The book is on your shelf. The photos are on your phone. Getting one into the other is easier than it sounds — once you know what you're working with.

This is the practical guide: what to write with, how to get your photos printed and sized correctly for each page, and what to have on hand before you sit down.

What to Write With

The right pen matters more than it sounds. Memory books are keepsakes meant to last decades — the ink should too. A few tested options:

LePen — The most popular choice. Fine tip, smooth ink flow, no bleed-through on the book's heavyweight paper. Available in black and a full range of colors if you want to vary by section. Widely available at craft stores and online.

Faber-Castell Pitt Artist Pens — A step up in line quality. Archival, acid-free ink that won't fade or shift color over time. These are what illustrators use. Worth the small upgrade for a book meant to outlast a generation.

Papermate Flair — A slightly broader felt tip with a looser feel. Good choice if your handwriting is naturally expressive and you prefer a pen that doesn't require much precision.

One thing to avoid: standard ballpoint pens. They press-mark the page beneath, skip on textured paper, and the ink tends to fade. For a book you're keeping, it's worth the upgrade.

Getting Your Photos Sized and Printed

Lucy Darling memory books have dedicated photo spaces throughout — monthly milestone spreads, birth stats pages, first holidays, birthday pages. Getting photos sized correctly for each space used to require some math. It no longer does.

The Memory Book Companion App (free, no download required) is built specifically for Lucy Darling books. Here's how it works:

Open it at lucydarling.com/pages/memory-book-companion-app, select your book theme, and upload your photos. The app maps every photo space in your specific book, crops and sizes each image to exact print dimensions automatically, and generates print-ready files you can download immediately.

From there: take the files to any photo lab (CVS, Walgreens, an online print service like Mpix or Printique — your choice) or print at home if you have a photo printer. The files are already sized. You just print and place.

If you prefer to size photos manually without the app: most monthly milestone photo slots are 4" × 4", and most other photo spaces throughout the book are 3" × 3". Square prints at those dimensions fit cleanly into their designated spaces.

Adhering Photos to Pages

The book's heavyweight pages hold photos well. The right adhesive keeps them flat, clear, and permanent — and won't damage the photo or the page over time.

Dual Tip Glue Pen (Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L) — The most reliable option for printed photos. Precision tip for edges, brush tip for full coverage. Dries clear, won't buckle or wrinkle the photo or the page beneath it.

Sakura Quickie Glue Pen — Acid-free, odor-free, precise application. A solid alternative if you prefer a single-tip pen with clean dispensing.

Photo corners — The no-adhesive option. They hold photos securely without anything touching the back of the print, and let you reposition if the placement isn't exactly right. EasyStick Photo Corners are a reliable choice and are acid-free.

Avoid standard glue sticks for photos. They tend to create bumps under the print and can lift at the edges over time.

Monthly Milestone Photo Props

If you're taking monthly milestone photos — a consistent shot each month to document the growth — having the right prop makes the whole 12-month series work as a collection when you look at it together.

There are two purpose-built options:

Milestone Pennants — Sets of 12 mini pennant flags, one for each month. Designed to be propped beside your baby in a flat-lay or seated setup. Available in seven illustrated palettes — Mountain Fields, Flower Child, Little Artist, and more — coordinated to complement Lucy Darling memory book designs.

Felt Milestone Numbers — Soft, dimensional 1–12 number sets in Pastel or Neutral. Purpose-built for overhead flat-lay photography: lay the number beside your baby on a blanket, shoot from above. They photograph with a soft, textural quality that works especially well in lifestyle flat-lay setups.

Pick one or the other — both do the same job, and both work with the memory book. The right choice comes down to setup style. Pennants work for both propped and flat-lay shots; felt numbers are purpose-built for overhead flat-lay. Either way, having a consistent marker across all 12 months is what makes the photo series feel like a series.

One More Thing: Fill In the Details While They're Fresh

The memory book Companion App also has a built-in detail tracker. Every prompt from the physical book — monthly milestones, favorite things, developmental firsts — lives in the app too. You can fill them in on your phone the day something happens, so the details are waiting when you sit down to write in the book. The memory of what they were like at four months fades faster than it should. Getting it into the app when it's real is the insurance.

The book is meant to be filled in. The supplies are the easy part. Start anywhere — a few pages at a time is all it takes.

Shop Baby Memory Books →
Open the Memory Book Companion App →

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