Photo & Story Treasures: April 2024

A friend of mine just held the most creative bridal shower that gave her daughter such a unique gift: her wedding photos preserved for generations to come!

My friend's ideas were brilliant, and I'm so excited to share with you what she did.

Her daughter's bridal shower was photo themed. The event itself was a digital Make & Take. Guests brought laptops and created photo gifts at the Forever website--created digitally and then ordered with professional publishing.

And here's the trick: The bride-to-be used her referral link for her own Forever account, which matters for a very important reason.

When someone opens their new Forever account using your referral link, you get a $20 coupon as a thanks for referring them. AND they get a $20 coupon, too!

I know there's a lot going on here, so let's get back to the bridal shower itself so I can explain how this whole awesome idea works.

NOTE: I am a Forever affiliate (a decision I made because I love it so much), so you will find affiliate links in this post, from which I earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you.

The Photo-Themed Bridal Shower

PART 1

Guests arrive to the photo-themed bridal shower. Hugs are exchanged and goodies are eaten. And then, instead of bridal shower games, everyone sits down with their individual laptops. Guests are given the bride's referral link and open their new Forever accounts. (Anyone who is already a Forever user can still participate but won't receive a coupon.)

Next, everyone creates chooses a photo item to create. This part of the bridal shower can go one of two ways.

Option 1: Let guests create something on their own, kind of like a parting thank-you gift that will be delivered to their homes in a week or two. Maybe a mug or blanket or ornament. Maybe a canvas for the wall. Maybe a steel water bottle or a calendar.

Option 2: Let the guests create something for the bride! If you go this route, it's best for the bride to come with a wish list (complete with prices; check current sale prices) and photos she would like used in the projects. Maybe the couple would like a gallery-wrapped canvas like this

or a set of cork-backed coasters like this

Because everyone will be creating these top-quality items using a free, simple software platform right at the Forever website called Design & Print, there's nothing complicated about it. There's nothing to download or install--you just need an internet connection.

The learning curve for Design & Print is almost a straight line. You can see how easy it is to use at this video tutorial about making canvases or this one about making yearbooks.

Once everyone has created their photo items, they need to check their emails and claim their new account coupons. Guests can use those coupons to order the items they've just created, paying any difference at checkout. Then they can order their items.

And that's when the coupons start rolling in for the bride. A Forever $20 referral thanks coupon is generated once the person who opened their new account places an order of at least 1 cent, after their own welcome coupons were applied.

PART 2

Maybe the bride-to-be just got some gifts that her bridal shower attendees made for her, but maybe it was just a fun party where people made cards, calendars, water bottles, or books for themselves. Either way, every order placed (or at least 1 cent) generated a $20 coupon for the bride.

So, if--let's say--12 guests attend the bridal shower (and use the bride's referral link to open a new Forever account and spend at least $0.01 on the order), the bride will receive $240 in referral rewards coupons. She has 60 days to use the coupons, and there's a lot she can do with them! Keep reading to see options for the bride-to-be to use the coupons.

By the way, an item on the bride's wish list could also be a Forever gift certificate. Gift certificates are available in increments from $5 - $1000. The bride would receive an email like this:

Before I get to the two big things the bride can use all her gift certificates for, let's talk about the big thing you're probably wondering.

So, how can I make this happen?

You may be wondering how you can pull off such a fun idea! Whether you're a bride or someone who would throw the bridal shower, don't worry. I'm the best free resource you'll ever have! I can help with the bridal shower in any way you need, from the logistics of how to give everyone the referral link at the shower to how to guide guests through creating a photo project.

I've hosted too many events to count, so trust me when I tell you I can help you with all the set-up. I could even be on speed dial (or Zoom!) during the shower if you have questions. Contact me with any questions you have now. Because this is an amazing bridal shower idea!

How to Use the Coupons from the Bridal Shower: Preserving Photos in Print and/or Digitally

You won't be surprised when I tell you that wedding photos and videos should be preserved with care. (Not unlike the rest of our photos, truth be told.)

What most people don't know is that there are two ways to preserve photos. One is digitally, and the other is in print. In fact, photo experts always suggest print as one of the best ways to preserve photos and memories.

So the bride can use her Forever coupons (and gift certificates) for either or both. (Reason #276 why Forever is the best at memory-keeping.) Anyway, I'll tell you a little about both.

Print Photo Preservation with Forever

WHY YOU WANT IT: Forever uses the highest-in-the-industry binding so pages never yellow and fall out (unlike most companies who use glue in the bindings) as well as archival-quality ink and papers. Forever print products come with a 100% satisfaction guarantee. When you create books with Forever, you'll also have a digital version (a PDF) saved in your account as well.

With a handful of guests, the bride is likely to get her wedding book (or guest sign in book) free using the Forever referral coupons she gets.

While it's true that photo professionals recommend saving your photos BOTH digitally and in print, it is equally true that there's just nothing like having a tactile book of your memories to physically hold in your hands.

Print is easily accessible (has your laptop or phone ever run out of battery or had a cracked screen?) and is recommended by professionals because photos printed with high quality can last upwards of 200 years. Printed photos also have the benefit of space to write, and writing memories that go with your photos truly brings the photos to life. You get to tell your story!

It's the story that gives your photos meaning!

You could certainly use Artisan, Forever's amazing digital scrapbooking software (my fave!!) for its creativity and flexibility, but I find that people who want to get their books done in a snap while still getting top quality really love the Design & Print templates and software.

You can see how easy it is right here:

Digital Photo Preservation with Forever

WHY YOU WANT IT: Just like not all photo printing products are created equal, not all digital photo storage is created equal, either. It really makes a big difference which services you trust your photos to.

These are some hints on why the bride would want to use Forever for those precious photos and videos from the wedding--and from a lifetime together moving forward.

And this article covers why it's so very important to know what you're signing up for with digital photo storage.

And it's not just about storing your photos. It's about being able to easily share them, too. There are so many perks to Forever Storage.

In fact, Forever Storage is very unusual, which makes it a pretty big deal. It's the safest place for your wedding photos and videos. Here are a handful of the benefits:

You can save photo files, video files, audio files, and PDFs in your Forever Storage. (If you don't think you have audio files, think about special voicemails you'd love to keep forever! Learn how to save voicemails here. PDFs include your print projects in digital form, which makes them both shareable digitally and re-printable.)
Anything saved in your Forever Storage is guaranteed for your lifetime plus 100 years, and you can appoint an administrator to your account to make sure your loved ones always have access to your photos.
It's storage you own. You don't "rent" it by paying a monthly fee like many other digital cloud services. Because of this, Forever can't discontinue their services like other companies reserve rights to. In addition, it's something you can pass down to another generation without any maintenance fees.
Forever retains no rights to your photos, will not/cannot sell or delete them, will not mine your data. (This is not true for the majority of digital cloud photo services, including Google.)
Forever triple-backs up everything in your Forever Storage using bank-encrypted security and employs a security team to continually monitor its safety. (My photos are much safer in my Forever Storage than they are on my computer at my house!)
Organization in your Forever Storage is easy (see this short tutorial video), and you can set albums to be visible in three settings: Private, Friends & Family, and Public. For Friends & Family, you need to "friend," to borrow Facebook verbiage, other Forever users you know who you would like to be able to see your albums.
You can get the free Forever app for easy photo uploading from your phone or tablet (and even choose the auto-sync option if you want).

You can even add a description and tag photos in Forever Storage, too! You can see here my description and the tags I've added to this photo.

The bride can use the $20 coupons and/or the gift certificates to buy Forever Storage! Choose 10 GB, 25 GB, 100 GB, or even a TB!

Place the storage package you wish to purchase in your cart, and then enter all the coupons in the "use a coupon or promotional code" field. Click the "Deals" tab along the top to see the current sale price on Storage, and copy and paste the code in this same field as well. If you have gift certificates, use those codes in the "use a gift certificate" field.

Forever Club is optional but would give you an additional savings on both digital photo storage and print photo storage (your wedding album book) of 5% on top of any other current sales. Learn more about it at that link.

Wouldn't this make a creative, fun, and unforgettable bridal shower? It's an important and useful way to throw a bridal shower, but also so enjoyable to see, share, and preserve precious photos and memories.

A huge thank you to Carol and to Hunny & the Bee (the bride and groom) for sharing this absolutely brilliant idea!

Using all the perks and benefits of Forever to preserve a wedding couple's photos and memories for them for free (or at least discounted), while giving guests a chance to enjoy their own shower-made photo goodie, is a win-win! Let me help you do it for that special bride you know (or are)! :)