The Matchy Matchy blog
Gift ideas, game night plans and photo tips from Matchy Matchy.
How it works and how to play
Matchy Matchy Memory vs Magic: Which One to Pick
Real photos or re-drawn ones? How Matchy Matchy Memory and Magic compare on price, size and style, and who each one suits.
How Much Does a Custom Memory Game Cost? Prices Explained
Six prices, two products, three sizes. Here is what a custom photo memory game costs and how to pick the deck that fits.
Memory Game With Your Own Photos: How It Works and What It Costs
How a memory game with your own photos works, what each size costs, and how to choose photos your family will want to flip.
Best Personalized Memory Games: What Each One Does Well
Five ways to turn your own photos into a matching game, what each one does well, and the honest catch for each.
Watercolor vs Anime vs 3D Film: Which Style Suits Your Photos
Same photos, three moods. How 3D Film, Watercolor and Anime differ, which photos suit each one and a quick tiebreaker if you can't decide.
The Best Photos for a Memory Game (and the Ones to Skip)
Close faces, bright light, a pet or two. Here are the photos that play well in a memory game, the ones to skip and a simple recipe for mixing the deck.
How to Play Memory Game: Rules, Variations and House Rules
How to play memory game, step by step: the classic rules, how to set up the grid, variations for every age and house rules families love.
Custom Card Game From Your Photos: Memory vs Magic Explained
Want a custom card game from your photos? Here's how Matchy Matchy Memory and Magic differ in look, price and the photos that suit each.
Personalized Memory Game: What It Is, How It Works and Who It's For
A personalized memory game turns your own photos into a matching card game. How it works, which photos to pick and who it's made for.
For grandparents
Memory Games for Seniors With Family Photos (What You Might Notice)
A matching game made from family photos. What you might notice when a grandparent plays, plus photo tips and easy house rules.
Personalized Memory Game for Grandparents: Why It Lands
A game made from family photos puts the pictures in Grandma and Grandpa's hands and the grandkids around the table. Here is how it works and why it lands.
Activities for Grandparents and Grandkids, Near or Far
Simple activities for grandparents and grandkids, whether you share a kitchen or a video call. Recipes, games, mail and small traditions.
Games to Play With Grandparents, Across the Table or the Country
Table games, no equipment games and video call games for grandparents and grandkids, plus a few that get the family stories out.
Gifts for Grandpa He'll Actually Use: 7 Ideas
Seven gifts for the grandpa who needs nothing, sorted by the kind of grandpa he is, with the honest catch for each one.
Gifts for New Grandparents: Celebrate the Title
Everyone brings gifts for the baby. These seven ideas are for the people who just became Nana and Pop.
Photo Gifts for Grandparents: 7 Ideas They'll Actually Use
Seven photo gifts for grandparents, from frames to a memory game made of family photos, with an honest note on who each one suits.
Kids and toddlers
Photo Matching Game for Toddlers: Start Small, Keep It Theirs
Start with a few cards and the faces your toddler knows best. Here is how to set up, play and grow a photo matching game with your child.
Winter Break Activities for Kids When the Novelty Wears Off
Winter break activities for kids sorted by mood: loud ideas for the morning, projects for after lunch and quiet games for the cranky hours.
Memory Games for Kids Benefits: What Parents Notice
No big promises. Why kids love memory games, what parents notice at the table, and how to set up the game for every age.
Gifts for Twins: 7 Ideas That Aren't Matching Pairs (Except One)
Seven gifts for twins that treat them as two people, plus one shared game built from matching pairs. Who each idea suits and its honest catch.
Gifts for 3 Year Olds That Aren't Toys
Less plastic, more memories. Seven gifts for three-year-olds that leave less clutter, each with an honest catch.
Travel Games for Kids: 6 That Fit in a Carry-On
Six small, quiet games for planes, cars and hotel beds, plus no gear games and packing tips from parents who have learned the hard way.
Memory Games for Toddlers: Start at 12 Cards
Small, short and full of faces they love. When toddlers are ready, how to set up 12 cards and four ways to play that fit little hands.
Screen-Free Gifts for Kids: 7 Ideas They Choose Over the Tablet
Seven gifts kids reach for instead of the tablet, grouped by age, each with an honest catch.
Gifts for Kids Who Have Everything: 7 Ideas With Staying Power
Gifts for kids who have everything: seven ideas built on time, skills and their own faces, with an honest note on each one.
For couples
Paper Anniversary Gift Ideas (the Cards Count)
Seven paper anniversary gift ideas for year one, from letters and map prints to a card game of your own photos, each with an honest catch.
Unique Wedding Gift Ideas Made From the Couple's Own Photos
Skip the registry. Six wedding gifts built from the couple's own photos, each with an honest catch.
Anniversary Photo Gift Ideas, From Year One to Fifty
Anniversary photo gift ideas for every stage, from the first year to the fiftieth, with an honest note on who each one suits.
Long Distance Relationship Gift Ideas That Close the Gap
Six long distance relationship gift ideas, for the time apart and the time together, with an honest note on each one.
Personalized Gift for Couples: 7 Ideas Made From Your Photos Together
Seven ideas for a personalized gift for couples, made from their own photos, with an honest note on who each one suits and where it falls short.
Christmas
Unique Christmas Gifts Nobody Else Can Give
Anything a store sells, a thousand people can buy. Seven unique Christmas gifts built from your words, your photos and your time.
Christmas Gifts for Grandma From the Whole Gang
She has the scarf and the slippers. Six Christmas gifts for grandma the whole gang can give together, and how to organize it.
Christmas Gifts for Toddlers That Last Past Lunch
By lunch your two-year-old is wearing the box as a hat. Six Christmas gifts for toddlers that last longer, sorted by what toddlers love to do.
Christmas Gifts for Couples: 7 Ideas for the Two of Them
One gift, two people, and a good chance they already own a nice candle. Seven Christmas gifts for couples to share, with an honest catch for each.
Christmas Gift Ideas for Parents Who Have It All
Six Christmas gift ideas for parents who already own everything: gifts of time, family stories and play, each with an honest catch.
Christmas Games for Family: 8 That Need No Batteries
Eight Christmas games for family gatherings that need no batteries: guessing games, card games and two that get people moving after dinner.
Christmas Morning Traditions That Slow the Day Down
Christmas morning traditions in the order the morning runs, from the staircase photo to a slow breakfast and opening gifts one at a time.
Christmas Eve Box Ideas for Kids and Grown-Ups
Christmas Eve box ideas for every age: the four basics, extras for little kids, teens and grown-ups, and how to put the boxes together.
Secret Santa Gift Ideas That Feel Personal Under $30
Eight gifts that feel personal on a small budget, sorted by how well you know the name you drew.
Personalized Christmas Gifts for Kids: Their Own Faces on the Fun
Six personalized gifts that still get played with once the wrapping paper is in the recycling.
Christmas Gift Ideas for Grandparents: 7 Picks From the Grandkids
Seven gifts the grandkids can make, choose or help with, from toddlers with finger paint to teenagers with phones.
Hanukkah, Thanksgiving and New Year
New Year's Eve Games for Families Who Won't Make It to Midnight
New Year's Eve games for families with an early bedtime: a balloon countdown, a photo game, an early midnight and a round for the ones who stay up.
Hanukkah Gifts for Grandparents: 8 Nights, One Big Smile
Eight nights, eight chances to make Bubbe and Zayde smile. Hanukkah gifts for grandparents that are small, personal and mostly made by the grandkids.
Thanksgiving Games for the Whole Family, After the Pie
Games for before dinner, after the pie and on the couch. Easy rules, every age welcome, and a memory game made of the people at the table.
Hanukkah Games for Family Night: 8 Nights, 8 Rounds
Eight nights, eight games. Dreidel, a latke taste test, charades and a memory game made of your own family, all easy enough for every age.
Chanukah Gift Ideas for the Whole Family: A Plan for All 8 Nights
Chanukah gift ideas for the whole family, one theme per night: books, games, latkes, giving, photos, crafts, outings and letters.
Family game night and activities
Indoor Games for Family: 8 for Rainy Days and Snow Days
Eight indoor games for family days stuck at home, four with no setup and four with a deck or a table, plus tips for playing mixed ages.
Family Reunion Ideas: Games That Get Four Generations Talking
Games and activities that give four generations a reason to sit at the same table.
Family Game Night Ideas Everyone From 4 to 84 Will Join
Family game night ideas that work for ages 4 to 84: how to set up the night, six games for mixed ages and house rules that keep everyone playing.
Photos and keepsakes
Custom Memory Game vs Photo Book: Which Gets Opened Twice
A photo book gets read. A custom memory game gets played. Here is how each one works, who each one suits and how to choose.
Family Year in Review Ideas: 12 Months, 24 Cards
Family year in review ideas for one evening: awards, a top ten, a time capsule, and a photo deck with one picture from every month of the year.
What to Do With Holiday Photos Besides Scrolling
What to do with holiday photos once the tree is down: a fast cull, then ideas for ten minutes, an hour or an afternoon, sorted by who gets what.
Family Photo Ideas at Home That Make Great Cards
Family photo ideas at home with just a phone and a window: ten easy setups, candid tricks, and how to shoot photos that look good on a card.
Alternatives to a Photo Book: 6 Ways to Get the Photos Off the Phone
Six alternatives to a photo book that take less time and get looked at more: loose prints, a clip line, a card game, a jar and more.
Ways to Display Family Photos That Aren't Another Frame
Your phone holds thousands of photos and your hallway holds six. Ideas for the walls, the fridge, the table and a few places you'd never think of.
Gifts for parents, friends and pets
Gifts for Cat Lovers That Aren't Cat Shaped
Mugs with ears, socks with whiskers. Six gifts for cat lovers that shop for the person instead, matched to six kinds of cat person.
Gifts for Dog Lovers Who Already Have the Dog Stuff
The dog already has three beds and a raincoat it refuses to wear. Seven gifts for dog lovers that shop for the human instead.
Unique Baby Shower Gift Ideas the Parents Will Keep
Seven unique baby shower gift ideas that outlast the newborn stage, from guest letters to a photo memory game, with an honest catch for each.
Personalized Gifts Under 50 Dollars: 7 That Look Like More
Personalized gifts under 50 dollars that look like more: seven ideas, from an engraved board to a photo game, each with its catch.
Gifts for Best Friends From Photos You Took Together
Gifts for best friends from photos: seven ideas from a five-minute letter to a weekend scrapbook, each with an honest catch.
Gifts for Siblings Who Live Far Apart: 6 Ways to Stay Close
Gifts for siblings who live far apart: six ideas you can send or share across the miles, each with an honest catch.
Gifts for Father in Law: 7 Ideas He Won't Re-Gift
Gifts for father in law that he will keep: seven honest ideas, from a day out to a game of family photos, each with its catch.
Gifts for Mother in Law: 7 Ideas That Actually Land
She raised the person you love. Seven gifts for your mother in law that show you pay attention, each with an honest catch.
Gifts for Big Families: One Thing Everyone Shares
One gift for the whole household beats ten small ones. Six shared ideas for big families, each with an honest catch.
Last Minute Personalized Gifts: 7 Ideas for When Time Is Short
Seven personal gifts sorted by time left: make tonight, order in a few days, or hand over a promise when you're already late.
One Gift for the Whole Family: 7 Ideas Nobody Fights Over
Seven shared gifts that pull every age to the same table, from a question jar to a photo memory game, with the honest catch for each.
Gifts for New Parents That Aren't Baby Gear
The registry covered the stroller. These seven gifts are for the two tired people holding the baby.
Photo Gift Ideas for Dad: 7 He Will Actually Keep Out
Seven photo gift ideas for dad that earn a spot on his desk, bench or coffee table, with an honest note on where each one falls short.
Photo Gift Ideas for Mom: 7 That Beat Another Mug
Seven photo gift ideas for mom that do better than another mug, grouped by the kind of mom she is, with an honest catch for each.
Pet Photo Gift Ideas: 6 Ways to Put the Dog on Something Useful
Six pet photo gift ideas that get the dog off your phone and onto things people use, with an honest catch for each one.