A hand written journal is another choice if you are only
doing a few for a gift or as a tribute to someone. This involves getting family
members to write their favorite recipes or memories into a journal that is given
to someone for a particular occasion. If the book is going to have to travel
across the country and to several different families, make sure to start early
to insure you get it back in time, don’t forget to add in the time for the mail
as you figure the schedule. I’d include instructions, postage and mailing
instructions just to make it easier for everyone. If the book were going to
several families or a dozen, I’d also include a list with the address of whom
the journal is to be sent to next so that the book can make its rounds. Make
sure to send a note ahead of time or telephone to let them know the journal is
coming and make sure someone will be home to receive it so that it gets sent on
its way again. If the book is for a wedding gift, you might have family members
add personal notes of tips for a successful marriage.
The last option we looked at was to do it all ourselves. I formatted the recipes
in Word. I used the scanner for all photos and hand written recipe cards that we
were using. The choice I decided on was to print it all myself on a laser
printer. To print all 50 copies took just over 50 hours of nonstop printing. The
cookbook was formatted to be 6 x 9 inches, printed both front and back. It was
printed on 32 lb. paper. I had the book cut down to the 6 x 9 inch size I had
selected after printing. I decided that if the book were left to the original 8
x 11.5 size it would be too bulky. After we collated them I knew that was a wise
decision. I designed the cover and copied that to a floppy disc and I had the
copy place print the cover in color on a heavy vinyl paper. It was bound with a
plastic comb and has a vinyl back. Average cost was $20.00 a book, not exactly
the cheapest method but I am very pleased with it. Okay, I heard some of you
gasp! Our book included almost 275 recipes, 100 history pages and almost 400
photos so in the end it was much more than recipes. It was adding so many photos
that really drove up the price. This method I felt gave me the most control of
how the book would look when it was finished.
You could also just print one copy and then have additional copies made from
their original copy. This way the place copying the book will also collate it
for you. It will be less time consuming and should be cheaper than the costs I
accrued. It of course will depend on the size of your cookbook.
Once I decided on how the book was to be printed and where, I worked with the
same person at the store until the book was completed. They helped me with the
page formatting and gave suggestions along the way. You might want to bring
along a plate of homemade cookies each time you go there, it helped!
