What We Do: Chatbooks! | Do Say Give

What We Do: Chatbooks!

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At the beginning of 2016, I made a goal to catch up on photo albums after six years of not making them. But come December I had not made one. So I finally jumped on the Chatbooks bandwagon and gave them to my family for Christmas. Honestly, I think they were my girls’ favorite gift! I am sharing why in today’s post.

There are several reasons why I have put off making photo albums for so long. Time, for one thing. The longer ones goes between making photo albums the more daunting the task becomes! Another issue is that my photos were scattered all over the place: Google, Shutterfly, Instagram, Facebook. #Overwhelming. On several occasions, I started making Blurb photo albums (which are beautiful and a lot of my friends make them) but I never finished one. I have no idea why.

Pathetic, I know.

So one sleepless night in December I downloaded the Chatbooks app and just starting making my first book. It was so easy that I started making more. Over the next few nights, as I lay in bed at two in the morning with nothing else to do (I know I need to get help for my chronic middle of the night insomnia!), I made eight more books recapping the past few three or so years.

I used the “Custom Photo Book Album” option so I could designate books by years, vacation, etc. But a lot of people do the photo book series where Chatbooks will automatically incorporate your Instagram photos into a book and let you know when it’s ready to be printed. A genius way to stay on top of photos!

I wrapped them up for Christmas and stuck them under the tree with a note that read, “Dear Family, I am sorry I’ve deprived you of these for so long. Promise to do better in the future!”

I am not exaggerating when I say these Chatbooks were my children’s favorite gift. Their faces lit up looking though the softcover books that fit so easily in their hands, remembering trips and dance recitals and even mundane things like building a tent in the living room during a snow storm.

It was seeing the joy in their faces that confirmed that I really was doing a disservice to my children by not documenting our family memories. (Not only am I terrible at making photo albums, but I rarely print photos either!) But I plan to do better from now on because I truly believe photos help solidify childhoods memories, remember lost loves ones, and generally cultivate a grateful heart for all the blessings – both big and small – in their life.

The simplicity of Chatbooks is also quite appealing. One photo on a page, 60 photos in a book. Simple and sweet and they look really sharp lined up on a bookshelf. Since Christmas I have designed seven more Chatbooks going back to 2007 and feel quite satisfied about it!

A few tips if you are thinking of trying Chatbooks:

  • You can easily access your Instagram, Facebook, Google photos and the Photo Album on your phone.
  • You can also sync accounts with your husband or grandparents so they can share photos to put in your Chatbooks. I haven’t tried this but plan to!
  • You’ve probably seen friends use hashtags when they post photos of their children on social media. When creating a Chatbook, you can type in a certain hashtag and it will pull up all those photos which you can then put into one album. This is great for family vacations and wedding weekends!
  • Chatbooks will automatically pull in your Instagram captions but you can choose to edit those or delete them altogether.

This is not sponsored post but as a customer Chatbooks gave me a link for you to make a free chatbook if you sign up for a series. (You will get the same thing to share with your friends if you sign up!).

I’m still a newbie so please share your favorite Chatbook tips and tricks below!

 

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