Label Printing Programs

[sab]

How you all doing guys, Anyone know of any label printing programs that I can download from the net to make for my beer bottles.

Cheers.

Sab

 

[Kai]

What sort of labels are you after, sab? Full-blown commercial style labels, or simpler labels to help you identify your brew?

The former, you'll need a good graphics editing program, the latter MS Word and a pack of Avery labels.

 

[tangent]

sorry it's not much use,
but labels are 1 avenue i explored and i'm glad i stopped
you spend extra time bottling which sucks at the best of times and in the end you soak everything off when you clean the bottles, which makes the whole process suck even more

my resulting path has been,
bottling with champagne bottles and tirage (big) caps
(with a small felt tip you can write a sentence on each one) but I just write, say.. "pale ale 8" style/month bottled - on 1/3rd of the brew and the rest "PA8"
but i'm lazy

if i give someone a gift of beer -
and some people go nanas over a handcrafted champagne bottle full of malty ale, especially poms and yanks - sorry if that offends
then i print out a nice label and hold it to the bottle with a rubber band.
sounds a bit poxy but if you make it look handcrafted (like the beer) it's actually a pretty cool package
and it SURE beats a fish bin full of hot water and soggy paper.

for your printings needs, try a seach for shareware on Tucows maybe....

 

[Kai]

tangent,

what I do is buy the avery labels that come 33 to a sheet. takes a few minutes to design and print out the labels for a batch, and is quicker and easier than trying to squeeze the info into the cap.

I don't bother removing them between brews either, they fall off on their own after 4 or 5 have been stuck on.

 

[PhilS]

How about having a rubber stamp made to fit the crown top? You may need a few that can be changed like those date stamps, but worth a thought.

 

[sab]

Cheers kai, Got the missus on ms word now designing a label for my brews.

Sab.

 

[Kai]

Careful sab, those graphic designers can charge a fair bit per hour.

 

[redbeard]

I gave a mate some crownies about 10 years ago to cement his interest a lot of them still have my labels on them. he just scrawls on the cap. i almost had him switch to kegs recently ... almost

 

[spog]

yeah, been down the label printing lane myself but discovered it,s a bit like being in the navy. a pain in the arse.

 

[sab]

All done Kai, had a few sheets of avery paper lying around.Sure as hell beats writing them out looks great too,Yes Im sure it will cost me something.

 

[Franko]

I prefer to use photoshop and print on good quality paper for a few of em
I dont do many now its easier to use avery labels for large beer batches

 

[jimmyjack]

When i used to bottle i printed on little round avery labels for the caps identifing date brewed and name of batch. It wasnt pretty but it distinguished which beer i was drinking.

 

[peas_and_corn]

For identifying what batch it is, I do something very simple- I just put the number of the brew on the cap in permanent marker. My current batch is the 7th I have made (yeah, I'm only starting...) so on the cap will be the number 7. I keep a sheet of paper on my fridge door with batch numbers and corresponding beers, but I tend to remember what number=what beers anyway. Simple yet effective.

 

[Batz]

I think sab was talking about labels for those special beers

I like to label a few bottles now and then , rarely bottle anyway.

Things like the Xmas case

Batz

 

[vlbaby]

I have used PrintMaster Platinum for my labels and it works really well.

I'd like to find some better self adhesive labels than the ones i've been using. Something with a gloss finish instead of the matt finish that i've been using.

Does anyone know where to get these?


vlbaby.

 

[T.D.]

I have thought about using a small round stamp. I think the biggest problem is that the ink would rub off. I don't know if you can get different types of ink in those things - ie more permanent than the regular stuff. It woyuld make life very easy though if it worked!

 

[Uncle Fester]

labels are 1 avenue i explored and i'm glad i stopped
you spend extra time bottling which sucks at the best of times and in the end you soak everything off when you clean the bottles, which makes the whole process suck even more

[post="79984"][/post]​

I use the Avery program to produce the labels, but print onto normal paper. Then I use a (an?) UHU glue stick to glue the label to the bottle. Water soluble, and the label comes off easily and cleanly when I clean the bottles after drinking.

Hope that helps??

M

 

[Jagungal]

Avery type labels work great for me. They are very cheap and I have a template set up in Open Office - each time I need a new one I just adjust the template text and look. They are just printed out on a black and white laser and stuck on the bottles.

I suppose a lot of my home brew get sampled by others. Having a nice label makes it look good both when someone samples it and when it is sitting on the shelf. The avery labels also come off very easy, so there is never a washing drama.

I have done the scratch and mark the caaps in the past - not a lot of room to write anything, it sometimes wipes off and you never remember exactly when that scribble on the cap actually meant.

 

[PeterS]

I make three labels only for all my batches, the rest are marked by a batch number on the cap. The label template can be used in Microsoft Word to change your wording and is kindly made available by Doc. A copy can be obtained by going to the additions site of www.Beersmith.com.

View attachment Doc1.doc

 

[bindi]

yeah, been down the label printing lane myself but discovered it,s a bit like being in the navy. a pain in the arse.

[post="80001"][/post]​

:angry: I happen to know of a few ex Navy guys on this site [me included, I did 20yrs] and NO pain in the arse in this lot, only a swift kick in the arse for people who say this sort of rubbish to their face, now that's a pain. :blink: Calm and cool B)
Anyway, I gave up labels a long time back [and kegging also] I am away alot [like the next] week fishing and boating so labels and kegs ..well you know, I just write the batch on the lids or colour code for the trip.