Mixbook Review and Giveaway

*The giveaway part of this post is now complete

I am excited to be posting this Mixbook review and giveaway!  You've heard me talk about the (expensive) company that I swear by for my digital scrapbooks and photo books.  I have yet to find a company that rivals them until now!

I had not heard of Mixbook until they contacted me to do a review post. Let me say, I am SO GLAD they emailed me!  I finally found a reasonably priced company that compares to the customization that my expensive company allows.  You can start completely from scratch with Mixbook or you can use one of their awesome, free customizable themes!

I chose a Father's Day themed book to make for my Husband but I didn't give him the book for Father's day.  It was a "just because" book.  Not to worry, I took the elements that had to do with Father's day out of the template and replaced them with other things.  I am extremely happy with the way my book turned out!

I swear my Husband had a tear in his eye when he opened the book!  The photos pop off the pages with great color and are super clear.

The template gave me plenty of room to put in all the photos I could find of Hubby and the girls together with the option to add in more photos or subtract them if needed.  I also had plenty of space to add as much or as little text and I wanted.

Mixbook is SUPER easy and fun to use.  Their site is easy to navigate and they've got a drag-and-drop format similar to the other popular companies for making your projects.

As far as quality goes, Mixbook pages are thinner than some of the other popular companies, but appear just as thick as my expensive company.  As I said earlier, the colors are great and the photos are sharp.  The cover is sturdy and has a beautiful glossy look.  Unfortunately, the high gloss of the cover holds onto smudges and finger prints.  It could be more noticeable because my cover is dark though.

The only thing I worry about with Mixbook is their binding.  It appears to be a bit more flimsy than some of the other companies with a little less glue and no stitch binding.  Multiple people have looked at my book and my girls have abused the binding as they look at the photos of themselves and their dad every day, so obviously it has held up so far!  The difference in binding is not enough to deter me from Mixbook and I will DEFINITELY use them again!

Just for reading this post, all Mommy's Camera readers will receive 20% off when they purchase a product through Mixbook!  Just use the code MOMCAM20 when checking out!  There is no expiration date, but the code can only be used once per customer.

One lucky Mommy's Camera reader will receive a promo code from Mixbook for a complimentary 20-page, 11x8.5 landscape hardcover photobook with free US Ground shipping!

Mandatory entry: Leave a comment telling me what type of book you would make if you won a Mixbook photo book.

Additional entries (please leave a separate comment for each additional entry):
1)  Tweet this (highlight and copy it): I just entered to win a @mixbook photobook from @mommyscamera! http://bit.ly/o95i7Q #photobook #giveaway 
(Following @mommyscamera and @mixbook is NOT required but would be appreciated)
2)  Answer either this question or this question in the Mommy's Camera Community.  Three entries for answering both!

This giveaway ended on Tuesday, July 26, at 11:59 pm (CST).  The winner was chosen using Random.org and is:

Congratulations to Mrs. Mommy!  She is the winner of the 11x8.5 photobook!

 

I received no monetary compensation for this post. I did, however, receive the book that I made for free in order to write a fair and honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own and were not influenced in any way.   In addition, since reviewing Mixbook I have become an affiliate for them.  The Mixbook links contained in this post include my affiliate link.  I will receive monetary commission if you should purchase a Mixbook product from the links in this post.
Please note that I am not responsible for the delivery of the product once the winner receives the promo code and can not be held accountable if, for any reason, is it not received.

Joyful Moments

I love to watch my Hubby with my girls.



It's so fun to sit back and watch them interact together.



There's definitely something to be said about the bond between a father and his daughters.



I took these photos of Hubby and the girls together at my friend's housewarming party (yes she moved to a house on the lake). Though the party was super fun, the most fun I had was watching Hubby play with my girls.

Happy Father's Day Honey!



I’d love to hear about a joyful moment you have had! Share your story and upload a photo (optional), and in return Shutterfly will gift you $5 off your next photo book to commemorate life’s joyous moments, and you'll be entered for a chance to win a $200 Shutterfly Gift card! How great is that?!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Shutterfly. The opinions and text are all mine. Offer valid for $5 off one photo book order and valid for one-time redemption per member. Taxes, shipping and handling will apply. BlogFrog hosted gift card contest live from June 17th to July 14th. A winner will be randomly chosen and announced on July 18th. All participants remain the copyright holder of their photos.

Viovio Photobook Review and Giveaway

*The giveaway part of this post is now complete.  See below for the winner.*

When I was contacted by someone from Viovio to do a review on my blog, I must say I was a bit nervous to accept their request.  You see, I have a (expensive) company that I swear by for all my photobook and digital scrapbook needs.  I have tried a few of the most popular and less expensive companies and have not been impressed with the quality of their products or the options they provide.  What would I do if I accepted Viovio's request for a review and I was unhappy with their product too?  After all, I had never heard of Viovio until they sent me a review request a little over a month ago.

 I checked out Viovio's website and was immediately intrigued.  They offer 36 book sizes, 6 binding options, and 3 paper types to choose from!  There are so many options, it's actually a bit confusing to figure them all out.  I had a hard time deciding which binding option and paper type were best for me.  Once I dug through their website some more, it all made sense. 

Next came the actual book-making process.  Viovio's process is similar to other companies.  It's an easy drag-and-drop format.  There are free templates, templates you can pay for, or start from scratch options.  I checked out both the free templates and pay for templates (which are pretty nice) but ultimately chose the start from scratch option because I made a very basic book.  I chose to make a book of all the macro photography I've been doing with my macro lens.
I sent my book to print on Feb 11th and received it in the mail on Feb 24th so it took two weeks. I chose the two day shipping option though so it will take longer if you choose the regular shipping option.  When the box showed up at my door I was so excited!  I opened it and discovered this:

An absolutely beautiful 11"x8.5" Dustjacket Hard Cover, Premium Photo Printing, Black Suede book!  They say first impressions are everything and I was definitely impressed at my first glance!   

I was amazed at how my photos popped on the pages and how beautiful they looked!  The paper and cover quality are comparable to the expensive company I usually use and my book totally looks like it could be a coffee table book from a professional photographer!

There's a little Viovio logo on the back of the book, but it is removable for a little up-charge. I personally don't find it all that intrusive or even noticeable.

The ONLY real difference I could find in the quality of the Viovio books versus the company I usually use is the binding.  The company I usually use not only glues, but stitch-binds their books.  I did not find a stitch-bind option on Viovio's website.

However Viovio's binding does appear to be good quality and seems like it should last quite a long time.  The binding of a bunch of my girls' reading books aren't stitch-bound either and those books have lasted years of abuse!

Other super cool things about Viovio:
1) You can link directly to your Flickr account and also print from PDF.
2) Nice privacy options.
3) You can purchase a Retail Membership that allows you to sell your book to other people and make money!  (If I were more confident with my photography skills I might consider this.)
4) Bulk printing options if you want to make large quantities of a book. 
5) You can print cards through them.
6) You can use Viovio for self publishing!
There's more but you'll just have to check them out for yourselves!

One lucky Mommy's Camera reader will receive a promo code from Viovio worth $25 toward a book of their own!

Belive me, $25 goes a long way at Viovio!

Mandatory entry: Leave a comment telling me what type of book you would make if you won a Viovio book.

Additional entries (please leave a separate comment for each additional entry):

1) Tweet this (highlight and copy it):  I just entered to win a @viovio photobook from @mommyscamera! http://bit.ly/fgpf92 #photobook #giveaway

(Following @mommyscamera and @viovio is NOT required but would be appreciated)

2) Post about this give away on your Facebook or Fan Page. (Liking MommysCamera and Viovio is NOT required but would be appreciated)

3) Two additional entries for answering this question in the Mommy's Camera Community.  (Go ahead and check out the rest of the community and ask a question of your own if you feel like it)

This giveaway ended at 1159pm (CST) on Friday, March 4, 2011.  The winner is:

Congratulations to The Fam on winning the $25 promo code!

I received no monetary compensation for this post. I did, however, receive the book that I made for free in order to write a fair and honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own and were not influenced in any way.  
Please note that I am not responsible for the delivery of the $25 promo code to the winner of this giveaway and can not be held accountable if, for any reason, is it not received.

Shutterfly's Holiday Card Promotion

How would you like to get your photo Christmas cards for free? You can with Shutterfly! This year, Shutterfly is having a Holiday Card Promotion. Simply blog about it and get 50 cards for FREE! How simple is that?

I’m a big fan of Shutterfly. I’ve printed a bunch of photos through them…
I made Tottie’s birth announcement through them…

And I’ve even made a memorial book about my dogs using them.

Click here to view this photo book larger

This year, my Christmas cards will be through Shutterfly!

I’m not quite sure which card I will make. They have so many great choices to choose from! I like the card above because it’s classic, simple, and will match whatever pictures I use. If only I could get Hubby, Nutty, and Tottie to sit down for one of my famous self-timer shoots!

Shutterfly has so much more than just cards for Christmas. They’ve got calendars, photo albums, and even personalized mugs! Shhhh…Don’t tell my dad…I think I’m giving him one of the puzzles!

Go ahead, check out Shutterfly yourself and make some awesome stuff for Christmas! Don’t forget to enter into their Holiday Card Promotion to get 50 FREE cards too!

*I will be receiving free cards from Shutterfly for posting about this promotion.  Though I am being compensated for this post, all opinions are soley mine and are not influenced in any way.  

Advertising and Disclosure

This information and policy is valid from 28 February 2011

For Advertisers:

I am happy to consider any form of advertising, however, I reserve the right to decline advertisements if they do not complement the content or convictions of this blog.  

I will consider corporate advertising on a case-by-case basis.  I am more than happy to display ads from moms with Etsy shops, direct sales businesses, and things like that.  

I am happy to consider products for review if I feel that they complement my blog. In order to have your product reviewed on this blog you must provide one product for me to review and a second like item to use in a giveaway to promote the review.

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For advertising rates, please contact me at jamie [at] mommyscamera [dot] com.  I accept monetary payments or payment in product.  PayPal is my preferred form of monetary payment however I am willing to accept other forms of payment on a case-by-case basis.

Disclosure Policy:

This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me.  This blog does accept and keep free products, services, and other forms of compensation from companies and organizations. Paid posts are considered on a case by case basis and must compliment the content and convictions of this blog.

This blog is happy to consider your product for review.  In order to have your product reviewed on this blog you must provide one product for the blog owner to review and a second like item to use in a giveaway to promote the review. (However, at times the owner may use discretion to host giveaways outside of these parameters.) This blog does not charge a fee for product giveaways. 

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