As you can see, I've been blurbing. If you aren't a person who blurbs, you really need to go over to Blurb.com to see what they can do for you. I heart Blurb. I heart Blurb much.
So, I've been working on the guest book. Narrowing down the engagement pictures made me realize that I hadn't really gone through the high res cd that the Roots sent us the week after we got back, so I pulled all the photos and put them into the BookSmart software I downloaded from Blurb and away I went. My eyes are still iffy (can you believe it) but Jed gave me a very useful tip, which is that I need to be taking more breaks while working at the computer. So, in ten minute spurts, I put together a guest book. That's the one that's on top.
The second one came into being when my mom asked if she should buy a copy of the guest book so that she'd have the engagement pictures and I told her that I'd left a lot of white space in the first one for people to sign. So, I put together the second book (the one with the title) and took out a lot of the white space. There's still space, but it's more aesthetic space now than fill-in-the-blank space. This is sort of what one would think of as an album for the parents. I actually thought about making it exclusive so that only I could buy them and then giving it to the parents as a wedding present, but I feel stupid giving anyone 100 pictures of me and Kyle. I don't care if we are their offspring. Plus, you know, grandma might want one, etc.
Anyway, here's the thing - I finished the gallery album version and then wasn't sure which one I liked better. The first has a lot of space...maybe even too much space. I mean, people aren't going to be writing me letters, most likely. We're talking A LOT of space. How much space exactly? Well, each of these books are 80 pages. EIGHTY pages. Seem like overkill? The problem was that when I used all of the photos I knew I wanted in print, I was at 42 pages and the pricing for Blurb books is by 40 page increments, with 1-40 being cheaper than 41-80. I could have taken out two pages, but I figured I might as well keep going since it wasn't that much more for 40+. I didn't think I'd be able to get to 80, but it turns out that I actually had that many great photos.
So, I only really need one 80 page book to use as a guest book. I have to make the decision between using the one with all the white space or using the gallery one and having people use whatever is available. I also have to choose between covers...
***SPECIAL NOTE FOR ANYONE BUYING ANYTHING FROM BLURB: here's a promotion code that will get you 10% off - "brookbrides"***
UPDATE: Not only did I figure out how to give you guys the full preview, Kyle came home early and made a decision. He liked the gallery album better, cover and all, so we went ahead and ordered it. That code saved me about five bucks, so the whole thing with shipping was around $50 because we got the image wrap with the pictures printed right on the hard covers. If we'd gotten the paperback it would have been around $30, but I was worried it would fall apart between receptions.
So, without further ado, here's our guest book:
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5 comments:
We got a big book for our wedding too, and hardly used it. Most people are just going to write their name so you knew they were there, and maybe a quick note. Keep the book short! I love the pictures too!
Thanks, Jen! Yeah, I figured we might not get people who were writing us letters in the guest book. With the gallery version, I figure the white space will look intentional instead of like the yearbook of that kid in high school that nobody knew.
Carly, one more time, I have to tell you that your pics are beutiful... my internet is too slow so I cant see all the pics because takes forever to download it, but my vote is for the one in front of the castle huging and you are doing a funny face!jajaja but probably you wont like for the invitation.. so my second favorite is the same but kissing... once again.. I love your pics
Carly,
Have you received the book(s) yet? I am interested to know how you feel about the quality of it once its in your hands. I just got a price list from my photographer and photobooks start at $500. Yowsers.
By the way, I love your blog. I'm not a Disney bride, but I am a fellow CP alum.
Hi Megan,
Yep, I got it about a week after this post went up. My initial reaction was that it was smaller than I thought, but it's about the size of a sheet of printer paper. If I had thought about the dimensions, I would have realized that and I might have gone for a bigger version. The quality is great, though, and I actually only spent about 33 bucks on it with the coupons and all. I completely recommend it!!!
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