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Label-makers have evolved since your grandmother was dialing in letters and slapping them on her fresh-canned jam jars. A lot of us still use that same label maker, single-handedly organizing household chaos one painstakingly punched letter at a time. It was (and still is) a good system, a straightforward way to let everyone in the house know where everything belongs. Old-school label-makers just take a little time to operate, even though there’s a certain nostalgia and simplicity about their mechanics. If you’ve been relying on an older model, you’ll be surprised to see what’s on the horizon for these handy kitchen gadgets (hint: it’s AI) and what they can do right now.
Remember the Motex Embossing Label Maker with its unchanging teal and white design and pointedly punched lettering? You can still buy that old-school model with the same basic function and no surprises. It and other brands with the same technology seamlessly organize your kitchen just like they did decades ago, but these new label-makers take it a step further. Label makers have been one of the most useful kitchen tools for decades and, unlike the wooden spoon, they’ve been upgraded with more font and graphic options and Bluetooth connections. You can make a label from your phone instead of hand-embossing it into adhesive tape, and you can use AI-integrated software to create something trendy and unique. Not only can you label your kitchen, you can brand it with your own logo on every label.
New label-makers offer crisp, clear fonts and creative designs
Some of the new label-makers are simple, like the cute handheld label-maker from Supvan. It’s oval-shaped and has a Bluetooth function that connects it to your phone. You design your label in an app, and when you’re done, the machine prints letters and small graphics on a thin strip of tape without using ink or toner. It uses heat-sensitive paper to create designs in a process called thermal printing — a common feature in new printing technology. Then, there are the label makers like the Phomemo Label Maker M220 (also a thermal printer), which print larger labels with custom graphics that can be bigger and more intricate.
You aren’t limited to square labels either. You can buy them in almost any shape imaginable — maybe you mark your next bottle of homemade limoncello with a lemon-shaped label and a custom logo with your very own family brand, or you take that concept and apply it to a jar of homemade hot honey with a bee-inspired design. Now your labels can be shaped like ovals, stars, or cigar band seals, have rounded or scalloped edges, and so much more.
