“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.
Christmas Photo Book Ideas
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.
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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.
Christmas Throughout the Years
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.
Holiday Photo Book as a Gift
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.
Recommended Holiday Photo Book Services
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.
Mixbook
Mixbook is the epitome of an outstanding photo book editing service for countless reasons. Not only does it have a good mix of photo book sizes, shapes and covers, it also possesses an enormous list of different themes – including five dedicated to Christmas – and you can even customize the book to your liking with plenty of layouts, backgrounds, embellishments, text, and more in a foolproof editor that also allows others to contribute to the project.
Not to mention all books, including those created by the company’s separate Mosaic app, are printed in a high-quality manner and shipped fast to anywhere in the world. And to top it all, you can have your very own Mixbook Christmas photo book for as low as $15.99.
PrestoPhoto
PrestoPhoto’s tablet browser-friendly builder is far from ideal, since it is only capable of tricks like auto-filling and fitting, PDF upload, and unlimited personalization regarding layouts and backgrounds. And while all of its 19 Christmas themes are only available for an extra charge, there are still two areas where this company is an unquestionable champion of: versatility and prices.
PrestoPhoto books can be printed in 21 different sizes with five covers, nine paper types and such rare (and most importantly cheap) binding techniques like saddle-stitch or twin-loop wire.
As for prices, a 20-page 8.5×8.5 size book with the default soft cover and regular binding costs no more than $10.99, but it is possible to even include up to 400 pages in total.
Shutterfly
Shutterfly is another prime example of a high quality photo book service with extras like three book editing methods and the Photo Story iPad app with additional doodling feature. But regardless of how you want to build your book, Shutterfly provides six different sizes, two shapes, paper upgrades likes layflat or glossy types, and rare cover options like cloth, genuine leather, linen and ivory crushed silk.
As a customer you’ll have a choice of over 200 different themes, out of which eight are Christmas related (and three of which cost nothing extra at all). But, thanks to the fully-featured online editor or app, your options regarding layout, background, embellishment, and theme customizations are virtually unlimited.
But the cherry on the cake is the company’s pricing and shipping policies: books can be ordered for as low as $15.99 and are produced and shipped within 3-10 business days.
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