A gift you make yourself

A book about someone you love — from your memories

Questions written for them, as many as you like. You answer out loud, we turn it into a printed book that plays your voice.

Takes a minute — one payment, no subscription. You can record the first story today.

✓ Writing is optional, they can just talk
✓ They don’t have to do anything — it’s a surprise
✓ Family and friends can add their stories

Perfect for a birthday, an anniversary, Christmas — or no occasion at all

A young woman smiles as she records a voice message about a loved one, old family photos spread on the table

How it works

You just talk. We make the book.

You order

Checkout takes a minute: their name, your WhatsApp, one payment. Your question page opens right away — no waiting for anything.
You answer questions about them

Warm, simple questions: how you met, what you love about them, the stories you always retell. You answer by voice or on camera, like a voice message — short or long, as you like, whenever it suits you.
Family and friends join in

Share one link — their stories land in the same book, and every story is signed with the name of whoever told it. Or keep the book yours alone.
You hand them the book

A hardcover made of your stories and photos. Point a phone camera at a page — and it plays the voice of the person who told that story. Until that moment, it stays a surprise.

A look inside

How your words become a story

This is what Velena looks like: the page where you record, and the stories your answers turn into.

The Velena recording page: a question at the top and one large record button — One question — one button

A question about them and one big record button. No writing.

A video answer being recorded: the question on screen, the storyteller in a small self-view — Speak — or turn on the camera

Add the video add-on and tell it on camera: the QR codes in the book will play the video too.

The “My stories” list: finished stories with photos and play buttons — Stories add up to a book

Every answer is another story. You watch a whole book take shape.

The questions

You never face a blank page

Velena asks; you answer out loud, whenever you have ten free minutes. A few of the questions waiting for you:

What memory comes first when you think of them?
Tell about the moment you first realized how much they do for you.
What have they taught you, in words or by example?
What do you laugh about together? Tell about a time you simply could not stop.
Tell about a hard time when they stood by you. What did that look like?
What makes you most proud of them? Tell one story.
Which of their little habits make you smile?
What have you long wanted to tell them, but never found the moment?

Over fifty questions in all. They arrive a few at a time, so you are never staring at a list.

An open hardcover book with a family photo, a story in Russian and a QR code

The book

Not just a book — a family heirloom

A hardcover book of your stories about them and your shared photos. And unlike any other book — this one speaks.

Hardcover, thick archival paper
Your stories — in your words, each signed by who told it
A QR code on every story — point a camera and hear their voice or watch the video
Every recording is kept in your Velena account and can be downloaded anytime

Design the cover of your book

Type the title and the names — the book on screen changes right away. This is how it will arrive.

The photo, the story, the voice and the video — on one page

Every story in the book has its own QR code. Point a camera at it — and the story plays in the voice of the person who told it: you, or the people who love them.

An open book with a black-and-white family photo and a QR code; next to it a phone playing the same story in the grandmother’s voice

Why give this

The words that are hard to say out loud

Everyone carries words they never quite say — gratitude, love, the things you remember about someone. In a book they finally get said. And they stay.

A gift no one can repeat

Flowers wilt and gadgets get replaced. A book about them, told by you, exists nowhere else in the world — and it cannot be bought ready-made.

They will hear how much they mean

They scan a page — and hear your voice telling a story about them. Not a caption under a photo: your real voice, kept for years.

What if they say they don’t need anything?

Almost everyone says that, and you still have to choose something. Flowers, a set of dishes, another gift card: they get picked because nothing better came to mind, and a month later nobody remembers them. Here you are not giving an object. You are giving what you remember about this person, and that cannot be bought ready-made.

Price

One gift. One payment.

$99 one-time

What’s included

A whole year of questions — answered at their own pace, even daily
Voice recordings without limits — in any language
Every story beautifully written out and kept for your family
A hardcover printed book with a QR code on every story
Optional: invite family and friends — their stories go into the same book, each signed with their name
Every recording downloadable anytime

Want video too? Add video answers for $19 — the QR codes will also play the moments you told on camera.

Start the book

Money-back guarantee: a full refund within 30 days of purchase, up until the book goes to print.

The cost of recordings already transcribed is deducted from the refund.

Start today — record the first stories tonight; we print the book when the stories are ready.

Yours forever

These stories belong to your family. Forever.

One payment, no subscription

The payment covers a whole year of new recordings. Reading, listening and watching never expire — and nothing is ever charged again.

Download everything

Every recording and every story can be saved to your own phone or computer at any moment — the archive is yours, not ours.

The QR codes keep working

Open the book in thirty years, point a camera at a page — and hear your own voice again, telling it.

Questions

What families ask

Will they find out about the surprise?

Only if you tell them. They don’t need to record, install, or confirm anything — everything happens on your side. The book stays a secret until the moment you hand it over.

I’m no writer — will it come out well?

You don’t write — you talk. We ask the questions and gently shape every answer into a written story, keeping your words and your way of telling it. Any story can be edited before printing.

Can family and friends add their stories?

Yes. Share one link — everyone records the same way you do, and each story in the book is signed with the name of whoever told it. Or keep the book just yours: that’s up to you.

What language can the stories be in?

Any language they are comfortable in: English, French, Dutch, Russian, or a natural mix, the way people actually speak. We write the story in the language it was told in and keep the original recording untouched.

How fast can the book be ready?

The first stories take an evening; most books gather over a few weeks. Answer at your own pace — a whole year of questions is included. When the stories are ready, we print and deliver the book.

Can I answer on camera, not just with my voice?

Yes. With the video add-on you choose for every answer: voice or camera — and the QR codes in the book will play the video too. You can add it at any time.

Is this a subscription?

No. You pay once. Every recording stays with your family, and nothing is charged later.

Whose recordings are they? What if we want to keep everything?

They belong to your family. Every voice recording and every story can be downloaded at any time — the book is yours on paper, the archive is yours digitally.

What if it doesn’t work out?

You have 30 days from the moment of payment: if the gift isn’t right and the book hasn’t gone to print yet, we refund the full amount. The cost of recordings already transcribed is deducted from the refund. And whatever happens, every recording stays downloadable for your family.

Ask us on WhatsApp

The warmest gift is what you remember about them

Order in a minute — and record the first story tonight.