We'll be honest, it's not often we get orders from men wanting to bind memories into a book. Men may save things, sure, but it's typically the moms, wives, and daughters who gather it all up and send it in. We're not going to make a judgment about it, it's just the way it is.
So when we received an order from Thomas for a book he titled "30 Years of Christmas", we were intrigued. About a week later, a thin package of 30 sheets of paper arrived.
It was letters. Every year, from 1986 to 2016 his wife, Erika, typed out an annual Christmas letter for friends and family, then saved a copy in a folder. No, not a computer folder. An actual manila folder. And there, in a file cabinet, these letters sat until recently, when his granddaughter, Katherine, discovered 4everBound Books online and thought this would be a fantastic way to create a family keepsake for her grandmother.
We can tell that Erika's first few letters were written on a typewriter. And some even had hand-drawn artwork at the top.
It may not have been Erika's plan when she saved these letters, but when you read them chronologically, they create a historical narrative of their family, year after year, the ups and downs, for three decades. Children graduated school, got married, grandchildren were born. The letters reminisce about vacations they took, health complications, moves, even flood, and fire.
We don't have time to read through all the letters in the detail, nor would we, but as we are preparing papers and binding them into a hardcover book, certain sentences do jump out, and it became clear that what was originally just a collection of annual update letters, is now a beautiful collection of family history.
Thomas ordered the Sentiment size 4everBound Book, which holds 1/2 inch stack of papers. If it's children's artwork, it's typically 30 pages. But, if it's just regular copy paper/letter stock, it can hold up to 75 pages.
Our books include two lines of foil print personalization on the front cover. Then we permanently bind the pages into the hardcover book using a three-step thermal adhesive process, so the pages will not come undone.
The end result is a very simple, yet very meaningful keepsake to treasure and then pass on.
Do you have similar letters or family history you want to get out of a drawer and into a book? We can make a custom book for you, just email us and let us know how many pages you would like to have bound and we can direct to from there.
You can learn more about our books by clicking here.
Questions? Email orders@4everBound.com
We look forward to helping you make memorable gifts with one of our 4everBound books.
