Artkive vs. Plum Print: Which Makes the Best Kids’ Art Books?
- Rodnesha Green
- May 9, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
Keeping track of art for kids can overwhelm even the most organized parent. Painted suns, glittery collages, and stick-figure families are exciting to receive, at first. But, the art piles up very quickly and ultimately ends up in a drawer or storage bin.
Artkive and Plum Print, transform those piles into polished keepsakes. Both turn original kids art into beautiful art books and other products, but they differ in process, price, and options. Below, we compare them on ease of use, pricing, product range, and customer feedback so you can choose the best fit for your family.
The Artkive Box at a Glance: Art Books Made Your Little Ones
Artkive is a leader in turning children’s artwork into elevated, personalized books and framed mosaics. Founded in 2012, Artkive offers a truly hands-off, white-glove experience. The company sends a pre-labeled artwork box, professionally photographs every piece, and designs the final layout.
Because Artkive began as an app, the service includes digital storage of your professionally edited children's art. This is ideal for duplicating memory books or creating personalized kids books as gifts for grandparents. These artwork boxes make decluttering easy while protecting every masterpiece in transit.
Key Features
Ease of Use: Artkive’s process is simple. You receive a pre-paid box to fill with your child’s our child’s creations. When it's full, send it in - no sorting or scanning required.
Digital Storage: Your online gallery makes it simple to reorder the memory books you love. Use your digital access to build custom print artbooks, and create gift versions for siblings or relatives.
Product Options: You can choose between archival-quality kids artwork books or framed mosaics. Books come complete with age/grade labels and artwork captions courtesy of the user-friendly book builder tool.
Pricing: Books start at $75 for a 25-page 11"×8.5" hardcover; pricing scales per additional art piece.
Artkive Reviews Summary
Parents consistently praise Artkive’s premium look and concierge-style service. Some reviews mention the premium costs and wait times as. a drawback, but this is because each book is custom-made. Overall, many customers feel the craftsmanship, and the joy of a clutter-free home, justify the investment. Artkive's finished product also makes for one of the best coffee table books at showcasing childhood creativity.
Why Use Plum Print?
Plum Print focuses on transforming children’s artwork into books, with additional options for products like pillows, canvas prints. Like Artkive, Plum Print offers a convenient, hands-off process where parents send in their child’s artwork. Plum Print reviews from real users highlight the fast process and hand-designed layouts.
Key Features
Ease of Use: Similar to Artkive, you mail your child's art in their kit; Plum Print processes and photographs each piece.
Product Options: Beyond books, shoppers appreciate the range—pillows, prints, and framed pieces can complement your book on the shelf.
Customization: You can’t directly edit the proof as you can with the Artkive book builder. But, you may request up to four minor changes or pay $20 per 5–10 edits.
Pricing: A 25-page 10"×8" hardcover begins around $188 (this includes a $49.99 initial deposit). By comparison, Artkive’s $75 Artkive book price does not include the $39 deposit to ship the pre-paid box. But, even when combined Plum Print's total price exceeds that of Artkive.
Plum Print Reviews Summary
Plum Print reviews frequently praise the range of products and options. Users enjoy the variety and the uniqueness of items like pillows, which can be a nice addition to a book. However, some Plum Print reviews mention inconsistencies in quality, especially for larger orders or less traditional products.
Overall, customers are mostly pleased with their experience. However, some reviewers suggest that new customers check out samples or place smaller orders their first time.
Conclusion for Plum Print vs. Artkive
Both companies turn a jumble of drawings into polished memory books. Artkive stands out for its app-backed gallery, meticulous photography, and design control. This is great for families who want sleek, personalized books that look and feel premium.
Plum Print is a touch faster and offers more non-book items, which can be fun for unique gifts. Given that Plum Print’s book pricing is higher, budget-savvy parents might want to consider choosing Artkive. Then use savings for rush processing if time is a factor.
In either case, your child’s creations will be carefully preserved and transformed into beautiful volumes of personalized kids books that will become cherished family mementos for years to come.
Does The Artkive Box feel like the best fit for your family?