**Chatbooks provided me with a credit to try their photo books. I used it toward a four-book annual subscription. This post shares my honest experience and opinions. Clicking the link does not mean that you will pay more for the item; I only make a tiny commission if you make a purchase. Thank you so much! I really appreciate it when you support the Krafty Planner.
I've been wanting to try Chatbooks for years. Actually, I've wanted to start making photo books of my grandsons since they were babies!
I take pictures of all sorts of things because I want to remember these moments. But let's be honest… how many pictures do we take that end up sitting on our phones or computers, never to be looked at again? I know I have plenty!
One of my goals has been to go back and make a book for each year since the boys were born. Just imagine having a whole collection of books filled with family memories, all lined up neatly on a shelf. I love that idea! It would be so much easier to store than big, bulky photo albums, and I wouldn't have to scroll through thousands of pictures to find something.
And maybe I'm old school, but I love looking at actual photographs. There's just something about holding a book, turning the pages, and coming across a favorite memory that you don't get from looking at pictures on a device.
So when I had the opportunity to try Chatbooks, I decided it was finally time to give it a go!
My First Chatbooks Photo Book
Chatbooks offered me the chance to try their photo books, and I decided to put that toward a subscription for four books a year. I chose annual billing, and the four-book subscription came to $54 before tax.
Not bad! Four photo books to fill with family memories, and I finally got started on something I've been wanting to do for years.
For my first book, I chose a few of my favorite photos from 2026. I wanted to see how everything would come together in a printed book before I tried different formats.
Here are a few peeks inside my first book!
A Few of My Favorite Pages
I love this photo of my daughter and the boys on the cover. It's such a nice way to start the book, and having a different cover for each year would make the whole collection even more special.
This spread has two very different family moments. On one side, one of my grandsons is showing off Zurg from the Buzz Lightyear movie. On the other, the boys are hugging Nana.
These are the kinds of pictures I want to keep. Some are just silly, fun little moments, and others are the ones you know you'll want to look back on years from now.
And then there are the everyday surprises! Like these two deer hanging out in my yard. They're so sweet, and I love watching the babies grow over the summer. I never know when they'll show up, so of course I have to take pictures!
These pages include one of the boys showing me two of the toys he got for his birthday, along with another picture of the boys hugging. Don't you love the Minecraft jammies? 😂
Looking through these pages reminds me that a photo book doesn't have to be filled with holidays and special occasions. The everyday, ordinary moments are part of the story, too.
My Plan for Future Photo Books
Now that I've finally gotten started, I'm already thinking about all the pictures I'd love to include in future books.
My daughter has been sending me photos for the next one, and I'm planning to do a better job of taking pictures myself. If I'm serious about this project, I need to get into the habit of collecting those memories and organizing the images as I go instead of putting it off for who knows how long!
I also need to go back through the older photos. There are years of memories waiting for me, and I'd love to turn them into books the boys can enjoy when they're older.
My goal is to have a collection of books that are easy to store, easy to pull off the shelf, and fun to look through together. No giant photo albums taking up loads of room, and no scrolling through a phone trying to find that one picture from 8 years ago.
Just real photographs in books. I think that's pretty special.
Is Chatbooks Worth Trying?
So, what do I think of my first Chatbooks book? I'm honestly really impressed!
First, the book itself is beautiful. I love the soft, velvety feel of the cover. It has such a nice finish, and the photos look amazing! The picture quality is better than I expected, and the pages have a lovely feel to them.
One little thing I wasn't expecting to appreciate so much is that the photos don't seem to show fingerprints the way regular photographs do. You know how you pick up a photo and immediately leave fingerprints all over it? lol. That's something I really like about these pages!
The whole process was easy, too. Adding my photos, arranging the pages, and sending everything to print was pretty straightforward. And my book arrived within a week! Of course, shipping times will depend on where you live, so your experience may be different. 😊
I'm really happy with how my first book turned out. It's one thing to have hundreds (okay, probably thousands!) of pictures stored on a phone or computer, but it's another thing entirely to have them printed in a beautiful book you can pick up and enjoy. My Nana is especially loving being able to hold the photos in her hand instead of looking at them on a screen.
Now I'm even more excited to work on the next one and start going through all those older pictures. I can already picture a whole shelf filled with family photo books, one for every year. I think that's going to be pretty special!
Want to Give Chatbooks a Try?
If you've been thinking about making photo books of your own, here's a little bonus!
You can use my link to get $15 off your first Chatbooks order (that's like getting your first book free!).
👉 GET $15 OFF YOUR FIRST CHATBOOK HERE
It's a nice little excuse to finally get those pictures off your phone and into a book you'll actually enjoy looking through! 💗
Have you used Chatbooks for your family photos? Do you prefer printed photos, or do you keep most of your memories digitally? I'd love to hear what you do with all those pictures we take!
Happy memory keeping!
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Bring structure and a little joy to your everyday planning with the 2027 Everything Planner.
Dated from January through December 2027, this full-size planner (8.5" × 11") is designed to help you organize your schedule, set meaningful goals, and keep track of the things that matter most—all while making planning something you’ll actually enjoy.
Thoughtfully designed and handmade in my studio in Seneca Falls, New York, every planner is printed on premium paper, bound with a durable, clear coil, and finished with a soft-touch matte floral cover. It lays flat for easy writing and is ready to use right out of the package.
What's Inside
2027 & 2028 Year-at-a-Glance Calendars
Yearly Goal Planning Pages
Books to Read List
My Dreams List
Level 10 Life Worksheets
Yearly Reflection Pages
Monthly Cover Pages
Two-Page Monthly Calendars
Monthly Planning & Goal Pages
Monthly Tasks & Habit Tracker
Dated Weekly Planning Pages
Monthly Review & Notes Pages
End-of-Year Review
Product Details
Size: 8.5" × 11"
256 premium printed pages
Soft-touch matte laminated cover
Durable clear coil binding
Lays flat while writing
Handmade in Seneca Falls, New York
Why You'll Love It
The Everything Planner was created to be more than just a calendar. It's a place to organize your schedule, capture ideas, work toward your goals, and create routines that help you build an intentional life.
The thoughtfully designed layouts give you plenty of room to plan in a way that works for you.
Whether you're organizing work, school, family life, or personal goals, this planner is designed to help you P.L.A.N. Everything:
Productivity • Lifestyle • Accountability • New Beginnings
Each planner is carefully printed, assembled, and packaged by hand before being shipped directly to you.
Learn how I'm turning family photos into beautiful keepsakes with Chatbooks. See my first book, how easy it was to create, and why I love printed memories.