PhotoBookStory.com Newsletter

Who Do You Think You Are SWEEPSTAKES!

2012-02-22T14:38:00.001-08:00

Who Do You Think You Are is back for a 3rd season and will premied Friday, February 3 at 8/7c on NBC. Martin Sheen lead off the series and other celebrities lined up include Marissa Tomei, Blair Underwood, Helen Hunt, Jerome Bettis, Robb Lowe, and Paula Deen among others. Be sure to tune-in and see what each of these celebrities learns about their family history!

In conjunction with Season 3, Ancestry.com is running a Sweepstakes where 3 Grand Prize winners will win a trip of a lifetime to uncover their own family history valued at $10,000! Click here to Win the Trip of a Lifetime to your Family's Homeland at Ancestry.com. The Sweepstakes includes a trip to the winner's homeland to explore their family roots, round-trip airfare for two, hotel and $2,000 in cash, plus a 6-month Ancestry.com World Explorer membership and an Ancestry.com DNA test to discover their genetic ethnicity. 20 First Prize winners will receive a 6-month Ancestry.com World Explorer membership. Good luck and enjoy the show!

Weddings and Photos

2012-02-17T14:12:00.002-08:00

What can I do with a photo? Make a wedding beautiful!

Weddings are a beautiful thing, but can be stressful. Here are a few ideas to make things a little easier.

Can you believe it? Wedding season is almost here! The dates are set, the plans are being made, and it’s about that time to let people know when the big day is. If you’re planning a wedding you need Save the Date cards. Wedding Paper Divas absolutely leads the way with Save the Date cards, calendars, and magnets. And this year, just in time, they have added tons of awesome new features and Save the Date items like these cool Circle Cards (I have to admit they are pretty stylish) and Monogrammed designs (love ‘em!).

Calendars are fun and useful to potential guests. You can check all of Wedding Paper Divas’ calendars here. Some of my other favorites are what they call the “Romantic Tab : Smoke” Save The Date Postcard and the “Haute Heraldry : Black” Save the Date Card. But really they just have so many to choose from and everyone’s tastes are different, so check them all out.

What makes Wedding Paper Divas different? Before each each order is shipped it is hand reviewed (by a real live human!) for any issues, so you’re guaranteed to receive high-quality cards. Shop their Save the Date cards today. These cards are sure to amaze family and friends.

Tip 1 - Let your Guests Take the Photos!

Today, we all have cell phones with cameras. You can encourage your guests to take random photos, then upload them for free to a site called The Wedding Lens. The Wedding Lens is an online photo sharing site designed specifically for your wedding. The site provides an elegant design and hassle-free interface to collect and share every moment of your special day with friends and family. In addition, your guests will be able to upload full resolution photos to your customized wedding album site with simple, registration-free access. Put cute little business cards on the tables for the guests to take with them to remind them where to upload the photos.

Tip 2 - Make a Video Wedding Invitation!

Times are a changing! We used to send out formal wedding invitations, now its a little more casual. Well, here is something I have never seen, a video wedding invite!

Video Invitation

Tip 3 - Make a Photo Guest Book

These are so fun and easy to make! Make a "photo only" book with lots of white space for the guests to sign. Each page can have 2-3 photos of the wedding couple, perhaps engagement pictures or baby pictures, along with white space to allow your guests to sign and make comments. On the table make sure to bring permanent ink pens for guests to use. This is a lovely wedding gift for your bride and groom that they will cherish for years to come. I would suggest making the photo book with Picaboo, my readers seem to purchase from them the most!

Latest coupon from Picaboo, it will change often!

Tip 4 - Make Wedding Posters for Decorations

Can you imagine 3 to 4 huge pictures of the bride or groom place around the reception area? Posters are easy to make and pretty cheap too. Turn your digital photos into posters! Large Poster only $8.28! I have also seen posters at Costo or Sams Club. You can also Print and frame your photos at Pictureframes.com. This is a lovely addition to any reception room!

Tip 5 - Photo Table

As the guests walk into the reception area, have a table display of photos. These can include baby photos, dating photos, engagement photos, and extended family photos. You can make cute labels for each photo so guests know who they are looking at. Include a vase with some beautiful flowers too!

Tip 6 - My Favorite Photo Wedding website

Shutterfly has a nice wedding site to help you. I like all the different things they offer.
Shutterfly - Relive your big day with personalized wedding Photo Books, prints, 4x8 Photo Cards, and Photo Gifts. Learn more.

Tip 7 - Personalize the Decorations

This isn't an ordinary event, so why have ordinary decorations? I love the idea of Personalized Wedding & Anniversary Gifts - Picture Frames, Albums, Champaign Flutes & More! Enjoy shopping at this site, its addicting!!

Tip 8 - Create an Easy Video of the Wedding for Free!!

You don't have the skills or equipment to do this? No worries! I have a website for you that I think you will love! Its called SmileBox! Visit Smilebox and create amazing greetings with your photos, videos, and music. Email or post them free. Click the link and check them out!

"Honeymooner Friendly Getaways"

Blurb Winner Tells Us

2012-02-07T16:00:00.000-08:00

I heard from the winner of our December Blurb book give away. She said she got her book and she LOVES it! She really liked how the book looks and was very excited to receive it!

Save 15% On Your Entire Blurb.com Order (Code 15OFFBLURB)
Congratulations again Breanna, and we will have another give away for our newsletter readers in the near future! Meanwhile, I put in a 15% off coupon in this newsletter for you!

M-Edge customized reader cover

2012-02-07T15:44:00.000-08:00

What can I do with a photo?

Looking for something special and easy to make? How about a customized Ipod, Nook, or Kindle cover? They are so cute!

What is MyEdge?

Tap into your inner artist with MyEdge, the first completely customizable jacket website for the iPad 1 & 2, Kindle (2nd and Latest Generations), and the original Nook!

With MyEdge, YOU are the designer. You get the unparalleled protection and functionality of an M-Edge product, while getting to design a unique accessory that shows the world your creativity and style.

The design process is simple!

Upload a personal photo or meaningful piece of art
Personalize your design by adding text, patterns, and colors
Choose your spine color
Preview design and add to cart!

MyEdge Jacket Details

MyEdge jackets are manufactured and assembled by hand in the USA. Your design is printed on canvas using a state-of-the-art digital printing process. Before assembly, the printed fabric is treated with Scotchgard^TM to help repel liquids and dirt. The jacket's interior is made from lush, cream-colored microsuede and the design features a 4-corner or molded mounting system that holds the device securely in place. The spine is made from microfiber leather in your choice of Black or Mocha Brown colors.

In addition, the MyEdge jackets for Kindle and Nook are compatible with the M-Edge e-Luminator booklight, for use when reading in low-light environments. All compatible jackets include either a sewn-in pocket or channel on the upper right hand side of the jacket for easy insertion of the e-Luminator booklight. Please note, the MyEdge Jacket for Kindle Fire is not compatible with the booklight. Don't forget to add an e-Luminator booklight to your cart during checkout!

A $76 Savings on Adobe PhotoShop/Premiere 10!!

2012-02-07T15:21:00.000-08:00

Adobe Photoshop/Elements 10 just $73.99 until February 10, 2012!

I can't believe this! I just bought Adobe PhotoShop Elements 10 from Costco for $79.99 and just installed it yesterday!! If only I had waited a day!!! I have a huge sale for you that I can't even use it! You even get the extra Premiere Elements 10 that I didn't get and I paid more! Whaaaa!

Get Adobe Photoshop/Premiere Elements 10 (Bundle Full) for $73.99 at Buy.com, a $76 Savings! Valid through 02/10/2012

This sale is for NEW software, the latest version, and includes both PhotoShop and Premiere Elements 10! This is a really great deal!! Man, I'm a little steamed right now!

Photoshop is one of the best editing tools for photos. This version is primarily for family memory keepers and photo enthusiasts. There are other versions for professionals, but this version is very robust with easy to use features!
What is Photoshop Elements and Adobe Premiere Elements? The newest verion of the #1 selling consumer photo and video editing software - helps you bring your photo and video collection to life in vibrant home movies and photo creations you'll enjoy for years to come. Award winning for 10 years!

SmileBooks Design Service

2012-02-03T14:48:00.000-08:00

If you don't have time to create your own photo book, then you can have the SmileBooks design service create the book for you. I tried their service this summer and got a very nice book. When you use their service they will first ask you a few questions to help design the book, such as your color scheme and design style. Then you will upload your photos to their web site. The designer will put the pictures together in a book, then provide you with a link to review your book. You don't pay anything until you purchase the book!

I worked with the designer until I got the book as I wanted it. I added text and asked them to make changes. The link they provide gives you access to a tool where you can add text and request changes. One issue I found was that the designer did not do any spell checking! Luckily I caught a few grammar errors just before the final book was printed! They were my errors that I had typed in, but the designer had not caught them.

The final product was very nice and I was very happy with it.

Fun $$ Opportunity

2012-02-03T14:01:00.000-08:00

Doing this blog has been alot of fun! Sometimes I come across some really great ideas that I like to pass along to my readers. This one doesn't have anything to do with photos.... but...I know my audience will like it! Who doesn't like a little extra cash while working from home$$??

Have you ever thought of hosting a trunk show? My friend did this and it was so much fun! All our girl friends came over and tried on these clothes and jewlery that she had displayed. Girl friends can always pick out the best clothes and jewlery for each other. One of my funnest things to do in college was to go shopping with my friend, she could always pick out the right clothes for me, things that maybe I wouldn't normally dare try, but they always were right!

As I read the Stella & Dot web site, this is a really fun opportunity!!

Stella & Dot Independent Stylist
Sign up as Stylist between 2/1 and 2/29 and receive the Nahla necklace in your starter kit ($79 value US, $84 Canada)

No time for a Trunk Show or want to get a head start? Share Look Books and Mini Look Books with your friends, colleagues and acquaintances. Or simply send them a link to the website. They’ll love the brief shopping break and you’ll love the benefits!

Valentines Coupons

2012-02-03T13:24:00.000-08:00

The coupons for Valentines Holiday are in full swing. These coupons are for Photo Books or photo gifts depending on the site you work with! Go to PhotoBookStory.com to see the latest posted coupons today! Some of them expire in the next few days!

Picaboo - 50% off
MyPublisher - up to 75% off
MixBook - 20% off
SmileBooks - 30% off
Shuttefly - 25% off

Inspire Your Child

2012-02-03T13:08:00.000-08:00

What can I do with a Photo?

Here is something easy and fun to make with your photos! Use one of your photos, add an inspirational quote, then hang it up in your child's room! Easy!!

You can print the picture on your own printer, or have it professionally printed and blown up using a service found at Costco or Sam's club.

Adobe offers a free service called Photo Shop Express Editor to edit your photos, which includes adding text! Yay! Try it out!

Another fun idea would be to make a poster from one of your photos too! Kids love posters! You can also print posters at PersonalizationMall.com plus other items like tiles, or collages. Just upload the photo, then add your text! Easy!

"Many of life's greatest pleasures come simply when in the service of others."

For the text you can use the idea that you see here, or you can put the text right over the top of the photo. Consider hand writing the text if you can do it! Or, you may need to use a product such as Photoshop Elements 10 to add the text to the photo before printing. Often though, the service you are using to print the photo will provide an option to add text on the photo!

Inspire your kids with inspirational photos

What ever you choose to do, put the picture in a place the kids will see often. Here is a picture of my boys bathroom (I was shocked that it was clean!! Yay!!). The picture is right there by the sink where they see it every day. I actually purchased this many years ago, but I could easily make it myself. I would probably just print the picture with the quote written in the white area of the snow. So cute!

If you have a daughter, you can take a picture of your church, temple, or synagogue. Shoot the picture up the steeple so it looks kind of like a castle. The quote you could put on the picture would be, "If this isn't your castle, maybe you are not my Prince".

To make it even easier for you, here are some great inspirational quotes:

Mac's top 20 Quotes ...

Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass...it's about learning to dance in the rain.~Vivian Greene
Sometimes our candle goes out, but is blown into flame by an encounter with another human being.~Albert Schweitzer
When we have done our best, we should wait the result in peace.~J. Lubbock
Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.~Henry Ford
Inch by inch, life's a cinch. Yard by yard, life is hard.~Unknown
To love what you do and feel that it matters – how could anything be more fun?~Katharine Graham
Every thought is a seed. If you plant crab apples, don't count on harvesting golden delicious.~Bill Meyer
You can have anything you want in life if you just help enough other people get what they want.~Zig Ziglar
Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.~Abraham Lincoln
A man wrapped up in himself makes a very small bundle.~Benjamin Franklin
We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.~Winston Churchill
What lies behind us, and what lies before us, are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.~Ralph Waldo Emerson
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.~Aristotle
You'll always miss 100% of the shots you don't take.~Wayne Gretsky
Progress always involves risks. You can't steal second base and keep your foot on first.~Frederick B. Wilcox
A journey of a thousand miles begins within a single step.~Chinese Proverb
The key is not to prioritize what's on the schedule, but to schedule your priorities.~Stephen Covey
All things are difficult before they are easy.~John Norley
Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there.~Will Rogers
Three grand essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love, and something to hope for...~Joseph Addison

New Coupons just posted

2012-01-16T14:18:00.000-08:00

I just updated the coupons on PhotoBookStory.com with new coupons!

MyPublisher - Free book for new customers!
SmileBooks - Save $25 dollars with code Deluxe121225!
MixBooks - 30% off!

January is a great time to for creating custom photo books at Mixbook with all the 2011 memories fresh in your mind. Until January 23rd, Save 30% off Photo Books ! Think of the great Year End Review books you can create, or get an early start on your special someone's Valentine's Day photo book before it's too late.

I also added a new section for Quick Photo Gifts, just in time for Valentines Day. I love the Photo Gifts at Personalizaton.com. because they are unique and very cute! Photo Gifts are easy to make and very quick. They make the perfect gift for someone who has "everything"! I put up some pictures and prices of some of my favorite photo gifts at PhotoBookstory.com. If you use the code SHOPEARLY you can get 15% off until February 8th, 2012!

MyPublisher books arrived!

2012-01-16T11:26:00.000-08:00

Book by MyPublisher

The flyer inside the box says, "Happiness Has Arrived!". I quite agree!

The MyPublisher book really looked great, not only because the pictures were bright and clear, but also because the book was sturdy and strong, definately not a whimpy book, it felt like a high quality book!

I took a picture so you can see how thick it is. I had 50 pages in my book, so it was quite thick. I noticed that the pages were even thicker than the original book that I had ordered about 5 years ago. I think because the paper was thicker than the original book. I really thought the original book had thick paper, but this is even thicker! I like thick glossy paper!

You are probably wondering why I ordered a book that I already have, its because I like to get copies for my kids. Sometimes it takes me a while to get the copies, but that is my goal. I noticed that MyPublisher had a really great coupon over the Holidays, and when I went to order the book, they offered me a free book. I just couldn't resist so I bought two! I paid about $50 per book which includes shipping and the coupon. That turns out to be about $1 per page, I feel good about that. Without a coupon, it would have cost about $2 per page! Now that I'm writing this, I'm really happy because the book is really a good quality and I am very happy with it!

The only issue that I had was that the text in my previously created book was missing! Well, kind of missing. As soon as I edited the text box, the text would reappear, so I had to edit each text box to ensure that the text was visible. This was a hassle, but not a show stopper. The problem occurred probably because an update to their software since I had originally created the book back in 2007.

I got a kick out of the box the book came in too! Even my son had a laugh! When you open the box, the lid underneath is bright red and in big letters it says "Ta Da!". I like that! Then if that wasn't enough, on the front of the box it says "I'm Here".

I think this really reflects well on the company, they obviously love their products and have pride in what they make. When you love what you do, you always do a great job, and that is what MyPublisher is doing, a great job!

FREE BOOK! I have some coupons for you! New customers Get a Free Hardcover Photo Book from Mypublisher!

For existing customers I have a coupon to Save up to 50% off Photo Books at MyPublisher – 25% off order over $50, 50% off orders over $100 . I hope you enjoy your books, let me know you like them!

Its a Great Time of Year for Family History

2012-01-06T17:31:00.000-08:00

Every year about this time I make a photo book of the previous year. I take all my photos for the year and compile them into one photo book for our family. I have found that after the Holidays I have a little more time to invest in doing our Family History. The yard work can't be done since I have snow on the ground (not this year though!), the football season for the kids is over, the kids are in school, and the days grow darker quicker.

Picture of my Kodak Gallery Book of my Grandparents

Plus, my memory of the previous year is fresh and clear. The first thing I do is create a folder called

""PhotoBook 2011". Then I go thru all the photos from the year, January thru December, and I copy the BEST photos into the folder. Its nice to have this folder created because I have used it for other projects also. I know in that folder I can find the best pictures of the year.

Next I will start creating my Photo Book using the pictures in that folder. Its so nice to have all the best pictures in one place! It makes for an easy and quick upload of the photos to create my book.

I am sure you are asking, which publisher do you like best? My answer, I don't know!! Before creating my book, I will quickly look thru the publishers I have listed on my website, http://www.photobookstory.com/ to see if they have changed their book creation process. These are my favorite publishers! Then I will pick the one I like best.

Go to PhotoBookStory.com for the latest coupons just before you buy!

Typically I will spend about 3 days making my photo book and they end up about 40 to 50 pages. I don't journal each picture, but I still do alot of journaling. I just can't stop! I don't want to stop because I'm having fun and I have a goal I want to complete! I know I can complete it, if I focus! When I am done, I am very happy!! This is a great use of my time!!!

I like to make my book using a time line. So I start in January and end in December. The only time I deviate from this is if I have an "orphan" picture that doesn't group well with others. But mostly I group events, vacations, or like pictures together in order of time. I think it looks best if you can minimally do a 2 page spread for your group of photos. When the book is open, you are looking at a group of photos for one event or vacation that group well together. Below is a stunning example of using two pages for just two photos. The other pictures of books show more examples of two page spreads, keeping the theme the same across the two pages.

Picaboo Book showing a two page spread

When I am done, I won't buy my book right away unless I have some super coupon to use. Instead, I will wait until I get a coupon I want, or until I have the money to spend! Since the publishers don't charge a fee, there is no charge for letting my book stay there. Sometimes I will even post the book for my extended family members to view or purchase. But, since its a book just about my own family, I'm not sure my extended family members actually purchase the book! But they like to look thru it.

Kids LOVE their books!

Before I buy the book, and after I take a rest, I will review the book for typos. Yes, I am not perfect. Yes, I find typos. Then I will purchase 1 book, maybe 2 if I have a great coupon. Later in the year, I will purchase another book, so eventually I have 3 books for each of my 3 children. They LOVE them!! These are older teenage boys, who I find reading these books quite often. When my oldest son came home from an extended time away, one of the first things he did was sit down and read each book. He wanted to reconnect and catch up on our family.

I don't edit the books for each child. Of course this could easily be done! I decided that later in life, each boy would enjoy seeing his brothers in the books. We are a FAMILY, so I keep us all together in one book!

When the kids get married and have kids, at some point I will give them their books.

Invest in a Good Camera

2012-01-04T16:35:00.001-08:00

You need a good camera to take good pictures. You need a great camera to take great pictures. If you want great pictures, you need an SLR camera.

I got a bonus from work, so I invested in a new SLR camera. My husband wasn't so sure the money was well spent until I showed him these photos! There is a big difference between a nice digital camera and an SLR camera. I'm not sure if you can see the difference in this blog, but on my computer screen the Powershot was grainey, and the Rebel was not. Both pictures were taken using the automatic mode of the camera. I love my Rebel camera!

A great website to find out about cameras is a http://www.dpreview.com/.

UPDATE: I reviewed this site and realized I had put up the same picture for both cameras below, so now I have corrected that! You can certainly see a difference between the two cameras!
Cannon Powershot S3 IS

Cannon EOS Rebel T1i

How to Display Photos on your TV

2012-01-04T16:34:00.000-08:00

What can I do with a photo?

My goal this Christmas was to get my photos onto my TV for easy viewing, so I did some exploring. I will tell you all about my discoveries. It all started when a friend of mine called me over to her house to see a really cool tool, Apple TV, she used to put her family videos and pictures onto her TV. It was very cool! Being somewhat of a nerd, she knew I would appreciate this demo and all her hard work! I loved it! She inspired me to do the same, but I knew I had some work ahead of me first.

First, my pc was somewhat of a mess so I cleaned it up first. Next, I didn't want to run out and buy Apple TV until I did a little research because I like to use what I have already!

Options for Displaying your Family Pictures on your TV

Apple TV - my friend used Apple TV. Her kids love to use it to watch movies, see their photos, and listen to music. Apple TV also has other applications to allow you to connect to internet sites like NetFlix, HuluPlus, and others which is fun to do. It works by using iTunes on your PC to display your family photos, videos, DVD movies, music and more.She connected the Apple TV to her TV, then using her WiFi home network, she was able to connect to her pc's iTunes. She had to set a switch in iTunes to allow sharing for the Apple TV to connect. It worked very nice! The only hitch I saw was that it didn't distinquish her family videos from her DVD store bought videos so she had to name the files in a way to allow this. For instance, you would name all your family videos starting with FV so they all list together in alphabetical order. It did not appear to have a browser to browse the internet.

PS3 - I discovered that our PS3 system did the same thing! Although it doesn't work with iTunes, instead it works with Windows Media on your PC. So using your PS3, your home wi-fi, and your files on your computer, you can display your pictures, music, and family videos on your TV using the PS3. Just like Apple TV, you need to turn on sharing for the Windows Media. Your PS3 will find your computer and connect. However, I noticed that the DVD movies that I had installed on my computer did not display on the PS3. This was a bummer. Also, on the PS3 its a little confusing because while you are in the photos section, it shows you your music and videos, but they are blank. Thats because I am in the photos section. If I move over to videos, then connect to my pc, my videos will display. The PS3 also came with several applications to view internet sites such as Netflix, HuluPlus and others. There is a way to browse the internet, but its very limited.

TV with Internet - many new PC's have wi-fi built in. To my disapointment, my Vizio TV did not have an app to connect to my computer, nor to an internet browser. I can only use the apps they provide to connect to the internet. However, they do have two apps that were interesting. The first was Facebook. Using my TV, I can connect to Facebook and display photos from my Facebook photo albums. During a party I used this feature to display family pictures, it was nice, but there was no music or anything. Another app is iMemories, and website where you can upload family videos. I didn't test this, but in theory you can use this app to view your family videos in iMemories from your TV.

Roku - another streaming playerl I saw at Best Buy while doing my research. This would connect to your TV and use data on your computer.

You can search the internet to find out more information about these products if you are interested. I really liked the Apple TV product using iTunes. We use iTunes quite a bit, so it would be an easy fit. But since I already have a PS3, I am going to use that for now. Next I want to put all my DVD's on my pc for easy viewing. I will write about that when I get into that project.

Perks to My Research

I discovered that our PS3 and our Vizio TV has apps to allow us to watch movies over the internet. So does our Wii, so I would imagine other gaming systems would them too. Over the Holidays, I signed up for the NetFlix month long free trial. We had a great time watching documentaries and older movies for free. We are now deciding if we want to keep our membership or not. You can't watch the newer movies on Netflix and that was a bummer. But we have other apps that allow us to rent a movie and watch it immediately over the internet. For Netflix ,and the other apps to work, you have to have a high speed internet and a home wi-fi network.

Another discovery was that Direct TV has a new app that allows you to watch TV on your pc, iTouch, or iPad. That is really cool. For this to work, your Direct TV has to be connected to your home wi-fi network, which ours is not because its so far away from our router. However, for $89 you can buy a wireless connection for your Direct TV receiver which will hook it up to your home wi-fi network. Then you can watch more shows and rent movies on your Direct TV from your internet. Cool! Maybe I can hook up the TV in the den to our computer and drop this receiver that I am paying for?! Very cool!

I also discovered that my 9 year old PC is getting a little out dated and a little slow. I guess I need to get a new PC one of these days! I love technology, I hate technology!!

Newsletter Announcement and Goals

2011-12-14T13:27:00.000-08:00

Dear PhotoBookStory friends,

I have completed transitioning the newsletter to this blog at Google. If you received a duplicate email confirmation, my apologies. To my surprise, I had to manually convert this newsletter list to the new Google tool, which means I had to cut and paste your email by hand into the new system! It took me a couple of days to complete this task! But the new tool has automated features that I really like that will make this newsletter so much better! The best feature I love is that the newsletter is online for you to read past issues.

These last two months I have sent out more newsletters that I had expected, but the vendors I work with were giving out so many different coupons that I wanted to pass them onto you quickly. I think things will start to slow down now. My goal is to do one newsletter per month. If you have any ideas or aticles to submit, please contact me!

This next year I will be answering the question, "what can I do with a photo?" I am going to explore different photo projects, editing tools, technical tools for displaying photos, using photos in family history projects, and of course, photo books. My goal is to inspire you, and myself, to make the best use of our photos for our familes. So if you are interested in this topic, please stay with me in this newsletter!

Thanks so much for your support and I hope you have a wonderful Holiday celebrating with your families!

-Darcy
http://www.photobookstory.com/
PhotoBookStory Newsletter

PS If you are signed up for the new newsletter, you will be receiving two copies of this email during this transition.

Free Shipping for Gifts

2011-12-12T18:41:00.000-08:00

I am still doing my Christmas shopping. I noticed a segment on Good Morning America where they compared shopping online vs in the store. Shopping online got better deals than buying in the store, that doesn't surprise me. I think you can find some great deals in the stores, especially as Christmas approaches, but right now the big deals are on line. I think you have until Dec 16th to still buy on line and get the package delivered on time. One store that I am checking out is BUY.com, they have everything, plus free shipping! I noticed their prices are below the retail stores too, so check it out! I hope you like them!

Free Shipping on Millions of Products. Always Free Shipping and Returns at Buy.com

I got my SmileBooks!

2011-12-12T17:53:00.000-08:00

I got my two 12x12 SmileBooks in the mail today! Now I have 3 copies, one for each of my kids. The books look great! The pictures are bright and clear. The cover is a hard cover with text on the spine, and feels nice and firm. The pages are shiney and thick!

I even got 50% off when they were running the big 50% off sale! I knew about the sale because I got their newsletter. Plus, this month I am getting an email each day from them with big sales during their Advent Calendar sale. Its been kind of fun! I hope I win something! I am very happy with my SmileBooks!

PS Today's Advent Calendar prize was a free 8x8 book!

Photo Gift Ideas

2011-12-12T16:59:00.000-08:00

Its still not too late to make a quick photo gift in time for Christmas! I love the photo gifts at PersonalizedMall.com , they are cute, reasonably priced, and very unique!

Some of the things that I like that all have personalized photos are:

Men's tie $22.95
Cookie Jar $39.95
Golf Balls $26.95
Apron AND Pot Holder $12.95
Cell Skin $19.95
Guitar Pick .56 cents!
T-Shirts $19.95

I think with any order, I would get the guitar picks, I have never seen those! Thats a conversation piece! If you don't play the guitar, I wonder if they could be used in a craft project? Plus I like the Golf Balls too...those make me laugh!

I have a coupon for $15 Off Orders of $75 o More with code PMALL15D which is valid until 12/31! If you order on December 16th, then I can get you free shipping! Free Shipping 12/16 Only on Orders of $75 or more with code PMALLSHIP75 but its only on that day!

One idea is that you don't have to use just a plain photo. You could jazz up a gift by using a patterned picture mixed in with the photos. You could take a picture of your tile floor, or tile kitchen back splash, then add that photo on the cookie jar to make it match your room decor. You get the idea!

The personalization is FREE, no extra charge for that. I think the prices are the same as I would get in the stores too! I just bought a tie that was $32 (without my sale discount at the store), so I know the tie is a great deal! Grandpa would love that, so would dad!!

The site is easy to use, just upload a photo and your gift is done! They also specialize in putting your name on gifts, so you don't even need a photo if you don't want!!

Another site with photo gifts is Kodak Gallery. They are having a big sale site wide until 12/14 for 25% off plus free shipping!

Christmas Cards - 50% off, free shipping, free mailing!

2011-12-12T15:46:00.000-08:00

Yes, its true, Christmas cards are on sale! I have a coupon from American Greetings for 50% off plus free Shipping, plus they will mail your cards for free! Wow! Is that real?
50% Off with code AGXMAS50, Plus Free Shipping

Are you scared about trying a new company? Don't be! Since you are only loading up one or two photos, its not a big deal to try another company. Their software is usually pretty easy and with a coupon you will get a great deal! I like to send out a Christmas card with a personal photo and a note attached.

Although this year, I think I'm being kind of a scrooge. I'm not excited about sending out cards, and all the manual labor that goes into them. I just don't like all the fuss involved in printing, labeling, stamping, licking, and mailing these cards! See, I'm a scrooge.

I wish this coupon was available when I picked up my cards. They are still sitting here on my desk. But I got a good deal. I love Costco, I have to admit it! I uploaded a photo to Costco, picked a simple holiday photo card. I paid about $21 for 75 cards, then another $40 for stamps! Some of my cards will go out to neighors with the neighbor gift. Now I will write up a note, and add it to the letter, plus I need to print out the address labels. Yes, I'm a scrooge this year.

Good Morning America Deals

2011-12-01T20:29:00.001-08:00

This morning, Good Morning America had some really great deals on Canvas pictures at 50% off, framed pictures, and a great deal from My Publisher for 72% off! Some of the deals only lasted one day, but others are going on for 3 days.

To see the GMA deals, click here!

I watch GMA every morning, I'm hooked on the show! The deals they are able to get are usually at big discounts. This weeks deals are titled "Unique Gift Items that you can Personalize". I thought you might be interested!!

I was able to get the deal for the My Publisher book. It was a little buggy, and it didn't cost me anything! All I had to do was give them my email address, then I got the coupon for the 72% off in my email. The coupon code also popped up the screen, so I wrote it down, but its the same code as in my email. My coupon is good until Dec 31, 2011. I got an error, then it asked me for my email again, and I got another coupon for buy 1 get 1 free coupon. So because it was buggy, I got two coupons!

I also downloaded their new version of the software, but I haven't time to try it out yet. When I do, I will write up a blog about that. All I have to do is create a book this month before the coupon expires. Then I will pay for my book on checkout.

Usually I don't blog so much, but there is just so much going on right now! I also have a coupon for My Publisher, but it changes all the time, so check it out at http://www.photobookstory.com/ !

Shutterfly has a 50% sale and Free Shipping!

2011-12-01T20:23:00.001-08:00

Shutterfly sent me an email that they are having a sale of 50% off photo books for a limited time. They aren't showing when this promotion will end, but it started 12/01. Cards and Calenders are also 40% off.

Up to 50% off Photo Books from Shutterfly.com. Promo starts 12.1 offer valid for a limited time only!

Free standard shipping on orders of $50 or more

Enter code SHIP50 at checkout

Limited time offer

I ordered a Smilebooks

2011-11-29T11:35:00.001-08:00

Yesterday I ordered two copies of a book I had on file from Smilebooks. I saved $92.50!! I ordered our 2008 book of our family activities. Its a big 12x12 deluxe book with 50 pages. Now I will have 3 copies of the book, one for each of my children!

This is an important book because my son graduated from High School that year, and we took a big family trip to Hawaii. So it was definately a year that my boys would want to remember. It turned out big and beautiful, so I am excited to get two more copies!!

I just got an email today that SmileBooks has extended their 50% off coupon until 12/01 midnight! You don't have to buy more than one copy to get the coupon, you can just buy one book and still get the coupon!

During the order process, you will be asked for a promotional code. Just enter CYBERSAVE to get the 50% discount. Its not posted on their website, so you have to get it here!

SmileBooks also has calendars and cards if you are interested in those. EVERYTHING is 50% off until 12/01 midnight!

P.S. If you sign up for their newsletter, you will get a coupon in your email for a FREE 8x8 26 page book! I did that and got a free book from them already.

Cyber Week deals for Christmas

2011-11-28T11:59:00.001-08:00

Updated from Yesterday
I updated this post since some of the offers below have been extended.

Current Discounts
Today is Cyber Monday, so we have tons of deals going on for just a short time. Its still not too late to make a photo book and get these great deals. All of these vendors have software that will automatically make a book for you and you can still edit the books to your own taste. The list below shows the vendors that I use to make my own photo books.

Please use the links below to get the discounts:

Kodak Gallery 50% off sale until 11/30. They have photo books, photo gifts, Calendars, cards.

Shutterfly 50% off and free shipping until 11/30. They have photo books, photo gifts, cards, scrapbook pages.

MixBook 50% off until 11/30. They have photo books, cards, calendars.

My Publisher 65% off site wide until 11/29. They have cards, photo books, calendars, scrapbook pages.

Blurb free shipping until 11/28, or 15% off . They have books, notebooks, calendars.

SmileBooks 50% off EXTENDED to 12/01 midnight. Use code Cybersave. They have photo books, calendars, cards.

Picaboo 40% off until 11/30. Use code Cranberry. They have photo books, calendars, and cards.

If you already have a book made, now is the time to buy additional copies so each child has their own copies, or give a copy to the grandparents, or to friends who traveled with you. You still have time to make a photo book with the automated software each vendor has.

Photo Book Ideas

Here are some fun ideas for christmas photo book gifts:

Grandma's Brag book - easy to make and quick. A small book that contains pictures of the grandkids to keep in her purse.
Dad's travel book - if mom or dad travel alot, a picture book of the family would be treasured on those long trips. No need for alot of text.
Recipe Family book - Make this for your siblings, inlaws or friends. Include your favorite recipes with pictures.
Baby book - Make a book of baby's first year! Her second year! Her third year...etc..! They grow up way to fast! Take a close of up those cute little hands too!
Family History book - kids LOVE these! Make a book of all the family activities for the year. Make these every year, and get a copy for each child.
Travel book - take the best pictures of your trip and put them in their own book. Kids love these too! Make a copy for your friends or family who travelled with you.

Photo Gifts are quick

Other Christmas ideas are to make a photo gifts. Photo gifts are quick to make since they only take one photo to make. Don't be afraid to use another vendor because your accounts are all free and you don't pay for anything until you are ready to purchase the product. Kodak Gallery ,Shutterfly and PersonalizedMall.com have the photo gifts available. I love these vendors and they all make quality products.

Here are some quick photo gift ideas, they all include photos on the products:

Apron - give to mom, dad, or grandparents.
Hot pads - grandma would love a picture of the grandkids on her hot pads.
Christmas Ornaments - babie's first christmas, family picture, or gift for grandparents
Mouse pad - take to work for mom or dad
Playing cards - for a family gift or grandparents
Puzzle - family gift, or as a gag gift for the kids to put together to find out where the next family trip is!
Blanket - give to grandpa for his daily naps, or put a picture of the football for your son's bed.
Pillow Case - send to your son at college with a picture of the family.
Golf Ball set - I have never seen this!!

Christmas Cards

Don't forget that Christmas cards are also on sale now too!

Other great deals!
Another vendor you might like is PersonalizedMall.com. Not only do they have photo gifts, but also all sorts of other gifts that are personalized with your name on it. Take a look around their web site. Use code PMALLSHIP75 for free shipping! Save $5 on Any Order of $25 or More with code PMALL5D at checkout!

Cyber Monday Specials from Cheap Carribean EXTENDED until Sunday night! I checked these out and they are really great prices. Plan your next trip today!

I am also seeing some awsome deals at BUY.com where they have all sorts of christmas gifts on sale! They dropped their video game prices and still have this tv on sale!
Cyber Monday Deal: Get a Panasonic Viera TC-P50ST30 50" 3D Plasma HDTV1080p 600Hz for $899.99 at Buy.com, a $399.96 Savings! Valid while supplies last.

Happy Shopping for Christmas!

-Darcy
See http://www.photobookstory.com/ for the latest coupons!

Cyber Monday coupons! Crazy!!!

2011-11-27T15:28:00.001-08:00

Crazy Coupons! 65% off MyPublisher, 50% off Shutterfly, Free Shipping for Blurb, 75% off at Kodak Gallery!! These sites make photo books, christmas cards, and gifts! A photo gift is the best gift for the person who already has everything! To get the coupons go to www.photobookstory.com.

Cute Photo Blocks Ormaments

2011-11-23T12:15:00.001-08:00

Christmas Ornament Blocks

These are so cute! They aren't too hard to make either. If you go to Storiesbyme.com you can find all the details about how to make them and also order them for yourself. Basically you select your photos, format them using their wizard on their web site, then print them with a laser printer. Remember you can send a file to Kinkos using email, so thats a nice to feature to have the print out ready and waiting for you. It can't be printed on photo paper, just regular paper.

You then sand the blocks, glue the pictures on, then sand the blocks. The finishing touch is a little stain here and there to give them some age, and then add the ribbon.

To make 10 blocks it took me about 2 hours of fast and furious work!! I just wanted to get it done!

Another idea would be to make them in 3.25 x 3.25 blocks with 5 pictures. For the 6th picture glue on some decorative paper for Christmas or Thanksgiving. You can some for Chirstmas and some for Thanksgiving. To make the display all Thanksgiving just flip the Thanksgiving paper top up and put the ones with the Christmas paper bottom down (hidden). When Christmas comes, just flip them over so only the Christmas paper shows! I might have to make these!