Hi,

I built a small project that combines hand-painted oil paintings with interactive digital stories.

Here’s how it works:

You order a custom or ready-made oil painting.

You (or the buyer) upload photos, audio, or short videos related to the painting or the story behind it.

The site generates a QR code that links to this private story page.

I print the QR code on a physical tag and ship it together with the painting.

When the painting is given as a gift (or kept for yourself), anyone can scan the QR code and see the background story, media, or memory attached to it.

This makes a static painting into an interactive story gift — blending physical art with digital memories.

Possible use cases:

Travel memories: capture a beautiful landscape, add your voice note from that moment, and gift it as a painting.

Pet portraits: preserve a pet’s life story with photos and videos alongside the artwork.

Family moments: record warm times at home and make them part of a physical heirloom.

Personal gifts: add a story for a friend, partner, or loved one that only they can unlock.

Physical tags: the QR doesn’t have to be just for paintings — it could be a dog tag (front: photo, back: QR), or a magnetic tag you attach to objects at home.

Links:

Service homepage: https://sendstories.zingandzap.com

Demo story: https://sendstories.zingandzap.com/story/9f0cb724-aef0-4a2d-...

Guide: https://sendstories.zingandzap.com/guide

Feedback I’d love to hear:

Does this kind of interactive gift feel valuable or just a gimmick?

I’ve only implemented this as an extension of my oil painting website — do you think it could stand alone as a separate product/service for others?

Suggestions for improvements, new use cases, or physical formats (tags, magnets, dog collars, etc.).

Thanks for reading, and I’d really appreciate your thoughts!

Show HN: Turn oil paintings into interactive story gifts