perpetual photo calendar: free template

Some of you may know that I have twin 18 year old sons who just graduated from high school. Both of them were admitted to Brigham Young University here in Utah, and both of them have decided to defer their college enrollment to serve a mission for the LDS church. One just left this week, and the other is leaving in the fall.

Being a memory keeper I wanted them to have some family photos and memories from home while they’re gone, but I knew if I sent them with a small photo album or scrapbook they probably wouldn’t have much time to get it out and look at it. So, I decided to make them each a perpetual photo calendar that they could have out on their desk or dresser with a photo for each day.

I kept the design totally simple because that fits my boys’ style and personalities. Plus, with 366 sheets of 28# photo paper I didn’t want to add anything bulky. (Of course I had to add a little washi tape to the front cover!)

I left off the days of the week and the year so they could use it for both of the 2 years they’ll be gone, and they can start using it anytime. I used a simple Photoshop template with four calendar pages on an 8 1/2 x 11 inch sheet.

If you’d like to use the layered Photoshop template I used to make this, you can download it for free HERE.

I also made a little stand from leftover chipboard so the calendar can stand up on its own. I used a chipboard insert from an old scrapbook paper pack. You could also use a cereal box.

I selected photos from my digital files to match the corresponding months in the photo calendar. While the days don’t exactly match up, the photos in the calendar match the month they were actually taken.

This was a labor of love, but totally worth every minute for my boys to have a daily memory from home while they’re away for the next two years. What do you do to keep your memories visible and accessible?

Shop supplies for this project: