Quick answer: a locket is a pendant necklace that opens to hold a small photo or keepsake inside — the personalised piece of jewellery you wear to keep someone close. Photo lockets come in heart, oval and round shapes; you fit a tiny cropped photo (usually smaller than a postage stamp) behind the inner frame. This guide explains what a locket is, the types, and exactly how to get a photo into one. Updated 3 July 2026.
We hand-engrave photo lockets in our family workshop, and the questions we're asked most aren't about price — they're “what actually is a locket?” and “how do I get a photo into it?” Here are clear answers to both, from people who make them.
What is a locket?
A locket is a pendant that opens on a small hinge to reveal a compartment inside, traditionally used to hold a photograph, a lock of hair, or a tiny keepsake. It hangs on a chain as a necklace. Unlike an ordinary pendant, the whole point of a locket is that it opens — it carries something private on the inside, which is what has made lockets a keepsake of choice for well over a century.
A photo locket (also searched as a “picture locket” or “photo necklace”) is simply a locket designed to frame one or two photographs behind a small clear window or inside the opening lid. When people ask “what are the necklaces that you put pictures in called?” or “what is a necklace with a picture inside called?” — the answer is a locket, or more specifically a photo locket.
Types of locket
- Heart locket — the classic romantic shape, the most popular for partners and for “I love you” gifts.
- Oval locket — the traditional vintage silhouette; holds a slightly taller photo, flattering for a single portrait.
- Round locket — clean and modern; the easiest shape to crop a face into.
- Engraved locket — any of the above with a name, initials, date or short message engraved on the outside. This is where a personalised piece pulls ahead of a shop-bought one: the outside says who it's for, the inside holds who it's about.
Browse our personalised locket & jewellery collection to see the shapes we make, or the gift-focused round-up of our best personalised photo lockets.
How to get a photo into a locket
This is the step that stops most people — and it's genuinely simple once you know the trick: the photo has to be cropped to the exact shape and size of the locket's inner frame before you print it. Here's the method we use:
- Measure the inside, not the outside. Open the locket and measure the interior opening (the frame the photo sits behind), not the pendant's outer edge. It's almost always smaller than people expect — typically about the size of a small postage stamp or less.
- Crop to the shape. Crop your photo to match — heart, oval or round — centring the face. On a phone, use the crop tool; for a heart or oval, crop to a rectangle slightly larger than the opening and trim the corners after printing.
- Print small and glossy. A tiny image loses detail fast, so start from a sharp, well-lit original and print on glossy photo paper for contrast. Home printers work; a photo-print service gives crisper small prints.
- Trim and seat it. Cut just inside your crop line so the photo tucks fully behind the frame, then press it in. If the locket has a clear cover disc, the photo sits under it.
When you order a personalised locket from us, tell us it's for a photo and we'll make sure the piece is ready to take your chosen picture — and we'll confirm the interior dimensions so you crop it right the first time.
Lockets vs. “hidden picture” and projection necklaces
One thing worth clearing up: a photo locket is not the same as a photo-projection necklace. A locket physically holds a printed photo you can open and see. A projection necklace hides an image inside a tiny lens that you view by looking through it, or shine light through — a modern novelty, not a keepsake you can open. If you want the timeless piece someone opens to find a real photo inside, that's a locket.
Frequently asked questions
What is a locket necklace?
A locket necklace is a pendant on a chain that opens to hold a small photo or keepsake inside. It's worn like any necklace, but its defining feature is the hinged compartment — you open it to reveal what's kept within, which is why lockets are given as sentimental and memorial keepsakes.
How do you get a picture in a locket necklace?
Crop the photo to the exact shape of the locket's inner frame (heart, oval or round), print it small on glossy paper, trim just inside the crop line, and press it in behind the frame. Measure the interior opening first — it's usually smaller than a postage stamp, so the photo must be sized to fit before printing.
Are lockets still fashionable?
Yes — lockets have had a clear revival, precisely because they do something no trend-piece can: they carry a personal photo or keepsake. As gifting shifts toward meaningful, personalised jewellery over generic accessories, the locket's whole reason for existing — holding someone close — keeps it firmly in style.
What is a necklace with a hidden picture called?
If it opens to reveal a printed photo, it's a locket (or photo locket). If the image is concealed inside a lens you look through or project with light, that's a photo-projection necklace — a different, more modern product. For a keepsake you can physically open, you want a locket.
What kind of gift is a photo locket?
A photo locket is a keepsake gift — ideal for partners, mums, grandmothers and in memory of a loved one. Engraved on the outside with a name or date and holding a photo inside, it's one of the most personal pieces of jewellery you can give. See our personalised locket gift ideas for occasions.
Written by the makers at The Craft House Gift — a family leather & jewellery engraving workshop in Bulgaria, shipping personalised photo lockets across the EU and UK. Last updated: 3 July 2026.
Related guides:
Related: what do bracelets mean? symbolism & personalised meaning.
Are lockets still fashionable?
Yes. Lockets have stayed in style precisely because they do something trend jewellery can’t — they hold a real photo of someone you love, which makes them personal rather than seasonal. As a sentimental keepsake and a personalised gift, a photo locket is a lasting choice, not a passing trend. Browse our personalised photo lockets.
