digital scrapbook and cookbook

[Pine Tree]

I am totally lost, but I sort of have an idea for a Christmas gift, but I desparately need the expertise of all you craft-savvy women!!!

Background: My MIL is from Italy and is a wonderful cook. Family celebrations really centre around food, but I've sort of noticed that my SILs and my DH don't make many of the traditional dishes, and in fact none of us even know how to make some of the more complicated.

At first I thought maybe I could type up some of the recipes, but then I thought it might be nice to actually make a keepsake cookbook for everyone.

My thought is that maybe I could do it as a digital scrapbook and then get it printed. Does this make sense? Any suggestions for software or how to do this? How to get it printed etc...? I've never done anything like this before. My MIL is wonderful, and it seems like this would also be a way that I could thank her for making me feel like such a part of the family.

Any suggestions/ideas/advice would be greatly appreciated!!!!!

[Brandles]

OMG--I'm doing the SAME thing!!! :D I've been collecting recipes for close to 3 years now. I'm trying to get at least one from every family member. I'm also including memories--and I'm working on them now.

My Grandma was one of three girls. There are 9 in her family. There are 5 in one sister's family. There are 26 in another sister's and TOO MANY to count (over 40) in another's. I sent letters out and talked to others and sent emails to others. I give updates 4 times a year via email. I've set up a LJ site for it as well...though no one's replied or is a member. It's a job. I'm into the "I don't have any recipes or memories from you yet," bugging stage.

There have been several recipes that weren't written down. I have them now. I didn't want the recipes to get lost. When you lose a parent early like I did, you find you lose your past. This way, at least recipes and memories will be here.

When it's all done and ready to go to the printer's, I do plan to take orders for them. I'm not going to charge them over a $1 or $2 more than what I have to pay. I have a co-worker who did this (where I got the idea from) and her family LOVED it and several bought more than one copy and bought them for wedding gifts.

So far, I have 226 recipes. I'm still collecting. I have many memories (mostly my own). I'm pushing for them now. I'm typing them all up in Word. I even printed out business cards with my name and email address on them and something that says, "I'm still accepting recipes and memories." I've handed them out to family members at holidays.

I'd look in your yellow pages for publishers. If any of your local churches publish cookbooks, talk to them. Our church did one last year and in the back there was a card about making your own cookbook. I like the format--a 3 ring binder that lays flat.

Here's the address on the card:

Morris Press Cookbooks
P.O. Box 2110
Kearney, NE 68848-9985

And I found a website:

http://www.morriscookbooks.com/

I'm going to subscribe to this thread! Good luck! :)

[Owl]

Hey, I don't know if you have an Archiver's near you, but they just announced a new photo book service where you design your pages digitally and they print them into a hard bound book.

eta: Here's the link http://www.archiversonline.com/pps/photobooks.asp

It looks like you might be able to order it online?

[MSH]

This is such a neat idea I might just have to do this myself.

[Brandles]

I decided to do it after seeing an old co-worker's family cookbook. Then, I got to thinking that there are SO MANY of those recipes that aren't written down--but in the person's head. And we've already lost too many family members and their recipes. I figured I'd do it even if I had to print them out myself and just put them in 3 ring binders!

That reminds me...I need to get another email out before Christmas. That's how I keep the family members updated...and I have a LJ community (Family Cookbook...I think...if you want to check it out). I also use Christmas cards to remind everyone. I put a little note in saying something like, "I'm still collecting recipes and memories for the family cookbook. Please keep the cookbook in mind this season when you're making your familys' favorite dishes. I'm now concentrating on memories. You can email recipes and memories to me at XXX@XXX.com."