Category: INTERVIEWS

Quotations and thanks of our customers having received their “blooks”

Paige printed the blook of her love story!

Posted on by Team Blookup

Today, we wanted to tell you about one of the best and most beautiful blogger story we’ve ever heard. Paige met Trevor, and started blogging about it but she wanted to offer him a gift that would last forever… So she printed her blog into a book with BlookUp and revealed the surprise on their wedding day! We met Paige, and she will tell you all about her love story in a blook…

  • First, tell us about yourself…

I am a newlywed living in Arizona, where I have lived most of my life.  I work in finance at Intel Corporation.

  • What is your blog about?

I created my blog in 2014 as a Valentine’s Day present to my then boyfriend, now husband.  Before we started dating, I had kept a blog, recording my daily happenings for my family and friends near and far. I stopped blogging around the time I met him in August 2013, and he told me later that year, that he wished I had kept blogging, so we could look back someday and remember all of our early moments (we knew we were each other’s “one” from nearly the first date!).  So starting in mid-January 2014, I secretly created the blog, each page dedicated to a day in our “history,” documenting both big moments like our first kiss and smaller ones, like screenshots of cute texts to one another.  I wanted to write down every single detail of our earliest days, so that we’d never forget. In the two months between when I started my late night blogging and Valentine’s Day, I wrote out our nearly six month history, day-by-day!  It was the most meaningful gift I have ever given. 

Two people on the left and one screenshot of a converstaion on the right

  • Why did you decide to print your blog?

Each year since I created the blog, beginning on the day we met (which is when the blog starts), we’ve re-read our history together real-time, as the days pass.  It’s a fun tradition and one that we want to continue forever.  Given the uncertainties with only having a copy of our history online, I wanted to make sure we had a permanent copy of our history to outlast us and pass onto our future children someday.  So on our wedding day, I gave my husband the blook!

  • How did you find out about BlookUp?

I found BlookUp after lots & lots of Google-ing on the internet, regarding how to get my blog published as a hard copy book.

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  • What are the positive and negative points of the making of your blook?

BlookUp was the only publisher I found that included both the text and images from the original blog.  Most sites pulled in only the text, but the images were critical to my own blog. BlookUp also allowed me to edit the text, as needed.  One drawback though was that it pulled in the text as run-on paragraphs, without a space in-between. It required a lot of editing work to separate out the paragraphs! BlookUp also had the most customizable cover options, but when I uploaded the cover I created outside of BlookUp (since the options offered didn’t allow placement of text on top of an image; only a text or full-image cover was offered), it kept uploading in poor quality despite the image being taken with a DSLR. I couldn’t figure this out!  So the cover of the blook is a bit pixelated—oh well!  It’s the content that matters inside 🙂

  • What does your family and friends think about your Story blook?

Everyone loves it—our parents, friends, and family never even know the blog existed in the first place (since it was a private gift, meant for just the two of us), so to see it published now as a book was a big surprise for everyone.  It’s already a treasured heirloom and it has only existed for a month!  Our wedding photographer—rated as one of the top 50 best photographers in the US—said he has never seen such a special, meaningful gift. He was nearly as floored as my husband!

  • Would you recommend BlookUp?

Absolutely!  We’ve already ordered more copies of the original blook and look forward to creating blooks from any future blogs!

A couple holding during their wedding day holding the book of their story

Thank you very much Paige it was such a pleasure hearing your beautiful story and we are proud to be (a little) part of it! All our team wishes you all the happiness in the world 🙂

Carla printed the book of her Instagram and her blog!

Posted on by Team Blookup

  • Introduce yourself in a few words 

In 2014, Carla (the mother) and Mona (the daughter) cross the Atlantic Ocean to put down their 4 luggages and their 2 pair of flip-flops in Guadeloupe… The dad arrives later! That’s the beginning of the story… Wishes for change, discovery and later a transfer brings us to Guadeloupe. Not far away from 40 years old and just 10 for my daughter, it was the right time to throw ourselves into this new adventure, open up to a different culture, live under new latitudes and most of all fulfill a dream…

  • What are your Instagram account and your blog about? 

Before coming to Guadeloupe we had to thought about the different ways to stay in touch with our loved ones, share our daily life and also justify choices!
My passion for photography led me of course to Instagram and the blog (my main blog 1idée.net is more about photography and wasn’t appropriate for this adventure). On Instagram I’ve decided to publish one picture a day on our first year: a quick way to share our daily life, a track for those that are far away, to not loose contact and share news in a picture, a little heart, a few words… (and of course have some news about friends and family thanks to this method). But with Instagram I’ve also been able to discover places that you don’t take time to explore unless you live there, touch other users of the social network, share, discover, exchange… And I still do all that!
The blog2pairedetongs is kind of a journal, or a way to send news to those we left behind without spending hours to write emails… The blog is the track of our discoveries, the first feelings and impressions, it’s also the album that we share online with our loved ones! And it encourages our friends to come and discover the island 😉

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  • Why did you decide to turn your Instagram account or your blog into a book? 

It seemed important to me that having a “material track” of my Instagram account and my blog, an album that you can read again whenever you want, an everlasting memory…. We keep this book in our bookshelf and we read it everytime with a great pleasure, seeing how far we’ve come and it’s not over! I’ve offered the book of my blog to my daughter, so that she can keep track of our adventure overseas… Adventure that continues and delights us every day!

I’ve nown Blookup wandering on the internet, Twitter and I’ve immediately thought about my Instagram account. When I received it, I loved it and I ordered the book of my blog!

  • What are the positive points of the platform? 

It’s very quick and easy, in a few clicks the book is made and shipped in just a few days! Including overseas… Furthermore, the package arrives in excellent shape.

  • How did you find the final result? 

The final result is good! Just a little thing that wasn’t so great regarding the layout, sometimes the captions and the pictures are not on the same page… Some pictures are a little dark but the global quality is very good!

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  • What do your friends and family think about your books? 

They’ve find the idea excellent and pleasant, it’s like a “travel journal” in a book! My daughter really likes to read those books, and remember those good times! So mission accomplished!!

Yes, I recommend BlookUp of course! And I will make more volumes!

Thank you very much Carla for this testimony and your feedback that will allow us to improve our service and satisfy our users! Did you like this article? Make your own customised book right here: let’s go!

Meeting with Frank, a basket lover and a blooker!

Posted on by wsb

Two men on a basketball court

  • Tell us about yourself

Passionate about basket but also about writing, I opened Hoop Diary 7 years ago. First, it was a blog hosted on the website basketsession, and it was one of the “star blogs”. Then, the website was closed and I’ve created Hoop Diary on WordPress, to save all my writings.

I’m still very invested in the basket’s world, as a trainer after being Development Director for a minor ligue.

  • What is your blog about?

The first posts was really about my experience as a player and as a trainer, and my thoughts about it. My blog also contains videos of my trainings, it allows me to keep them somewhere.

Then, I’ve wanted to share stories around Toulouse’s basket, before they were forgotten. Finally, Hoop Diary became the website for all the pyrenean basket, some of my posts were shared on other websites.

At last, there are many categories on my blog, including “les routards du basket” (I retrace the steps of big players), “Hoop” (where I highlight picturest grounds). This last category gave birth to my Instagram account.

  • Why did you decide to print your  basketball blog?

I’ve always been fascinated by books, in general. A furnished library is the most valuable thing in my house! Print my blog was the chance for me to keep a paper track of my writings and give body to them thanks to the book. I also intend to publish my own book one day, about the pyrenean basket’s history.

  • How did you know BlookUp?

Thanks to a Valentine’s Day gift! My wife printed my Instagram account, and then I had my blog printed. She’s a blogger too, that’s how she discovered BlookUp.

  • What are the positive points?

The possibility to sort, organize the posts. It’s very easy.

A book with basketball instagram pictures

  • How can we improve our service?

More choices for the covers (colors, photos…). Some posts were in two different categories, so it was a little hard to classify them.

  • What do you think of your basketball blook?

The result is good, with quality paper. Regarding the Instagram blook, I think it’s perfect!

A book with instagram basketball pictures

  • What does your family think about your basketball blook?

The feedbacks are very positive, it gives a new life to my blog and allows them to dive into the posts again!

  • Would your recommend BlookUp?

Yes I would recommend BlookUp, and I will certainly make another blook in a while!

Two backcovers of basketball picture books

Record : Pauline printed 17 books thanks to BlookUp !

Posted on by wsb

Today we are proud to announce that we have broken a little personal record: the number of books ordered in a single time on our website ! Pauline achieved this, with 17 beautiful travel blooks, that she will share with her whole family thanks to our BlookShop. So, now she’s going to tell us a little more about her adventure…

  • Tell us about yourself:

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A GUY : Benoît, 28 years old, golf geek and crazy about football !

A GIRL : Pauline, 26 years old, auditor and pastry chef !

  • What is your blog about?

Since life is beautiful,
Since “life is short”,
Since nothing from the “grown-ups world” held us back in France (no property, no baby…),
Since spanish is such a beautiful language and it’s so classy to be bilingual,
Since we are thirsty for adventures and life experiences,
Since this project was our dream,
Since it has been on our minds for a long time,
Since there is no “perfect time”,

==> We have decided to go on an 11 months trip in Latin America, and to share it with all our family and friends in a blog !

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  • Why have you decided to print your blog?

Honestly, we have put all our heart and a lot of energy into this blog! It has really been our travel journal, where we wrote all our impressions, everything that we felt, discovered, saw… So imagining loose it the day where we would no longer pay for the domain name, it broke my heart : we had to find a solution!

A traveller friend told me that her cousin (who is a designer) made her a surprise and printed her blog when she came home, and I thought it was great!

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  • How did you know BlookUp?

I simply asked the question to Google “how to print your blog?” -thank goodness he’s here!- and BlookUp was the first answer, but also the most satisfying offer. So I’ve jumped on the occasion !

  • What are the perks of BlookUp?

*BlookUp allows you to print your blog, with a minimum work regarding the page setting

*customer service is fast, effective and professional

*the printing and delivery are fast and high quality

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  • What are the downsides?

Let’s say “axis for improvement” :

*give the choice of a smaller font

*allow more flexibility in the page setting

*maybe speed up the making of the blooks

  • What do you think about the making and the organization of your blook?

The platform is very easy to use! There’s no need to download a program on your computer, everything is online! You can select exactly which post you want to publish or not, and work on the page setting. Furthermore, the “Help” section is very well documented and explains all the features on the website!

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  • How do you find the final result?

Very beautiful and very professional!

  • What are the opinions of your family?

All the family thought this idea was great, be able to read our adventures on a “more conventional” support than the internet, keeping a material memory… And so we have a full pre-order list !

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Thank you to Pauline for granting us her confidence, and we leave you with the beautiful picture of this order ready to meet its recipient!

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Minh-Tho gives us her opinion about the creation of her blook

Posted on by wsb

The BlookUp Team had the pleasure to exchange with Minh-Tho, who has realized a book based on her blog and has agreed to share her opinion with our community. She tells us everything about he printing of her pretty blook !

  • Tell us about you 
    My name is Minh-Tho PHAM. I have a master’s degree in marketing-communication-advertising since october 2014, and I am currently studying to become a web writer.

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  • What is your blog about?
    « How to survive in Paris » is a generalist and eclectic blog about the parisian life and other subjects that I care about. Its particularity is that it is written in english and read by internet users all around the world. I’m passionate about creative writing, and I’m the author of around thirty poems and novels. My poems are the metaphorical expression of my emotions at a time, or causes that are close to my heart. My novels are mostly romantics and have generally a connection to Paris.
  • Why did you decide to print your blog?
    My poems and novels are unique creations and I wanted to keep a material track of my writings. I’ve chosen to print a collection of 18 poems, and another collection of 16 novels just to enjoy having them in the form of a book and to share them with my family and a larger audience.
  • How did you know BlookUp?
    The idea to make one or several books from my blog has been running through my mind for several months. I just made a research on the internet and BlookUp was one of the rare websites to be compatible with my WordPress platform, so I’ve decided to take the plunge.
  • What are the good things about BlookUp?
    The copyrights belong to the author of the blog which the book came from. You only pay for the copies you wish to purchase. The import of the blog datas is quickly enough and the creation of the blook is very easy. You create yourself your biography, your cover photo and back cover. You have the final say about the creation of your blook from the start until the end of the process. Finally, you can choose to make your blook public and sell it on the BlookShop of BlookUp, you can set your selling price and so the margin you’re going to get for each sale of your blook.
  • What are the downsides about BlookUp?
    You can’t adjust the pictures or change their size. When you create your blook, if your blog is too big you have to select each post from the beginning, which can be tiresome.
  • What do you think about the making and the organization of your blook?
    The making and organization of the blook can be easy and quick, if you only have one photo per article and a blog that’s not too big, ideally around fifteen articles. The preview of the final result is also a great help when you make your blook.
  • What do you thing about your final book ?
    I’m very happy to have material copies of my favorites writings. The printing of the pages is very clear and beautiful, it gives a satisfying result. The cover photo I’ve chosen is a little bit pixelated, but aside from that, there’s nothing wrong. The books are beautiful, lights and you can take them wherever you go !
  • What’s the opinion of your relatives?
    My relatives support me and ordered several copies. They are happy that I get to realize a project that I care about.
  • Why did you decide to make your blook public in our Blookshop? What do you think of this option that we offer?
    I wanted that my book could be ordered by an audience as large as possible. Having your blook online gives it more credit and gives a professional aspect to the sale. Furthermore, you get to choose the price and the margin you’re going to get on the sales of your blook. So it’s a win-win !

Thanks a lot to you Minh-Tho for sharing your opinion with us ! You can also buy her blook “How to survive in Paris” in our BlookShop right here.

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Emma printed her blog with BlookUp : her opinion

Posted on by wsb

Emma owns a cooking blog. She shares all of her recipes with her readers. She chose BlookUp to print her blog and turn it into a book to keep all of her recipes.

  • Hello Emma, let’s introduce yourself !

My name is Emma and I work in the medical field. I love the Internet, it was made for curious people like me !

  • What is your blog about ? Why did you decide to print your blog ?

The story of my blook is kind of special. My blog actually doesn’t exist anymore. I created it ten years ago, because my friends and family always wanted me to share my recipes with them. Instead of writing it on a paper everytime, I thought it was a good idea to created a website. I actually wanted my friends to share their recipes too, so I gave them the login and pass words. But they never did it. Anyway, I decided to keep on sharing mine though.

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  • How did you discover BlookUp ?

I discovered BlookUp on a blog post. I didn’t know it was possible to print your blog… and it was the perfect way for me to keep all of my recipes before my blog disappears !

  • What did you like about BlookUp ?

BlookUp interface is very easy to use. The final book is really beautiful and good quality !

  • What did your friends and family think about your blook ?

They loved it ! They think the idea of printing a blog is really nice, and they love to read my recipes on a real book instead of on the Internet.

  • This is not the first time you print your blog with BlookUp. Why did you chose to print it again ?

The only reason is… I have been asked to ! I printed 3 blooks for each fo my daughters and then I realized I forgot to print one for me ! Cooking with a book is definitely better than with a webpage. Then, my friends and family asked my to print one for them…

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