Birthday gift
A book about the person,
not just for them.
For the person who's already got everything. Turn a story from their life — that one time, that one holiday, that one thing they'll never live down — into a printed keepsake with them as the hero.
How it works
Four easy steps, about 20 minutes.
Type or speak the story of the birthday person — the one about that holiday, that first job, the thing they'll never live down. Heirloom shapes it into a printed birthday keepsake.
1Type or speak the story
Dictate it in your own voice or type a few notes about the birthday person — the time they got lost in Rome, their first job, that thing your dad still can't stop telling everyone.
2Add the cast
Upload photos of them and anyone else in the story so the illustrations look like real people.
3Pick a style
Warm memoir, superhero comic, watercolour, 3D — match it to their sense of humour.
4Share it with them
PDF the same day. Printed book shipped in gift packaging from our UK printer in a few working days.
Milestone birthdays
The right book for the year they're turning.
A birthday book lands differently at each stage of life. Here's a starting prompt for a few big ones.
30th
The story of their twenties in one printed decade. The moves, the jobs, the friend group that made them.
40th
The year they became a parent. Or the year they didn't and instead did something wild. Print it.
50th
A book from their kids about the mum or dad they actually are — not the one they think they've been.
60th
The story of their career, in their own voice, told back to them properly.
70th
The love story. Chapter one at 21, chapter forty-nine at 70.
80th
A book their grandchildren will still read after they're gone. That's the whole point.
Better than another candle
Why it works.
Birthday gifts usually fade in a week. Heirloom books get put on the shelf and stay there.
It's about them
Not a generic gift dressed up. A story from their life, written in your voice, printed with their face on the cover.
It's kept forever
Premium matte paper, sturdy binding, sent in keepsake gift packaging. The kind of book you inherit.
It's fast
Start today, digital PDF ready in about 20 minutes, printed book shipped within a few working days.
“I gave my dad a book about the summer we drove across France in the old Peugeot. He phoned me three times that week to tell me things he'd remembered from that trip.”
Two ways to keep it
Digital keepsake or a real physical book.
PDF, keep forever
- Beautiful 5×8 novel-sized PDF
- Fully custom cover
Printed, gift-wrapped & shipped. PDF included.
- Premium matte paper, sturdy bound cover
- Arrives in a keepsake gift box, ready to give
- 5–10 working days in the UK
Common questions
- How long does it take to make?
- About 20 minutes for the digital PDF, 5–10 working days for the printed UK edition.
- Can I have other people in the book?
- Yes — upload photos of anyone in the story and they stay recognisable across every page.
- What if I don't know what to write?
- You can start with just a memory or a few notes and Heirloom shapes it into pages. You can rewrite any line yourself.