A memory book for Mum or Dad, without doing it all yourself
A memory book for a parent is a keepsake filled with photographs and stories from the people who know them best. With Lovingly Kept, you start with one photograph and send private links to your brothers, sisters and the rest of the family. Each person adds what they remember, and it becomes one book.
Most memory books are made by one person, late at night, chasing everyone else for photographs. Lovingly Kept shares the work. You start the book, and everyone else adds their part.
How do you make a memory book for a parent with the whole family?
- Start with one photograph. Their wedding day, the first house, the car they saved for. Add a few lines about what you remember.
- Send private invite links. Each brother, sister, aunt or old friend gets their own link. There is no app to download and no account to make.
- Everyone adds their memory. When it suits them, from their own phone: a few lines, a photograph or a voice note.
- Download the book. The memories are laid out as an 8 by 8 inch book, ready to share as a PDF or print at home.
No weekly questions to keep up with
Some memory book services send your parent a question every week for a year. That suits some people. Others find it feels like homework. With Lovingly Kept there is nothing to answer every Sunday. Each person adds a memory when it suits them, and the book can come together as quickly as the family replies.
Mum or Dad can add their own memories too
Send them their own invite link and they can add their side of the story, in writing or as a voice note. If typing is hard, sit with them, record them telling a story on your phone and add it to the book. A code on the page plays it back.
For a birthday, a retirement or just because
A 70th birthday, a retirement, a wedding anniversary, Mother's Day or Father's Day. Or simply because you want their stories kept while you can still ask.
Who to ask
- Who has the photographs? Often an aunt, or whoever cleared the loft.
- Who remembers the early years: the first house, the first car, the wedding?
- Who should record a voice note, so their voice is in the book?
- Which old friends knew them before the family did?
Take a moment to consider which of these people you would most like to hear from. Invite them first.
Frequently asked questions
How do I make a memory book for my mum or dad without them knowing?
Start the book yourself and send invite links only to the family members you choose. Your parent will not see anything unless you send them a link. When it is ready, download the PDF and give it to them, or print it at home.
Do my brothers and sisters need an account?
No. They open the link you send and add their memory in the browser, on a phone or computer. There is nothing to download and no password to remember.
How much does a memory book for a parent cost?
Lovingly Kept is free during early access. Each project is deleted 14 days after it is started, and you can add 14 more days once, so please download your book as a PDF before then. The PDF is yours to keep, but the voice codes inside it stop working when the project is deleted. Printed hardcover books are coming soon.
Start with one photograph
A memory book for Mum or Dad does not need to be finished in one sitting. Choose one photograph today, write two lines about it, and send one invite link to the brother, sister or old friend who was there.
More from the blog
Family and dementia
Keeping the family's memories when a parent has dementia
Why I started Lovingly Kept, and how to gather the family's stories while they are still close.
Memory book ideas
A memory book for grandparents, made by the whole family
How children and grandchildren each add a photograph, a memory or a voice note to one book.