About Treasurefold

Why we started

Every family caring for someone with dementia is told, sooner or later, to make a life story book. The advice is good. The trouble is the work: finding photos scattered across phones and lofts, typing and laying out pages, printing them, often at the same time as a care home move or a hospital stay.

Treasurefold does the fiddly part. The family gathers the photos and memories, from wherever they live; we lay out the pages and print a book that's built to be handled every day.

Who makes your book

Harry Gardiner founded Treasurefold and runs it from London through Lime Creations Limited, the company Harry founded in 2010 and still runs as managing director. Lime Creations is home to a small group of businesses, including Oaka Books, which Harry co-founded in 2014 to publish curriculum-based revision guides, and ColourYourFamily, which turns family photos into colouring books.

Harry started a first business at 12, is a director of the Gardiner Foundation, a non-profit that encourages entrepreneurship, and previously volunteered with St John Ambulance as emergency ambulance crew.

Harry writes and updates our guides. Every book is printed in house, and each copy is checked against its order before the envelope is sealed.

What we believe

• Lead with the person, not the condition. The book is about a life: the places, people and pleasures that make someone who they are.
• No health claims. A life story book is a conversation starter and a way for carers to know the person. We won't tell you it does more than that.
• Collect little, delete fast. We never ask about diagnosis or medication, and we delete photos and answers 30 days after the book is posted.
• Be kind and practical. If something goes wrong with a printed book, we reprint it.

Who we are not

We're not a charity or a healthcare provider, and we're not endorsed by any charity. The free advice from the NHS, Dementia UK, Alzheimer's Society and Age UK is excellent, and our guides link to it. Our layout follows published dementia-friendly design guidance; we say so plainly rather than borrowing anyone's name.

Say hello

Email [email protected] and a real person will reply. If you're finding things hard, Dementia UK's Admiral Nurse Dementia Helpline is free on 0800 888 6678.