A small press for one family at a time
A picture book
with your kid, dog, cat, grandma, or anyone else in the family
on every page.
Add a few photos and a sentence about what happens. The story is written for you, every page is painted from those photos so the same faces carry through the book, and a hardcover arrives in the mail. Read the free preview first: a likeness is an illustration, not a photograph, and you only order once it looks right to you.
What a spread looks like
From “Brandy’s Backyard Treasure”Read the whole book →
In Brandy’s backyard, late-autumn leaves whispered, hush-hush-hush. Two squirrels zipped along the chain-link fence, each carrying an acorn. Brandy’s floppy ears lifted. Her pink tongue paused mid-pant. “Treasure,” she decided. “Definitely treasure.”
3
Under the maple, Brandy found three clues: a cracked acorn cap, a feather, and a tiny pawprint in the damp earth. She followed the pawprint in a grand circle—and discovered her own back feet.
5
A dusting of early snow hid the garden corner. Brandy dug with joyful, thumping paws. She uncovered a tennis ball, a muddy mitten, and a spoon. Fine treasures, perhaps—but surely not squirrel treasure.
7
Brandy gently nudged the earth back. She tucked leaves over the spot and stood guard while the squirrels checked their pantry. From the house came the warm clink of her own dinner bowl.
9One painting runs across both pages and the words sit right on it, in a calm corner the painting leaves open. That is how picture books have been made for a hundred years. Big type, short lines, room to breathe. A grown-up reads it aloud; a kid finds themself in it.
From the shelf
Read them all →
Brandy’s Backyard TreasureSoft Watercolor · Gentle & cozy
The Great Autumn FetchSoft Watercolor · Silly & funny
Sami and the Starry SkyPaper Cut-out · Sleepy bedtime
Whole books to read cover to cover, made by the press to show the work. Most of the families in them are made up, one is real and shared with permission; yours would be painted from your photos.
How it's made
- 01
Add a few photos.
Three or four of each person or pet in the book, with their faces easy to see. Add their name, their age and one or two true things: the yellow boots, the way she calls the cat “Mister Sir.” The photos stay private to your account.
- 02
Say what happens.
A sentence is enough: “Brandy is convinced the squirrels are hiding a treasure.” The story is written from it at the reading level you choose, with a real beginning, a wobble in the middle and an ending that lands. Or write every page yourself.
- 03
The cast comes first, then the pages.
Before any page is painted, each person gets a character sheet drawn from their photos, so the same face appears on every spread. Every page is then painted from those sheets. Repaint any page you don't love, or rewrite any line.
- 04
It arrives as a real book.
Eight and a half inches square: a case-wrap hardcover on eighty-pound coated paper with a gloss cover. Each copy is printed on its own, the only way to print a book that only one family wants.
Eight ways to paint it
Pick one. The whole book, cover included, is painted in that one hand. Watercolor on page four never turns into clay on page five.
Choose yours →
Soft Watercolor01Loose washes, gentle bleeds and warm light. Timeless and tender.
Cozy Gouache02Chunky opaque paint, rich texture, storybook charm.
Bright & Bold03Clean flat shapes and cheerful color. Modern and playful.
Pencil & Crayon04Sketchy lines and crayon fills, like a treasured drawing.
Paper Cut-out05Layered paper shapes with soft shadows and craft texture.
Ink & Wash06Expressive ink lines with soft color washes. Quietly beautiful.
Clay & Felt07Rounded 3D characters that look sculpted and stitched.
Vintage Storybook081950s lithograph charm: limited inks, halftone texture.
The preview is free
The free preview is the cover and the first two painted spreads, with the whole story to read. You see it before you spend anything. If you like it, order the book: the remaining pages are painted, then it goes to print. If you only want the files, there's a digital edition for $7.99: a PDF, and an Apple Books edition whose pages turn like paper on an iPhone or iPad. Preview pictures carry a light watermark, and previews stay open for 14 days.
A word about the pictures: every page is painted by an image model, and image models still slip now and then. A hand gains a finger, a favorite toy changes from one page to the next. Each page is checked before you see it and most slips are caught, but not every one. So every page comes with ways to put it right: Adjust changes one thing and keeps the rest, Repaint paints the page fresh, and every word can be edited. Give a page a few tries, and if it still won't come right, send feedback and say what's wrong. The aim is a book that makes someone light up, and that's worth a second try.
How long it takes: a preview is ready in a few minutes. Once you order, printing takes about 3 to 5 business days, then shipping at the speed you pick at checkout.
- · 10 to 16 painted spreads
- · Title page, dedication, the works
- · Edit every line, repaint pages you don't love
- · Ships to most of the world