When you think about kitchen necessities, it’s easy to land on the basics, like a stove, sink, and fridge. But, there are some hidden gems that make you wonder how you ever went a day without them.
Cue: Recipe cards!
Recipe cards are truly the gifts that keep on giving. Why offer someone a single enchilada casserole when they can make Abuela’s recipe for life?
And, if you’re not into gifting food concepts, you can learn how to make recipe cards as a means of staying organized and uniform in the kitchen, while maintaining any design aesthetic.
Whatever your motive, we’ve got tons of nifty design ideas for any recipe card in any kitchen.
Let’s get started.
How to Make Recipe Cards with a Recipe Card Maker
Tired of searching for your recipe cards when you just need to know how much butter to throw in that brownie pan? Or, maybe your recipe cards exist at the ready, but they’re stained, worn, blurry, and, well, ancient?
Not to fear! You can easily make your own recipe cards with a recipe card maker to preserve any one of Mom’s legendary dishes while updating the design and organizational elements. Win-win-win!
Make Your Own Recipe Cards Fast
Unlike other design projects, recipe cards are smaller and, therefore, easier to design in a jiff. Here’s how:
- Open up a blank canvas or choose a recipe template.
- Customize with food-related graphics, appetizing color palettes, textures, and effects.
- Type in your recipe details or download in JPEG, PNG, or PDF to print.
If you need some design inspo to start, we’re your people. For the appetizer, entree, and dessert courses, we’ll be serving up diverse recipe card templates.
Yummy Recipe Card Templates
Alright. You’re making the recipes, so why not let a recipe card maker do some of the work for you for a change?
Check out these divine recipe card ideas:
In the Create tool, simply select your preferred recipe template by clicking Templates. Then, search “recipe” and there you have it! Tons of recipe templates at your service.
Need a little design nudge? Here are a few ideas.
1. Boho Color Palettes
Recipe cards are an official way to organize your kitchen from the inside out. Which ingredients do you need for a dish? What type of cuisine do you like to cook?
As any dish has handfuls of refined ingredients, recipe cards do too. Balance your colors, graphics, and textures.
Plus, does this color palette not scream summertime sweetness? It could easily be used for a cocktail, picnic feast, or tropical menu.
Tip: Color coordinate your recipe card designs based on the types of foods you cook or how you feel when you make them. To learn how colors prompt all the feels, check out this color theory tutorial.
2. Abstract Patterns
Make your own recipe cards with an abstract pattern! Since you don’t have all the space in the world, make it count with a textured frame or border.
This template provides ample space for details, so don’t skimp on measurements, prep materials, cook time, and all the fixins!
If you’re making the card for yourself, you can use shorthand or whatever you’ll best remember. If it’s for someone else, be sure to explain absolutely everything so they’re not left with questions.
3. Glorious Food Graphics
Food, glorious food! Mmmm. Nothing’s more appetizing than colorful food graphics (well, except for like, actual food). And, if you want to be really specific, you can use graphics that match the recipe to help you remember what you need!
Designating sections based on the dish title can help you stay organized. You can create an alphabetical system, organize by color, or anything else that feels good for you.
4. Don’t Forget the Drinks
No one said recipe cards had to be solely for food. In fact, a well-made cocktail can have at least half a dozen ingredients! Having a separate stack for both cocktail and food recipe cards can keep you more organized, as well as help you pair your food and drinks together.
There’s a reason folks say we eat with our eyes first, and the same is true for beverages. Once you see a clean and sprightly cocktail recipe, who could resist?
You can customize your recipe cards with a happy hour-friendly font and colors that lighten the mood. Colors set a particular energy in motion (and so does alcohol), so choose both wisely.
5. Spice It up with Color Gradients
Did you know the concept What’s cookin’ is actually a design trend? And one that was researched and tracked by Shutterstock’s AI performance data, no less? So, when you’re ready to get cookin’, we’ve got the quickest design trend out there for you: color gradients.
If you’re looking for a magical one-click button that will make everything look better, color gradients are for you. No design experience—or creative brain power—required.
If you’re going for something more conceptual, notice how the movement of the gradient also mirrors the feeling of an hourglass or food timer. (And, you can always change the direction of the gradient, too.) However nebulous or literal you desire to be, all inspo is welcome here.
6. Avant Garde Recipe Cards
Looking to class things up? Whether you’re hosting a cooking party or including recipe cards in a gift bag, these design elements capture an elevated look. Your stylistic preferences can be inspired by multiple things, including, but not limited to:
- Your own personality
- Your mood
- An event
- A dish
- Your kitchen aesthetic
- The person you’re gifting
- Their kitchen aesthetic
However you make your decisions, you can’t really go wrong so long as it feels good to you. This look uses a timeless color gradient with gold glitter floral graphics. You can change, swap, add, or eliminate any elements you see fit.
7. Go Back to Basics
Okay, so while you’re not quite writing an essay, exactly, one misstep and it’ll be all downhill. So, if you need extra space for those details, use a template like this one to maximize your white space.
When choosing your background color, you can be bold or subtle, solid or gradient, so long as you can still see your writing or typeface. Typing can make your recipe card long-lasting and “official,” but writing allows space for edits and modifications.
Whatever you choose, simplicity is the key.
8. Asparagi, Anyone?
If there’s ever a time to use asparagus graphics to mimic a field of grass, it’s now. If you don’t know what kind of style you’re going for, you can also scroll through our thousands of fonts to get you started. Then, do the same for the colors. Piece by piece, you’ll start to build cohesion based on simply what you like.
This pale yellow color complements the green while adding a playful element. Since the lines are intricately placed, you can always delete some and adjust the spacing for a different look.
9. Elegant Fonts
Whether you’re an amateur chef, a pro, or just a committed parent, making food is an art. Why not riff on that concept and choose your fonts accordingly? While this template has the same font for both text sections, you can also use complementary font pairs, too.
If you’re going for simple, elevate one element with nuance. For example, while gradients give a bit more dimension, there’s a subtle charm that solid colors offer, too.
Sometimes, all you need is one design choice and everything can fall into place from there.
10. Artist, Chef, or Both?
Brushstrokes are to painters what basting brushes are to chefs. Why not bring those loving pastry brushstrokes to your recipe card? You can find them in the Textures tab under Paint. Whatever your concoction today, the kitchen—and Shutterstock Create—is your canvas.
Cloud Storage for Safe Keeping
Ah, what a fine ten-course meal, eh? Whichever template you start with, your creations remain editable in cloud storage forever.
Cloud storage is a perfect option if you need to draft up several iterations of recipe cards for a party, Instagram post, your cooking business, or just because. Save yourself time and locate your creations quickly from the cloud.
However, if you want the original copy, be sure to download it for your records and duplicate your design to combat the auto-save feature.
Tip: For efficient creations, organize your work with subfolders so all of your recipe cards live in the same place.
How to Make a Printable Recipe Card
Alright, so you know how to make recipe cards, but what about the printing? Knowing how to print recipe cards is as important as making them, so let’s go over the basics.
We’ll cover:
- Standard recipe printing sizes
- Printable recipe card file formats
- Recipe card paper types
Let’s do this!
Standard Recipe Printing Sizes
Recipe cards come in three main sizes:
- Small: 3” x 5”
- Standard: 4” x 6”
- Large: 5” x 7”
The small 3” x 5” recipe card size is the classic, old-fashioned style that resembles that of a postcard. The 4” x 6” allots space for a header or title and is 60% larger than the 3” x 5.” The large recipe card size at 5” x 7” is more than two times the size of the 3” x 5.”
Ultimately, you don’t want something too big or too small, but it depends on your use for them. Also, if you go the extra mile and get a cute recipe cardholder, you’ll want a size that’s compatible with that.
Before making your sizing choice, you might ask yourself:
- Who are the recipe cards for?
- What’s aesthetically pleasing?
- What’s easy on the eyes?
Like any design, you don’t want to overload details in a cramped space or have something too spacious for the amount of detail you need.
If you’re finished designing and realize you want something different, don’t stress. Use our Resize Tool to put in the right dimensions while keeping your design intact.
And, if you need more guidance on converting inches to pixels, check out our nifty tutorial on how to resize images without losing quality.
Printable Recipe Card File Formats
When you’re ready to print your masterpiece, simply click the Download button in the top-right corner, then select your file format. Select either PNG, JPEG, or PDF. The difference between the three is subtle and depends, again, on your use for the recipes.
PDFs are common when it comes to sending files over the internet, but there’s no harm in using them for printable cards. PNG and JPEG are distinguished by their image quality during web uploads. Since you’ll be printing, you’re safe to choose any of the above!
Recipe Card Paper Types
Almost there, recipe card makers. Now, for the types of recipe card paper. Obviously, for sustainability, standard 8.5” x 11” paper is just too flimsy. However, if you’re a real craft whiz, you can always laminate them for extra durability. That way, they’re also more water and stain resistant—perfect for the kitchen.
Card stock is the most recommended type of paper, as it’s thicker than your average printing paper. Still, while naturally durable, laminating is never a bad idea for a long-lasting recipe card set.
Note that there are coated and uncoated types of card stock. Uncoated isn’t as smooth as coated card stock, and it absorbs ink. You might see it used for business envelopes and letterheads. Coated may be preferred simply for aesthetics.
You can use various colors of card stock, as well, if you decide last minute to insert a solid-colored background. If you already have a colored background in your design, opt for white or neutral card stock instead. Whatever you choose, make sure it truly supports your hard work.
Then, print, and voila! See your creation come to life. Of course, if you need to print in bulk for business needs, you may also frequent a professional print shop to aid you, as printing at home and in color can be costly over time.
How to Make a Recipe Card by Hand
Of course, there are multiple ways to make your own recipe cards. If the whole online recipe gig isn’t your shtick today, we’re not offended. If you’re still looking to make a standout recipe card, you can always use Create for inspo and design by hand from there.
Recipe Card Materials
Here’s what you’ll need to make a rockin’ recipe card set:
- Cardstock (colored, white, or neutral)
- Ruler
- Scissors or a paper cutter
- Pencil
- Pens
- Stickers
- Glue stick
- Laminator machine (optional)
- Hole puncher (optional)
- Recipe card tin
Now, let’s jump into the steps!
1. Take Measurements
First, decide which size recipe card you wish to make. If you’re working with a large piece of card stock, you can also make two at a time!
Use your ruler and measure out a 3” x 5”, 4” x 6”, or 5” x 7” recipe card. Make marks with pencil as you go so you know where to cut.
2. Cut to Size
Now, take your scissors or paper cutter and cut out the recipe card size from the card stock paper. Alas, your very own 3D blank canvas!
3. Decorate as You Wish
Now, for the decoration. Use your pens—whether they’re calligraphy pens, glitter pens, Sharpies, or anything else—to craft your dish title and its correlating ingredients.
Since the ingredients are the most important factor of the recipe card, you can map those out on scratch paper beforehand to avoid mistakes. Then, you’ll know how much space you have for extras like stickers, glitter, quotes, or other crafty assets.
Tip: If you’re already committing to one recipe, why not make several? Making several recipes at once can actually improve your mental and physical organization process. Craft time doubles as creativity and visualization time.
The more recipes you make at once, the more cohesive a kitchen you’ll have.
4. Store Them Safely
If you want to go the extra mile, you can laminate your recipe cards for sustainable functioning. If not, be sure you have a nifty recipe card tin to keep them in. You can buy one specific for recipes, or repurpose a cookie tin, gift box, spice tin, or other home filing systems you might have.
Three ring binders are also an option if you choose to hole punch instead of laminate. You can also use dedicated card pages in the binder so you can flip through the cards easily. Or, you can use a hole punch to place a hole in one corner and bind them with a clip or ring. Ultimately, this is your time to be innovative and it’s entirely up to you.
Okay, folks. We’re confident you now know how to make recipe cards with Create’s recipe card maker, by hand, and how to print for all your design needs.
Remember, recipes are a staple to any kitchen. Whether you store them to remember Nana’s faves, to make a certain number of home-cooked meals per week, as gifts for your kids, or for your business, there are endless applications for recipe cards.
Have fun crafting as you envision your dream kitchen—not only its aesthetic, but what you cook in it.
Bon appétit!
Don’t stop there! Check out these clever recipe card ideas and inspo:
- Recipe Card Design 101
- 10 Appetite Inducing Recipe Card Design Ideas
- Recipe Cards Throughout the Years
Cover image via doodlia.
