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INITIAL CREDITS
Hi. Welcome to the series of book repair that we are doing
at the Universidad Francisco Marroquín in Guatemala at the Biblioteca Ludwig von Mises.
What we’ll be doing today is making some enclosures and wrappers for your books.
We are going to start with a Mylar wrapper, then a paper sling, and then finally a thin ten-point board wrapper.
MATERIALS
A paper jig which will be used to transfer your measurements, scissors,
dividers, which we’ll use to transfer your measurements with precision,
you can transfer your measurements with an awl, a sharp one would be better and also a scalpel,
straight edge, an oversize one as well as a smaller one.
To fold you'll need a bone folder of Teflon or bone.
As an adhesive we are going to use double stick tape but you could also use PVA,
Mylar, so take and oversize piece of Mylar, an oversize piece of paper for your paper sling,
a piece of thicker cardstock, this is ten-point board, you could also use twenty-point.
PROCEDURE
So, what we'll do is we are going to enclose this book just as an example
and first I’ll just make a Mylar cover.
So, I have this piece of oversize Mylar that I cut. This is 3 mil mylar but you could use 5 mil,
you could use really any size, and it is already cut square on one end.
So, I am going to make measurements of the head and tail first
and then basically wrap it around the book so that it’s got inside, so as if it is a complete dust jacket.
This is especially useful for a special-collections book when you want your Mylar covering to look really nice.
So first, I am going to take a jig which is this piece right here, it's just a piece of paper, of thin board, that I squared up earlier.
And with it, I am going to be able to transfer measurements of the size of the book over to the Mylar pretty very easily.
So, I want to take the widest measurements, so I am going to measure this a couple of times,
as you can see I mark with an X the square end and instead of using a pencil to mark how high it is,
I am going to use an awl and make a small point.
So, I could do that, but what I'll do instead is take my awl and make the point.
I do this because I feel that it gives me a little better, it makes a smaller mark than a pencil would,
and so it makes it easier for me to know with precision, or a little more precision I feel, what that measurement really is.
And so, my first initial measurement looks to be a little longer than it is on the fore edge
but just by maybe sixteen of an inch or maybe less than a millimeter or so,
but that’s fine, because as I mentioned I want the largest measurement.
So, I am going to turn it over and do the same thing, just make sure that that measurement is going to be OK.
So, here, this actually looks a little short;
so what I’ll do is just make it a little bit wider and keeping in mind that that’s the mark I want to use.
I'll just make a notation to myself that helps me remember which mark that I actually want to use.
And this is the last edge, so putting the book aside, all I need to do now is use this jig with the measurement that I made
and transfer these measurements to the square edge which I already made, the square edge here of the Mylar.
So, you can see I’m lining up the mark that I would like, right flush with the edge of the Mylar,
and again I am going to make a point here with my awl.
Now, it's important to have square edges because if they are not square and you make marks
they'll end up in places you don't want them to be.
Let me just double check that that mark was accurate.
So, I am going to make another mark on the other side which is also square.
So, right now I'm just lining up my marks, taking my blade and I'll cut.
So, this is waste, and this piece here should be perfectly sized at the tail with my book and that looks pretty good.
With the book in hand I am just going to use my eye to make my first mark where I want the first fold to be.
Basically, I am going to make a mark where this fold here is going to be.
So, I'd like my first fold to be right about… right about there looks good.
I wanted to almost completely cover the paste down to keep it clean, also to make sure that the wrapper stays on better.
So, I am going to make my mark just about here with my awl again, and again this awl is very useful for me.
So, I am going to make that mark. Now, anytime you make a fold for a book,
anytime you are going to make it for a Mylar book, the folds you make are going to enclose the edge of the board also.
I am going to take my dividers, and estimate the size of the board, and it's pretty thin.
This looks about right, and that looks right, the thick.
So, where my first mark was, I am going to make another mark, one thickness of board away.
You can actually just, if you got a square piece of Mylar which it should be, you can line up your edges here
and at the bottom here, and when they line up, that indicates that you've got a straight fold.
I am folding where that first mark was and I am going to use my bone folder just to make it crease.
And you want to be firm with Mylar because it has a tendency to work if you are not straight
and you don't have enough pressure, so now I need to make a fold on the other mark and I'll do the same thing and fold.
So, now you can see there is somewhat of a thickness to this fold.
So, that's the first fold, we'll try and see how it fits, if it's too wide or too thin on your first try,
it's no problem, just try again, so that fits pretty well. So, I can close this and then continue with my other folds.
Some ways... some methods to make these Mylar wrappers are to also make folds here along the spine edges of your book,
but for books with rounded backs I prefer to simply let the strength...
let the tension of the wrapper as it goes around be the only strengthening part of it.
Turn it over, I am not going to make any folds on the spine, because it has a rounded back,
and doesn't really need it at this point because the Mylar will stay on tight.
So, now I am just ready to do the other side. This Mylar wrapper just needs to be cut two sides,
and then it'll be ready to go onto the book and the book will be ready to go back into circulation.
So, this fits well, I just need to cut this right about there so that it looks even with the size of the first cover.
What I'll do is I'll just cut it right there using my scissors as a guide. Something like that looks right.
And now I'll make the last cut, now you could do this on a board shear also, this last mark, but I am going to line it up.
I am going to line up the Mylar with the grid on my cutting mat and my ruler with those lines on the grid and just make a line.
So, now this is almost ready to go, the only thing I need to do is to make my corners a little softer.
The sharp edges of Mylar can actually sometimes be detrimental to the book, or when in handling it might poke your user. Softening the edges is usually a good idea.
So, that's one, and that's the other. So, this is the first enclosure that we've done, the Mylar wrapper.
Moving on, we will do a paper sling which is extremely useful for pamphlet size materials
or very thin, very fragile materials that you may eventually put into a pamphlet binder but it is also useful for wrappers too.
So, what I want to do much like the way we started out with the Mylar enclosures, is I want to get the measurements right.
So, again I am going to use the same jig that I did in the first part and this time I am going to get the width of the book.
Now if your book has a wrapper like this one does or an enclosure or just any sort of material overhanging,
maybe a loose page or anything, you usually want to get that as your widest measurement
because if it is going to fit in the wrapper or your enclosure the widest point needs to fit too.
So, right now I am getting the width of this book and with a round spine it’s a little difficult
and with an enclosure it’s a little more difficult, but that looks like it's right about there.
I'm going to make sure it's right with the other side and that looks pretty good.
And make a mark on the other side and make sure it went through. Yes, it did.
I am just going to double check. A good rule of thumb is to always measure twice or measure three times before you cut,
so that you only have to cut once. And this looks good, so again a lot like I did with the Mylar,
I am going to connect these two dots and use my scalpel to cut the excess away.
So now, this piece should be very well-sized to this book and that looks very good.
So now, I need to make my folds. I'll use the book as the jig here but if you prefer you can use your jig again.
So, I want the first flap of this sling to nearly completely cover the book, the height of the book,
I said nearly because I'm leaving maybe one to two... one millimeter gap between the tail
or actually it will be the head but, the head of the book and where the sling actually begins.
So, I am going to make my mark using the awl again in the same manner, like this, and that's going to be the first fold.
So, I am going to do that by finding the mark and that's going to be where the fold is,
and on the other end making sure that the edges line up across here, when this lines up I know that this is going to be square
and going to be a true straight edge, so, again if you want to use... when you're lining up papers to paper,
or one paper to itself, in particular you want to make sure that the edge is square to begin with.
So, using your board sheer, using a scalpel, making sure that that square is going to be extremely useful.
So, this edge is lined up with itself and I am at the mark splitting it almost in half.
So, now I'm just gonna bone it down. So, that's my first fold and the way this is going to work is this is going to cover the front.
I am going to fold... bring this up and the next fold I am going to want is going to be right along here.
And that's the thickness of the book. So, I am going to put the book aside and use my jig to find the thickness of this book.
And this can be tricky sometimes. A lot of times books like to flex open or stay open a little bit
and in that case you just put a little pressure and then take your measurement.
Here this book is staying relatively flat, so I am going to make a first initial mark and see how that works out.
I think this would be easier using a pencil and then you can use an awl to make it sharper later.
I am just going to make an initial mark and see how it works all the way around.
It looks like it’s a little too small at this end because I can't see it anymore; the book is actually covering it up now.
So, I am going to make this a little bit bigger, and you can do this in any number of ways,
the more experience you get measuring things, the easier you will find your own style measuring.
I very much like to use jigs such as these, as well as my spring dividers such as these.
So, this looks fine, so I went all the way around twice, and I am going to make my... what I think is going to be...
what I think is going to accommodate the book the best.
So, I made my mark of its thickness and now I want to transfer this mark to the piece, to the sling I am making.
So, I am finding the fold and moving on from the fold that I first made here, I will line it up and then transfer my mark to the sheet.
So, now I can fold, found my mark again right there and now I want to line up this edge right here.
So, I take my bone folder and give it a fold. So, as you can imagine this is taking shape better, nearly halfway there.
So, the next fold I am going to make is for the other side or for the outer flap
and so I am going to make a mark just about there where I'll fold, then I'll transfer the thickness measurement I took
and then make another fold where that tells me to, which should be around there, and then finally I'll trim off the end.
So, now all I have to do is trim these two sides, round the corners and then it'll be ready to go.
And by "ready to go" I mean back into --not into circulation directly because this isn't going to be sturdy enough on its own--
but ready to go into a more sturdy enclosure.
So, this overhangs a little bit right there, right at the tail of the book a little bit.
So, what I'll do is trim it and I think I'll trim a little further away from the tail right here.
I'll make my mark with the scissors too.
So, I am going to take my straight edge, take my scalpel.
So, now this is the second protective enclosure for my book, the first being the Mylar.
So, I have two and that's usually more than enough. I will probably suggest only one of these will be needed for each type of book.
So, for example if you have a very thin pamphlet, there is no need that needs a Mylar enclosure; a paper wrapper would be fine.
On the other hand, if you have a special collections book that gets used off, and in people's hands,
it might smash the cover, or it might get warmed a bit and you want to protect it, then a paper sling is not going to be your best option.
I think a Mylar protective cover is going to be a lot better.
So, moving on, I am going to take this off but I'll keep the Mylar jacket on, and I am going to start making a little sturdier wrapper, which I have.
There is one example here that we have in the shop, which can give you an idea of what I'll be doing but...
it's going to be a wrapper that opens like this and can stand either straight up on a shelf or down lying flat.
You can also see that we are going to make what's called a tongue enclosure here with a slit here and that will keep our wrapper close.
So, there're different ways to make this, many different ways to make this, some are made out of one piece,
others are made out of a couple pieces, some don't even have tongue enclosures, some have ties,
others have rivets with threads, there is really a number of ways to make them.
Also, the way I'll be doing it, is I'll be putting together two pieces of board,
pieces of thin ten-point mat board, twenty-point board could be used, even forty-point board could be used
and the adhesive I am going to use is double stick tape, double,
but you can use also PVA or like I said it can be non-adhesive with just a tie.
So, I have the piece of oversized board here.
This is ten-point board but if you got a thick book, twenty-point board would probably be better.
I think if... for books such as this I think twenty-points is probably your best bet but
for the purposes of the demonstration you will get the right way to make it.
So, I marked the grain on this paper and its grain short, that's the way I want to fold.
So, keep in mind I am going to be making two pieces out of this paper, one is going to be horizontal,
one is going to be vertical, and the directions of the folds I want to be in the directions of the grain on the paper.
It will just make the board a bit sturdier and a bit more even.
So, I am going to put the book aside the entire time here because I have all my measurements transferred onto this jig.
This bottom one is the height, the middle one is the width and the small one is the thickness.
So, the way I will make my first wrapper is I will make the vertical piece, so if I want a vertical piece, one that covers my book lengthwise,
I want something that will cover my book like this.
So, I am going to want to take the width measurement and mark it on this sheet
and then cut, very much in the same way that we made the first two, first two wrappers.
So, I am going to line up the edges, I am going to transfer my mark and do it on the other side as well
and then after I cut out my piece, I am going to make my folds and then do the other piece.
So, I am going to split basically, put my scalpel right in between the hole that I made with my awl and I will cut.
Now, I am not using a board sheer because this piece is far too big, is oversize, so you want to use a scalpel and a long straight edge.
It’s always better to make more lighter cuts than fewer extremely strong cuts.
It reduces the chances of your laid slipping or someone getting hurt also.
So, I have my first piece, this is going to be what I call the inner wrapper.
So, of the two pieces this one is going to be the one that touches the book.
So, a lot in a manner, exactly the same as we made the paper sling, I am going to take my book, line it up as such, and then make my mark right there.
I want to use my jig just to show you a different way to do it instead of using my book like I did in the first... in the sling example.
So, this is going to be the height of the book I want, and I am actually going to modify it a little bit because I want the book to fit snugly into this wrapper.
So, I am actually going to move my jig a little away from the square edge there, out a millimeter.
So then, I am going to make my mark where I want to fold.
Using a jig also lets you make your marks consistent or consistently instead of having to...
if you use your book only as your jig, they are usually not square, so you might find different measurements different times you take them.
Using the jig is going to really help, so that is going to be my first fold and I am going to go ahead and make it.
I am going to find my mark, put some pressure down and then line up the square edges, and then bone it down.
So, the next measurement: thickness of the book, which is on my jig as “T”,
I am going to find the fold, find the center of the fold, right there looks good, and then transfer the thickness.
So, now I have my first flap, my inner flap, flap number one.
Next, I need to take the height of the book again, so I am going to find the center of my mark
or actually the center of the fold and make a mark where height.
So, I am going to line up this edge with the other edge finding my mark and using that to guide my fold,
pressing down, edges are lined up, bone it down.
The next measurement I'll take is thickness but like I hinted earlier,
the thickness of board from the first flap is going to add to the original thickness measurement I took.
So, I am going to need to increase it just a tiny bit and that tiny bit is going to be this thickness, the thickness of this board here.
You know, that's pretty thin so I am not even going to measure it.
My spring dividers probably won't even go that small, so I am just going to do it by eye.
You'll see in the succeeding wrappers we make and the succeeding folds we do,
I'm always going to be increasing by one board thickness the original thickness measurement I took.
It can get confusing, but it's important to do to get your book to fit right.
So, I am going to make my mark here a little wider than in my original measurement.
So, this is my original, I am going to make my mark just about there;
I am going to transfer it right about there, so you can do that by eye.
So, keep in mind the next fold I am going to do on the other wrapper is going to enclose the first fold...
the first flap as well as this second flap, so that mark should be somewhere right around there,
and then finally the last one should be a little wider right about there.
Let’s get in a little bit ahead of myself, so getting back here,
I am going to find this mark, fold by putting pressure there and lining up my edge.
Now, it's important to put pressure with your left hand to keep the square edge line. Sometimes with pressure it can shift about.
So, that was my last fold for this flap and for this inner wrapper. So, now I just need to cut it down two sides.
So, I am going to put it together a little bit and you can see how that's going to stack up and protect the book
and I am going to cut just inside this vertical fold; so I am going to use my scissors to make my general mark.
If you have an extremely big book and your board... you can't use one piece of board, you might need to use two
and in that case you can paste two together or if you decide to, you can simply make sure,
you can use undersize flaps making sure that the first flap completely covers the book.
So, I am going to take my scalpel on the straight edge and cut, that's the first flap.
Right now, I'm just rounding the edges, softening them a bit, and to keep, to remember which flap was which,
I am going to mark them. This is one, this one is two, and the next ones are going to be three and four.
So, I'm ready to take measurements for the next piece which is going to be the horizontal wrapper that goes across and it's going to close here and then here.
So, I take my original piece again and since I want my folds to be in the direction of the grain which is going this way,
I am going to put my inner wrapper like this and take that measurement.
My original measurement for the height of the book, which is this, should fit inside completely my wrapper.
And it looks like it does. It does. It does look very good, very close, very snug, so we'll see how that works, let me try it.
And that looks great.
So, I'm going to transfer the measurement of the height of the book by actually using my inner flap,
again you can use your jig but I find this works too.
Right now, I'm lining up the spine of... oh I am sorry, the tail of the book where the tail of the book is going to be, this flat edge, with this square edge.
It's a common theme in this... in making wrappers of lining up edges, transferring measurements,
making folds in a certain way, and that comes with the experience and a little bit of practice.
When you make a lot, you find out what works for you and what doesn't.
So, I lined that up, that's not looking too great,
so that indicates to me maybe this is not square, this bottom piece, and it looks like it’s not.
So, that's actually great to know. Let me try this other side and I hope it is square,
and it should be because this is where I made my original cut.
The first piece, this piece came from here, so if this edges are straight, this edge should be straight too.
And that looks great: my tail edges line up, this lines up pretty well, and then make a mark here.
I'll also make a mark on my jig so I won't have to do this on the other side, I just have to do this on one side.
So, I line up my jig with these two layers and then make a third mark on my jig,
just a little larger and you can see how that went through down to the piece that I will eventually cut.
So, what I want to use is this third measurement that I made just now and...
make it on the other side, line it up with my straight edge and then cut.
So, if it's square, these edges should line up pretty well, and they do, so that's good.
So, now I am ready to make my marks and my folds, let me use the jig and the way I like to work is from right to left,
so, I am going to... this is going to be the third flap;
then I'm going to make the middle piece and then I'm going to make the fourth flap.
So, I'm going to make a mark, the width of my book, using my jig.
This is going to be the last fold I make and this is going to be the thickness plus three thicknesses of board
so there is original thickness, this would be one, this would be two and this one is going to be three.
So, you can see at the end with the final flap, you've got a significant difference between your original measurement
and your final one, and your final transfer. So, it is an important thing to keep in mind when making your wrappers.
OK, so now this should look very close to a finish product, we are still not there.
We got a wrapper that fits pretty well in the inner and outer nest thing, now I want to see how it works with the book,
one, two, flap three, and flap four, and that looks good.
So, I am going to cut just about there, probably perhaps a little bit inside that.
And now all I need to do is going to be to soften the corners, make the tongue enclosure out of the third and fourth flaps
and adhere the inner wrapper to the outer wrapper.
So, the way I'm going to do that is, you can do that in any format,
but I'm going to adhere the wrappers first with double-stick tape.
Now, double-stick tape is, you know non-archival... it will leach out over time but they can be an appropriate...
they can be used appropriately for making wrappers or sometimes even boxes
because they won't be touching the object even if they do leach out.
That point is probably somewhat controversial
but it's the way I've been taught by a couple of teachers, so it seems like it’s got value.
So, the inner wrapper, because it's the one touching the book,
it's going to be adhered to the outer wrapper which is going to cover everything.
So, I'm going to put the double-stick tape on the back of my inner wrapper and adhere here.
So, I am just going to make some marks just so I don't get confused and then I can start putting some tape around here.
Keeping the edges tight is great so I am going to follow one edge, somewhat closely, snip.
It is a good idea to keep double-stick tape in a plastic bag, like a Ziploc bag,
because the tape can even leach out from itself and basically pick up anything stored next to.
I'll do one big crosswise layer of tape and I'm going to bond it all down,
just to really make sure that the adhesive isn't going to stick. OK, that should be fine.
Now, what I need to do is poke up or rock up the protective layer on the tape
and this is ready to go down onto the inner wrapper... pardon me, the outer wrapper.
So, if you were using an adhesive such as PVA, you do the exact same thing,
you mask off what you wouldn't want glued, glue out the inner wrapper,
and then paste it down or glue it down onto the outer wrapper.
So, I'm lining up the square edges again where the fold is, where my edge is and putting it down.
I'm going to bone this down and bring my book in. See, make sure that it is fitting, and this fits well. It fits very well.
The rational behind using, making these enclosures, such as this, is it will protect the book from wear
probably most affectively but also in case of fluctuating environmental conditions.
It can create somewhat of a micro chamber, somewhat of a micro environment that will somewhat buffer changes in temperature
and pressure that might be in your institution, so now, I am ready to soften the corners,
you can use scissors, you can use a blade, I use both in this demo. I already did the inside flap
and we are actually going to cut the fourth flap to make the tongue, so now I am going to do that.
So, with the book in the wrapper what I need to do is make the tongue and slit, tongue and slit closure mechanism.
So, it can be pretty arbitrary how much you decide to take off here and you will find, I am sure,
a number of different rules of film or number of different guidelines. What I would like to do is to use my eye to find somewhat,
somewhat appropriate size tongue, I think something like a tongue for a small book like this, a tongue such as that.
Maybe that long should be, that wide should be fine. So I am only going to take one off at this point you will see so.
Let’s say this is about seven and I should make it a little larger than I initially thought.
That'll be the first mark I'll make. I'll do the same mark here from this side, so it should be about there,
but you'll see how I make this. I make that first mark, I use a triangle
or what I am doing now is using the grid on the cutting mat to make a straight mark, and this is going to be part of the tongue, you'll see.
The length of the tongue... this is the mark I'm making now, the length of the tongue.
I don't know how long it should be but a descent rule of thumb is a third of the width of your entire book,
so from the edge here to about there will be fine, this is light board so the mechanism should be,
the mechanism is not going to want to stay in, as much as it would with a heavier board, so I am going to make this somewhat long.
So, these are the marks I am going to put together and then I am going to make another mark.
I am actually going to make two marks and cut, that will help me cut this piece off, so I am going to make two marks.
I am going to make one there, I will make one here – and this is personal, this is just how I like to make them –
if you notice the first flap on the example that I brought out is a little different from the way I am making it,
so I am just going to connect these, connect these marks.
OK, so that is the part I took out, this is one part of the tongue.
Now, to get the exact same measurements on the other side, it's going to be pretty hard.
So, what I am going to do is actually just take my first piece as a jig and then make marks, so they'll be the exact same size.
So, there is my tongue. What I will do is soften these corners and these corners,
and then all that is left to do is make the slit.
So, the slit is a tricky thing to make because if you make it too wide
or in the wrong place, your book won't be snug inside its enclosure.
So, what I’ll do is I put the book inside, put together my enclosure as I like it to stand in the shelve
which is somewhat tight, somewhat tightly. So, put some pressure on it and then what I will do is make some marks where I will make the slit.
Now, I make them very close to the outside of the tongue and also the junction of the tongue and the rest of the flap.
So, I will make it about half a millimeter away from the rest of the flap from that junction,
I'll do the same on the other side and then...
now I want my next mark: the width of the slit to be the width of this board, the thickness of this board.
So, this board is very thin, I could probably get away with just doing a single slit connecting these two marks that I just made
but from this mark I am going to mark another one very slightly away from it.
Now, again if you are using thick board, you'd make a second mark much further away
or a bit further away from that first one.
So, I am seeing my marks which is great and I want to do the other side as well, so there they are.
OK, of course I was sure not to, they are very hard to see and I do not like, I do not use pencil too often
but of course you can use pencil and in making any of this lines, every time I used the awl,
you could instead have used the pencil, so please keep that in mind if you prefer that.
Just be sure you have to erase all your marks at the end.
So, I made my slit, it's somewhat hard to see, I imagine, but I'm going to connect them and then this book will be done.
OK, I made my slits, I'm going to ease out the edges of it, the tall and the head and tail edges of it.
You could use a hole punch or a screw punch to round the edges of the slit that will prevent a breaking edge
or from a lot of wear and tear, but a lot of times small labs will not have that material.
So, if your lab does not, what I do is I just try to make a round on my own slightly and that should be OK.
So, I have my slit. You can see this is all I took out, just that little bit and this should be good to go.
Let’s see how it fits and I think this is going to be great but it is just hard to get in in the first time, there it is and that's great.
There's one more thing I'd like to add is I also prefer to pre-crease my final flap,
if you pre-crease it, it would kind of guide the patron, guide the user on how to put back the flap instead of trying to jam it in
or trying to bend it and then putting it in.
The pre-crease flap which I'll do by eye right here is with my bone folder and not too strong just a small pre-crease is fine.
So, the small pre-crease will help the patron know where to bend it.
So, that is that, this is your enclosure, this will really improve the life of your book.
It is also important to keep in mind that if you have a book with pages falling out or with covers falling off
but you are not sure how to deal with it, putting it in a box is probably your best solution,
putting it in a box or an enclosure.
So, this is a really useful technique. It will be worth the investment, I think, to get the correct board,
the correct materials to make this and the right instructions.
So, I hope this is been helpful, this is been a presentation of paper wrappers, making wrappers out of light board,
making a Mylar enclosure, particularly for your especial collections book,
and finally making a paper sling that can protect your particularly small things, such as pamphlets,
or loose papers or musical scores or anything we'd like to put possibly in a pamphlet binder from wear and tear.
Thanks.
FINAL CREDITS