Valentine's scrapbook: a monthly book and a page plan
Make a Valentine's scrapbook from the months or moments you want to keep. Set the page budget, choose photos and ordinary details, then leave room for your own writing and any additions made together.
Choose the date range before the photos: the past year, the time since you met or a handful of days you both want to remember.
One possible plan is 16 interior pages: 12 monthly pages, two opening pages and two closing pages. Count covers separately unless the format says otherwise.
Make the memory book together
Invite people to send photos and their own words, then choose what goes in the book.
Questions to answer before you write
- What did we do last 14 February, and where?
- Which ordinary evening this year would you happily repeat?
- What did they do this year that you noticed and never mentioned?
- Which photo of them did they not know you took?
- What did we cook or order most often?
- Where did we go for the first time this year?
- What did we disagree about and laugh about later?
- What did they start this year?
- Which message from them this year did you keep?
- What would you like to do together before next February?
Fix the size first
Try a small format with a paper dummy. Include a sample photo and handwritten caption so you can judge the space before choosing the number of pictures per page.
If you have been together less than a year, use the months you have and give the extra pages to the first few weeks.
An example fortnight schedule
Use this as a planning example. Check available time and any print schedule first, then keep a simpler cover or fewer photo choices if the deadline is close.
- Days 1 to 3: gather photos and keepsakes from the twelve months.
- Days 4 to 5: choose one photo per month.
- Days 6 to 9: lay out the pages.
- Days 10 to 11: write the words for each month.
- Day 12: print at home. A print service needs ordering earlier; check its delivery time on day 1.
- Days 13 to 14: check it, finish the cover, wrap it.
Choose ordinary weeks, not only the big ones
A month with a holiday is easy. For the others, use a photo from an ordinary evening: a meal you cook often, the walk you always take, a takeaway menu stuck to the fridge.
Keep it between the two of you
Screenshots of messages carry names, phone numbers and other people's words. Crop to your own lines, or write the gist yourself, and keep friends' photos out unless they agree.
Keep a shared copy separate from the private edition. Review message screenshots for other people's words and account details even when the book is meant as a surprise.
Pages to make
Where the year started
A photo from last Valentine's Day, or the nearest date you have, with the receipt, ticket or menu from it laid beside the picture.
Four ordinary weeknights
Four small photos of everyday evenings from different months in a grid: the sofa, the kitchen, the walk home, the board game. A month label under each.
A first this year
One large photo of a place you went for the first time together, with the date and a few lines of your own on what you remember about the day.
Next February
The last page: one recent photo and empty lines for both of you to fill on the day the book is given.
Questions
How many pages should a Valentine's scrapbook have?
One example is 16 interior pages: 12 months plus two opening and two closing pages, with covers counted separately. Use fewer pages if your chosen moments need less space.
Can I make a Valentine's scrapbook in a week?
A small digital or handmade book may fit a week if the photos are ready. Make a trial spread first; for outside printing, confirm the proof and delivery schedule before relying on it.
What if we have only been together a few months?
Use weeks instead of months: a page for each week you have photos from, starting with the first time you met.