Holiday Gift Guide 2016 | Personalized Gifts For The Family + VIDEO

*Thanks to Pinhole Press for sponsoring today's post!

The best gifts are ones that you put lots of thought into! I am delighted to partner with Pinhole Press to bring you a holiday gift guide featuring personalized gifts for the whole family! You may remember the post I did earlier this year with several framed prints from Pinhole Press! I created a whole gallery wall of photos, you can see the post here. I hope you enjoy this gift guide! 

In the video I mention several products. Here are some of my favorites below. Seriously, these make the best gifts for your aunts, uncles, grandparents, parents, and siblings!

The Brag Book ($24.99)

This nostalgic piece makes a great gift for grandparents (and great grandparents) who may not carry a smart phone or just love the good 'ol days where you can whip open a little book of your kids' pictures! (Watch my YouTube video above or click here to see it in action!)

The Photo Desk Calendar ($24.99)

This is a great gift option for aunts, uncles, or your co-parent! All of your (or your family's) co-workers and friends can admire your photos through this subtle and adorable photo calendar! (Watch my YouTube video above or click here to see it in action!)

For the Kids: Names & Faces Puzzle ($34.99)

As a former teacher, I am all about education. With this game your child is learning name and face recognition, but also practicing their motor skills and learning their colors! This is definitely one of my favorites this year and I can't wait to give it to G! (Watch my YouTube video above or click here to see it in action!)

The Daddy & Me Board Book ($39.99)

Fathers everywhere adore things like this! I don't know about you, but my husband loves to feel included! We have a Mommy & Me board book that G adores so when he finds out he and Grace get to open and read this Daddy & Me book for Christmas he is going to be elated! There are spaces for photos and a small description on each page! (Watch my YouTube video above or click here to see it in action!)

The Mommy & Me Board Book ($39.99)

Have your partner design this for you so that you can read it with your babe. I have three of these books because I love being able to document G and I's adventures. We read them almost every night, and someday when she is older she can read them to me! You can also make a Book of Names and Faces for family member recognition! We have one and it has really helped G recognize the family members that she doesn't see on a regular basis! (Watch my YouTube video above or click here to see it in action!)

Lastly, we did our holiday cards though Pinhole Press and loved them, so be sure to check out their holiday card selection! We went with the gallery style premium ultra thick paper, and I must say I am very impressed! (Watch my YouTube video above or click here to see it in action!)

Christmas is coming up fast so, if you plan to, be sure to place your order asap to get them in time to wrap and put under the tree!

xo. L

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Tips for Non-Traditional Holiday Family Photos

*Thanks to Pinhole Press for sponsoring and inspiring today's post!

I am stoked about sharing these Pinhole Press holiday cards with you featuring our holiday family photos by the lovely Ashley Haxby Photography! I really wanted a non-traditional theme for our pictures since last year we just went with red. I decided I'd share my tips for a non-traditional holiday shoot with you in case you want to try it out this year, or even next year! Click here to read a similar blog post on tips for surviving family photos!

The holiday cards we chose from Pinhole Press are amazing. They're from their Premium Ultrathick Holiday Card Collection and let me tell you - they're thick! I love how sturdy they are! Plus the cute pinstripes on the sides are darling! My favorite thing about this specific holiday card though is the gallery aspect. I couldn't pick a favorite photo, so I didn't have to! I got to feature three.

TIPS FOR NON-TRADITIONAL HOLIDAY FAMILY PHOTOS:

Don't wear Christmas colors.

As you can see we went with neutrals this year, which I love! A few reasons I like the non-traditional look is that I display our family photos around our house, so since we styled neutral colors these don't really look like "Christmas" pictures, but instead just some cute photos of us on any given day, haha. Some of my favorite color schemes are: beige and blush pink, denim blue and beige, ivory and plum, and even black looks great in photos! 

Try to find a non-wintery/holiday location.

I say this for those that have options, since I know not every part of the country has places like a dessert to shoot in, however I love studio shoots for families! Those are always gorgeous and pretty non-traditional looking. The train station or even a theme park are pretty creative too. I will always cherish our photos in the tree farm but sometimes it's fun to think outside of the box. After all, most of us take family photos at least once every few years. You have time to experiment!

Don't be super "pose-y".

I may have just made up a word, but lifestyle photography is very popular now! Playing with your kids, or twirling around with your husband is totally acceptable in family photos now! Try to have fun with it and let your photographer capture the true essence of your family! I love pictures where the kids are making silly faces and the parents are just looking at each other.

SHOP THE POST: Dress worn as top (only $37) | Bliss Tulle skirt c/o

Check out my post TIPS FOR SURVIVING FAMILY PHOTOS || ADVICE FROM BOTH A STYLISH AND PHOTOGRAPHER

 *Photos thanks to Ashley Haxby Photography

Let me know if these tips were helpful to you!

xo. L

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Dining Room Gallery | Wall Black & White Photo Collage + Video

All it takes is one tiny look at your Pinterest feed to know that gallery walls are IN. They are THE thing to do. No more giant paintings above the couch. We want to see monograms, quirky art, and of course... family photos! I knew that I wanted to do a huge black and white photo gallery wall in my dining room the second we moved into our new house. The natural light is glorious in this space, so the black and white photos just shine.

I figured that while I'm hanging this, I may as well film my process. I know there are seriously TONS of ways to do gallery walls - I opted for the easiest, and quickest since #momlife and #toddlerlife rule all these days.

I am SO excited to share this video with you though! We've had it in the works for quite sometime, and I finally have it edited and ready to share!

*There's some glare in this photo, but it's literally the best one I could take the day we filmed. I'm going to update with a better one asap!

VIDEO:

HOW TO HANG A GALLERY WALL:

(watch video above for a full visual)

Step One: Pick out the photos and frames you want to display. We used Pinhole Press for both printing and framing and it was easy as pie! The frames we used are 8x10 and 10x8. Fourteen horizontal frames, and eight vertical frames for a total of 22 frames for the whole wall!

Step Two: Create a layout on the floor to be sure you have the frames positioned the way you want them. I messed with it a few times to make sure it was just right!

Step Three: Take twenty-two 8x11 size pieces of paper (if you are using 8x10 frames) and hang them on the wall with nails (estimating where the nail should go as far as where you hang the frame!)

*You are going to have to cut the papers to size if your frames are a 5x7, 4x6, or any other size!

Step Four: One by one, take off the papers and replace with the frames. You may need to adjust a frame here and there. I did this a ton until the very end -- actually I'm still adjusting them ha!

G is obsessed with our photo wall - she is always pointing up at it saying "baby" while admiring all the photos. I love looking at them during breakfast, lunch, dinner, and each time I walk by the space - they've made our new house feel so much more like home!

*Pinhole Press provided product for this post; all thoughts and opinions are my own!

xo.

L

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