By a Pro: 'Through the Years' custom photo guest book

the idea

Make a custom photo guest book showing the guest of honor ‘through the years’ to create a personalized keepsake

'Through the Years' custom photo birthday party guestbook showing the birthday girl at different ages

'Through the Years' custom photo anniversary party guestbook showing the couple at different ages

the how

Choose 3 photos of the guest of honor at different stages of their life e.g as a baby, teenager, and present day
Have any old printed photos restored and/or transferred to digital format (see how below)
Combine with a more recent digital photo of them now
Collect together and upload to a custom cover for a traditional guestbook
Changes colors and/or text is required
Display alongside a ‘Please Sign the Guestbook’ sign for party-goers to write in
Alternatively, if you don’t access to old photos, check out the other guest book options below

'Through the Years' custom photo graduation party guestbook showing the graduate at different ages

custom photo birthday party guest book with a photo of the 85th birthday boy on the cover

the why

This Idea

Contributory; sharing a memory, anecdote, photograph, or well wishes allows guests to participate in something meaningful
Personal; celebrates the guest of honor and your relationship with them
Feel good; makes the guest of honor feel special, loved, and appreciated
Touching; gives people the opportunity to articulate things they might think, but rarely say
Keepsake; creates tangible memories for the guest of honor to revisit in future
Thoughtful; shows you’ve made an effort to create something special for the guest of honor
Entertaining; guests will enjoy reading what others have written
Custom photo; opportunity to show the guest of honor when they were younger or at different ages ‘through the years’
Funny; guests may not have seen funny or embarrassing old photos of the guest of honor
Surprise; a great way to surprise the guest of honor

Ashley is Twenty One custom birthday guest book

wood cover custom birthday party guest book with the number 16 cut out

the why

party activities

Engagement; essential for creating atmosphere and ensuring people have a good time
Circulation; activities encourage circulation, which raise energy levels
Atmosphere; keeping guests moving, exploring, and discovering creates a lively atmosphere
Mingling; activities help prevent guests clustering in corners with people they came with
Flow; giving guests things to engage with diffuses crowds, prevents bottlenecks, and helps flow
Introductions; allows guests who arrive alone or don’t know many people to connect with others
Ice-breaker; arrival activities let guests ease in gently before walking into a room full of people
Conversation-starters; funny, creative, or quirky activities give guests things to talk about
Interactive; allows guests to participate so everybody feels included
Bonding; a shared experience creates a bond and unites different groups as one; people that are all important to the guest of honor
Entertainment; activities keep guests entertained and prevents boredom or leaving early
Distraction; gives guests an excuse to change the subject or extract themselves from awkward conversations
Memorable; gives guests something to talk about, photograph, share, and remember
Experiential; guests leave feeling as though they’ve had an experience

Doug Smith The Man, The Myth, The Legend custom party guest book

wood cover custom guest book with names and date on the cover

ADVICE FROM A PRO

Matt’s tip

“Old printed photos can be transferred to a digital format very inexpensively nowadays ($20-$30 for 100 photos, link below) so it’s a great opportunity to preserve them for years to come.

Similarly, old photos that are fading, discolored, or damaged can often be restored at the same time (see link below).

If you don’t have access to old photos of the guest of honor, you can opt for a classic guest book customized with their name or age (see links below).”