weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, and academic degrees are popular choices for a keepsake book. Holidays, such as Christmas or Valentine's Day are also common themes. If the event or special day is an annual occurrence, you can add a new page or chapter every year.
- Vacation- Use the memory book to relive a fun vacation or share it with others. This is a great idea especially if you have visited an exotic country and have taken a lot of photos. You can also include items like plane tickets or a dried flower you brought home. If you have a family tradition of traveling together every year, you can add a chapter for each destination.
- Special occasions: This option is widely used by parents who make a book for their children. You can choose a specific event, such as "Marco & Laura's first carnival" or adopt a theme that covers a longer period, such as "Paola's first year of school" or "Riccardo's birthdays from six to ten years".
Step 2. Decide on the content
There aren't many rules on what you can put in a memory book. Just make sure that the elements chosen match the theme and, if you are making a physical edition, that all the objects are flat enough and can be easily glued to the pages.
- Paper keepsake books often include photographs, illustrations, poems, quotes, card stubs, greeting cards, programs, postcards, stickers, and even small souvenirs, such as coins or tokens. Each object is often accompanied by a written explanation of the context.
- In addition to photographs and other documents that can be scanned, digital memory books can also contain video and audio files.
- Remember that a memory book is different from a photo album. Do not include all photos related to the subject you have. Instead, try to pick just a few that tell a story.
Step 3. Ask people to contribute
Many memory books are made in collaboration. Consider asking other people to help you. They can take care of a particular page, a chapter or simply provide you with photos and objects.
Method 2 of 3: Create a Physical Memories Book
Step 1. Choose the right book
The book itself will be the basis of the work, so choose wisely. You can use any type of notebook as long as it contains acid-free paper.
- In general, scrapbooks are more suitable. You can find them in supermarkets, stationeries and even some newsstands.
- If you're going to create a memory book that you can edit over time, you can use a notebook where you can add pages. Some scrapbooks allow you to insert new pages of cardstock, or it is very easy to add new pages to a "book" made with a ring binder.
- Many stores, such as bookstores and DIY stores, sell pre-printed souvenir books for special occasions. They usually contain spaces for photos and to insert text. They can be good choices if you want to create your first memory book and don't know what format to use.
Step 2. Get the materials
Once the book is ready, you need the elements to fill it in. Collect all the photos and other objects you want to place on the pages. For the rest, all you need is a pen and a sticker.
- You can use any type of glue or tape as an adhesive. Just make sure they're acid-free. Vinyl glue designed for books and paper is your best bet. However, a simple glue stick will do as well.
- You can also include small items related to the theme of the book.
- You can decorate your book if you wish. You can choose decorations linked directly to the theme or content of the work, such as a snowflake for a book dedicated to winter or pumpkin-shaped stickers for the chapter on Halloween. You can also use purely decorative items, such as glitter and rhinestones, which don't necessarily fit the theme.
Step 3. Create a draft
Once you have everything at your fingertips, it can be helpful to sketch or arrange the objects before gluing them to the page. It is a good idea to decide where to put the elements before finally fixing them.
- You can choose to arrange the elements according to your personal taste.
- A common format for store-bought souvenir books is a space for the photo on one page and one for the text on the opposite page.
- Also think about larger decorations when making the draft.
Step 4. Crop the photos
Instead of using rectangular original photos, you can crop them with other shapes. This gives your memory book a more coherent and interesting look.
- Cut out the photos with a shape. You can decide to adapt them to the space on the page, or choose shapes related to the theme, for example a heart cut for a book on Valentine's Day.
- Crop photos based on content. If an image contains some elements that are not relevant to the book, you can delete them. For example, you can cut out a photo of a friend by the sea to eliminate strangers.
- Use a sharp pair of scissors to get sharp edges.
- You can crop the photos before thinking about the arrangement of the elements on the page if you intend to give some shape to the images regardless of the style of the page.
Step 5. Paste the elements
You will use acid-free glue for almost any object. Just spread a thin layer of adhesive on the back of each item and put it in its place. Use your fingers to make the object adhere well to the page and wait for the glue to dry before moving on to the next.
- Some three-dimensional objects require a different type of adhesive. Double-sided tape or packaging tape can be good alternatives.
- If the pages of your book are thick enough, you can sew the items onto the paper.
- Since the various glues dry at different times, check the directions on the package to know how long you have to wait.
Step 6. Describe the objects
Talk about the images and other elements. Explain what they represent and why they are important. You can use simple words (like "Nonna Rosanna, September 28, 2015"), phrases ("This was Daddy's favorite song") or even whole paragraphs. You don't have to add a caption for each item, but the descriptions help shape the memory book and distinguish it from a photo album.
- If you have decided to include poems, song lyrics or quotes, you can write them by hand instead of using prints or cutouts.
- If you are using a predefined memory book, simply fill in the blanks. If you want to write more, you can use the page margins.
Step 7. Decorate the memory book
Add the finishing touches to embellish the content of the work. Add glitter, small stickers, stamps and designs. Try to reduce the empty space with decorations.
- If your memory book tells a story, arrange the decorations to guide the reader's eye down the page to each item in the correct chronological order. A simple trick to achieve this effect is to connect all the objects in the desired order with a line or ribbon.
- Once you're done decorating, your keepsake book is ready for everyone to show off.
Method 3 of 3: Design a Digital Memories Book
Step 1. Find a model or program you like
Search the internet for resources for memory books and scrapbooks. As for works of this type, you have a couple of generic options at your disposal:
- Websites that allow you to make memorabilia books to show online. These sites act as binders where you can add and arrange digital content in virtual albums. Some of these web pages only support photos and captions, while others allow you to share text, video, audio and URLs as well. You can upload your own content or add items you find on the web to your digital book.
- Programs, templates, and websites that allow you to build a more traditional memoir that you can later publish in print. These solutions allow you to choose a size and format for your book, then arrange the photos and text on all pages as you would on traditional paper. They are often paired with a built-in printing service that gives you the ability to order a professionally printed and bound copy of your book. Even if you decide to keep the work in digital format, you can use these services to create files for sharing.
Step 2. Prepare the content
Scan or download any items you plan to include in your digital scrapbook. Make sure you optimize your content for the platform you have chosen.
- If you are going to print the book, remember to scan the images and pages at at least 300 DPI. Use the TIFF format for perfect quality images.
- If you plan to leave the book digitally or publish it on the web, it's probably a good idea to compress the images to reduce the file size. The JPEG format is usually suitable for photos, but introduces artifacts. GIFs are more appropriate for text or simple drawings, but are limited to 256 colors, so they're not a good choice for photographs.
- Some digital memory book programs offer a built-in image editor. However, you will probably need to retouch the photos with a specific program before importing them. Adjust the contrast, brightness and color correct if necessary. Cut out images with digital tools just like you would with scissors.
Step 3. Choose a consistent style
While it's not entirely necessary, choosing just one font (or set of fonts) and one color scheme throughout the book gives it a much more professional look. You can use multiple fonts, colors, and sizes for text within the same project, as long as each has a specific purpose. For example, you can use an uppercase purple font for titles and a smaller black font for captions.
Choose colors that match the theme. For example, you can choose the colors of your favorite team for a memory book dedicated to them
Step 4. Design the book of memories
If you're using a template or program, let us guide you through the process, adding captions and images as needed. If you are creating the book from scratch, you will have to decide the layout of each page. Just remember that works of this type should include images and text. Use captions to tell a story.
Step 5. Share your memory book
If you want professionally bound physical copies of your work, use the printing service of the program you used or find a compatible one on the internet. You can also choose the inexpensive alternative, by printing the pages at home and assembling them in a notebook or with clothespins. You can also decide to save the book on portable storage, so that you can share it with others. If the file is small enough, you can even email it. If you're using an online clipping tool, be sure to change your privacy settings so it's visible, then share a link to the page.
Advice
- Paper keepsake books are similar to scrapbooks and the two terms can be used interchangeably. However, scrapbook is a broader term that includes collections with themes that are not related to memories or biographical information.
- A common type of keepsake book is one that commemorates the life of a loved one who passed away. They are often particularly useful in helping children cope with bereavement.
