Quick answer: A Love Story Wedding Album is a handmade keepsake that documents a couple’s wedding day and their first year of marriage. You can build one that features customizable covers, monthly dividers, and photo pages that has hinged loops—so the couple can rearrange pages whenever they want.
A wedding is one of the most meaningful days of a couple’s life. But what happens after the flowers wilt, the dress is packed away, and the last slice of cake is eaten? The memories live on—and a beautifully crafted wedding album gives them a permanent, tactile home.
This isn’t just any album. The Love Story Wedding Album is a heartfelt keepsake that starts with the couple’s story and grows with them through their first year of marriage. Follow these instructions, and you’ll create something truly special—a layered, interactive album filled with photos, journaling, and personal mementos.
Ready to get crafting? Here’s everything you need to know.
What Makes the Love Story Wedding Album Special?
The Love Story Wedding Album Structure
Most wedding albums are static. You slip photos into sleeves, close the cover, and that’s it. The Love Story Wedding Album is different. It’s built to evolve.
The album opens with a dedicated section celebrating the couple—who they are, the love they share, and the special moments from their wedding day. This section holds photos, handwritten notes, and keepsakes like pressed flowers, ribbon, or a copy of the vow card.
From there, the album transforms into a first-year memory keeper. Each month gets its own divider, giving the couple a place to document anniversaries, milestones, date nights, and everyday moments that make a marriage. Hinged loops hold everything together—and because of how the binder is designed, pages can be rearranged, added to, or swapped out at any time.
Made by Hand
There’s something truly magical about a handmade wedding album that no store-bought version can ever replicate. Unlike a mass-produced album pulled from a shelf, a handmade creation carries with it the irreplaceable gift of time and intention—every ribbon tied, every sentiment stamped, every die-cut placed is a quiet declaration of love and care. The result is a one-of-a-kind keepsake that the couple will treasure for a lifetime.
It’s personal. It’s interactive. And it makes a truly unforgettable wedding gift.
How to Make the Love Story Wedding Album
Spellbinders makes it possible to make a beautiful, customizable album like this with their Turn the Page Collection by Esther Glas (@keepsakestudio_by_esther). We’re using five die sets from the collection to make this album. We will share what they as we create the album together.
The Covers and Basic Pages
How to Make the Love Story Wedding Album
The Covers and Basic Pages
First, decide on a color scheme for your album. The best choice is to use the colors that the bride is using for her wedding. However, pinks that represent sweet affection are a perfect choice for any wedding album. When I can’t find just what I want, I like to print my own patterned paper. Etsy has a wonderful selection to choose from. I like to print on 65 lb paper for these albums because it doesn’t get hung up in the printer, and when doubled, it makes a wonderful weight for the covers as well as the pages.
How to Make the Covers and Base Pages
The foundation of your album starts with the covers and base pages, which are all basically the same. We’re going to keep all of the pages fairly simple because the patterned paper is so busy. Reach for the Keepsake Capsule Page Etched Dies by Esther Glas . And, use your printed patterned paper to cut from.
To get started:
- Die-cut your base pages using the full notebook-style page die. Each page requires two of the die-cuts, one with the six holes on the left side for the fronts and one with the six holes on the right side for the backs. My album has eleven pages and two covers, so I die-cut twenty-six full notebook pages.
- Die-cut two scallop borders using Keepsake Capsule Borders Etched Dies and plain or pearlescent vellum.
- Assemble the Covers – Each page die-cut has a right side, the one that is printed, and a white wrong side. Attach the scallop border so that the right side of the border is glued to the long edge on the wrong side of the page. In other words, the right side of both the page and the border are facing up. Then, add liquid glue on the back and fasten the wrong side of another die-cut page to make a sandwich. Make sure that all the edges and the holes are aligned. And then, run your fingers over the page on a flat surface for about ten seconds until the glue sets and all edges are stuck together. Repeat with two more pages and the remaining border to make the other cover. The end result is both of the covers with a lacy edge and a printed floral pattern on both sides.
- Finish the Front Cover – Die-cut the names of the bride and groom from colored card stock using the alphabet die from the Keepsake Capsule Page Etched Dies. A scalloped oval die from your stash will help to create a lovely lacy backdrop for your couple’s names. Attach all with liquid glue to complete the front cover.
- Back Cover – add a fun sticker or stamp a sentiment for the back cover to make the couple smile.
- Assemble the Base Pages – Make the base pages the same way, only without the border.
The Opening Love Story Photo Pages
How to Make the Opening Love Story Photo Pages
This section helps to capture and showcase the special moments leading up to and during the wedding. It is highly personal, and hard to know what the couple will want to put in it. Therefore, add several pages with nothing but patterned paper on them and maybe a couple of hints of what they might use. Then, let them add what they want in any way they want. I put five blank pages this section of my album.
Introducing the Couple
I have a pretty lacy heart die that is a perfect backdrop for a photo of the couple. Hopefully you have one in your stash too. Just die-cut the heart from colored card stock in a coordinating color and fasten it to one of the pages with liquid glue.
Love Tags
Then you can use coordinating colors of card stock to make a couple of tags to provide even more space to add photos. The dies in the Torn Edges with a Tag set make a lovely one for the wedding day.
Another one using dies from the Torn Etches Cardlab to show off a photo of the wedding couple.
And one that you can just leave blank for them to write whatever they want to on it.
The Monthly Dividers
How to Make the Monthly Dividers for the Love Story Wedding Album
Once your opening love story section is complete, it’s time to build the 12 monthly dividers—one for each month of the couple’s first year of marriage. These dividers give the album its structure and make it easy to navigate.
The Keepsake Capsule Borders Etched Dies, along with the full-page die from the Keepsake Capsule Page die set, are your go-to tools here. The border set includes 3 cutting dies featuring label tabs with a border that runs the full 8.25″ length of the page. You can also use two of the dies on the back side of the patterned paper to give you even more tabs along the edge.
Here’s how to create each divider:
- Start with a base page die-cut from your chosen colored card stock (I use a number of different colors to give interest and variety).
- Use the tab border dies (0.75″ x 8.25″) to cut a protruding tab on the side of each divider from patterned paper. Stagger the tab position on each monthly divider so they’re easy to flip through. It helps to use a bone folder to flatten the crease at the fold lines.
- Fasten the tab border over the long edge of the card stock page with liquid glue. Help the glue set properly by running the border between two fingers along the edge for about ten seconds.
- Add abbreviated month titles to each tab using the alphabet die from the Keepsake Capsule Page Etched Dies.
Embellish some of the dividers with fussy-cut details from your patterned paper. Or you can add a pocket or journaling area so the couple has a place to write notes, tuck in receipts from special dinners, or store small photos. Learn how to do so in the Additional Photo Pages section.
Photo Frame Holders
Torn Edges with a Tag has this cool little die to make photo frame holders. You can add a short handwritten note explaining how to use them. A paper clip with a heart will help the couple easily find the page they want to mark. And, you can fussy cut a precious design from your leftover patterned paper to finish off the page.
Hideaway Journaling Spot
Create a pretty place to write a precious little note.
Tag Photo Frame
Use the tag dies with patterned card stock to create a pretty frame to attach a photo.
Additional Photo Pages
How to Make the Additional Love Story Wedding Album Photo Pages
The photo pages are where the magic really happens. These are the pages the couple will fill month by month, turning the album into a living document of their first year together.
You have several fantastic die sets to work with here, depending on the style and function you want to achieve:
Flap Pocket Page
Use the Page with Flap Pocket Etched Dies to create a unique way to tuck away photos, notes, and keepsakes. The full page die cuts a different 4.7″ x 8.25″ page. and includes coordinating fold-over flap pockets, tab dies, and five unique ticket shapes—perfect for tucking away photos, notes, and ephemera. The hole reinforcer (0.55″ x 0.55″) and string circle (0.6″ x 0.6″) dies reinforce the binding area and add a charming detail.
To assemble:
- Die-cut a base page with the full-page die from this set using vellum.
- Die-cut two flap pockets from coordinating card stock.
- Add a ticket or label die-cut to the outside of the flap or a floral piece of card stock on the inside for a decorative closure.
- Score and fold the flaps. Add a little liquid glue and fasten them together. Then, adhere them to the lower portion of the page, leaving the top or side open for inserting photos or keepsakes.
- You can cut a couple of 3 3/4″ squares from coordinating card stock that can be used to slide into the pockets too.
- Use the hole reinforcer dies from the Keepsake Capsule Page die set to reinforce the binding area and add a charming detail.
Torn Edge Page or Tag
The Torn Edges with Tag die set creates a beautifully worn, collected look. The largest die—a torn page with holes measuring 4.45″ x 8.25″—cuts directly into the binder and adds a distressed, vintage feel. Pair with the torn corner (2.7″ x 4.25″) and torn card (4.1″ x 3″) dies to create layered focal points for photos and journaling.
For a different interactive format, the Torn Edges CardLab Etched Dies cut layered note card-style pages with notches along the bottom edge. These snap into Keepsake Studios CardLab boxes or can be bound into the binder as dimensional half-page inserts—a clever way to add depth and variety to the album.
Mini Page
Take advantage of the dies from the collection and scraps from your die-cutting to make little mini pages that can be added anywhere in the album.
Love Story Wedding Album Supply List
Start Crafting Your Love Story
A Love Story Wedding Album is more than a craft project—it’s a gift that grows in meaning with every page that gets filled. Whether you’re making it for yourself, a daughter, a best friend, or a sister, this album captures something no digital photo app ever could: the feel of paper, the weight of memories, and the love that went into every hand-cut detail.
Ready to explore more projects from the Turn the Page Collection by Esther Glas? Check out the full Turn the Page Collection on the Spellbinders website for more inspiration, coordinating products, and project ideas.
Looking for more creative inspiration? Browse our Card Ideas for fresh techniques, seasonal designs, and step-by-step tutorials that will spark your next project.
Now, gather your supplies and get crafting! You’ve got a beautiful love story to tell.
