Hole Punch Tips

Need to add pages to a post bound portfolio?

Here are some tips for using a standard 2 hole punch to do it:

1)      Take an existing punched page and line it up with your new page

2)      With a pencil, trace the original holes onto the new page

3)      A standard hole punch usually has a back cover. Remove the cover and turn the punch upside down so the “holes” are visible

4)      Place the new page into the hole punch so that the pencil circle is visible in the “hole” of the punch. Make sure the other arm of the punch is out of the way so you don’t accidently make a second hole!

5) Punch each new hole. Test whether your hole punch could do 2 or 3 pages at once to save some time and accuracy

When you put your portfolio back together, the screws should be tight. You shouldn’t be able to wriggle the cover and pages independently. The Binding Studio sells individual screws if you need a different length or colour.

Happy hole punching!

P.S. You can purchase hand made portfolios from The Binding Studio here.

Studio Relocating

Mandela 100

Earlier this year I was honoured to work with NZ publishers Blackwell & Ruth, on a very special limited edition, in celebration of the centenary of the birth of Nelson Mandela.

The edition is presented as a clam-shell box containing a book of 16 paintings by John Meyer, depicting Nelson Mandela’s inspirational life story. Alongside the book a folder holds fine art prints of the paintings.

Clam-shell Box 

Book

Folder

If the subject matter alone wasn’t enough in terms of scale, the physical proportions were epic! An entire set measures 53 x 44 x 9cm, weighs 11kg and 33 sets were created in total.

The Binding Studio is located in the bottom storey of my house and mostly I work solo. Over the Christmas break I rearranged the studio, making space for the huge quantities of materials and working surfaces needed.  I put out my "bookbinding bat signal" and assembled a dream team of 3 other bookbinders, whilst conversing with all the outworkers that would play a role in this too.

Then during 9 weeks over April and May the Mandela 100 Limited Edition came to life.

It’s hard to explain the construction of each part or give you a sense of the hours that went in, the processes involved, the physical-ness of making by hand in such large dimensions…… but here are some images and videos captured along the way.

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Pallets of materials

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1/2km of adhesive

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2 of 3 hides

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Leather splitter

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Leather splitting

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Peerless gem guillotine

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Folder making

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Parts everywhere

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Leaving to be detailed

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Page blocks

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Folder pockets

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Box trays

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Signature page

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Packed & stacked

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On their way to SA

Two months since the project left the studio and a week after Mandela’s birthday, I'm still in awe of what my team and I accomplished. I am humbled to have been asked to create a limited edition that's not only beautifully compiled, designed and printed, but adds value to humanity in celebrating the life of this prolific figure. That’s what being a bookbinder is about; preserving and sharing knowledge, history and memories- to have had the opportunity to do this in such an extraordinary way…. I'm slowly coming to terms with the magnitude of this achievement. In the words of the great man himself:

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.”

— Nelson Mandela

A Personal Project

I took some time over Christmas to finish binding a guest book from my own wedding. (My partner and I got married nearly two years ago!) I can't remember the last time I made something this epic for myself and it fills my heart with joy when I look through it.

We didn't have a guest book for written messages... instead we asked the Quick Draw Sketch Gang  if they could come and draw live portraits of all our family and friends. Artists Rebecca ter Borg, Toby Morris, Jason Hong and Ant Sang joined us for the evening and diligently, beautifully drew almost every single person there.....Some more than once!

The outcome.... a beautiful book filled with the faces of our loved ones from the day they all came along to support us in our marriage. There is a fold out page in the back showing each sketch and who they are and it's lovely to fold it out and remember them all standing around and yelling "YES!" when asked if they support this marriage.

I took it around to my Grandma's house recently and we had an inspiring conversation about the book and my new years mojo for my job.....it went something like this:

 "It's about the feel, the look and the smell of this handmade object. It's about the quality and the workmanship that a true artisan can apply to their craft. It's about putting the value into the memories this book holds, the significance of the content and it's part in our lives.. and how the look, feel, smell, weight, quality…. all lends itself to that feeling.

 You can’t put a price on that. The hours I spent hand sewing the end bands to match the bunting I had made for the wedding, paring the leather, making the raised bands, rounding the spine, creating the fold out page, embossing the cover…… this on top of the content itself. The hand sketched portraits of our family and friends, that I individually scanned so that they have a copy themselves. The laying out of the wedding ceremony and picking appropriate photos to illustrate our vows. Designing the end papers and creating a pocket in the back that holds a disc. (The disc has a movie I made for my husband with heartfelt messages from his friends and family overseas that couldn’t make it to our wedding.)

This is a book full of love and memories and good things. It needed to be bound with love and respect and passion."

I think I did it justice. My Granny thinks so too. 

Re-vamp Your Presentation This Winter

Heading into the winter months is a great time to think about how you present your photography. The Binding Studio's updated photographers price-list will help out with some ideas. E-mail thebindingstudio@gmail.com for a copy.

Display prints courtesy of  Nicole Jecentho Photography (she's excellent!)

There are some new additions;

Clockwise from top left- Mats and backing boards to present prints / Self mount albums for attaching your own prints / Photo galleries for presenting key images / An ideas page to spark some imagination.

All of The Binding Studio's products are custom made to order, by hand. That's why there are so many possibilities and why the price-list is your starting guide for the most common products and sizes.

Don't be shy, if you don't see exactly what you are after, get in touch and lets see what we can create together!

If you order boxes during May 2016, you can take advantage of these specials;

Take some time out, make a cuppa, and think about how your work is presented.

I'm looking forward to talking through some ideas and creating a new look with you soon!

All the best from Lou

An even greater appreciation for wedding photographers

In 15 years of bookbinding I’ve made products for all sorts of creative folk including albums, print boxes, CD covers, photo galleries, and USB packaging for wedding photographers. This year as I prepare for the coming wedding season, I’m doing so with an even greater appreciation for these photographers.

I thought I knew essentially what wedding photographers do. But just as others wouldn’t understand what I do, unless they came and watched me making from design to finished product, witnessing what’s involved in photographing a wedding, first hand, has given me a new appreciation for how much time, work, effort and energy goes into creating someone’s memories.

My partner and I got married this year. When it came to choosing a photographer, there was only one person for the job! I have worked with Rachel Callander for almost as long as I have been a bookbinder. We’ve chatted on the phone and e-mailed for years. I finally met her in person at A Bit More Soul in 2013, and I knew she was the one for us! Not only because of her photographic style and general life ethos, but I knew she was someone we could hang out with all day and who would appreciate our need for a “faff-less” wedding!

We didn’t have any particular photo requirements and didn’t want to be too directed or posed. The aim was to relax, enjoy our friends and family doing their thing and make it as much about them, as it was about us. And that was my general description when I first contacted Rachel:

“Rach, we are planning to just hang out all day. I’ll book an awesome house to get ready at. We’ll barbeque breakfast, go for a swim at Murawai beach… and just BE. Then we’ll go to Hallertau and drink some beer, say some words and hang out some more. Oh and we are going to have the Quick Draw Sketch Gang there to draw all our guests. Want to come hang out and document all that for us?”

Rach and Tracey (who was second shooter) totally got it and blew our minds!

All day Rach secretly did direct us, but in a way that we didn’t even notice, so we felt at ease. She came up with ideas and ways to make us comfortable- all along making us think that we were just naturally doing those things. She hid around corners to capture all the shy people interacting. She squealed with delight when she caught Ivan and I holding hands, she made us feel less dorky about being photographed and even bought us ice-creams on the way home from the beach!  She worked her butt off and made it all seem effortless!

She was constantly making use of the details in the surroundings and knew how to capture the light just right. Seemingly without thinking, Rach was able to grab the right camera from her well stocked harness of options to get that perfect shot. Both photographers kept an eye on the time, making sure we got to where we were meant to be with enough time to fit in shots of everything.

Looking back at our images, what stands out is that Rach and Tracey knew how important it was for us to live each moment. They gave us the chance and the direction to enjoy each other in that magical time after the words had been said and before the food came out! (The light was freaking amazing in the orchard at that time too!) Rach knew just what to say to get us looking at each other with just the right amount of romance.

When we received our final images (in a box filled with awesomeness: matted prints, USB and other goodies) and had our first look through, every image was bang on and retold the story beautifully. Each frame took us back to that nanosecond, and replayed for us the exact feeling at that time. Seven months later, I still haven’t managed to cull them down for an album. I’m literally in love with every single shot.

I love this lady too! Rach has such an amazing heart and sees the positive and good in every person, and it really shows in all the images she shot of our family, friends and moments of the day. Her energy is infectious and just what we needed to tell our story!

As I make presentation products for my wedding photographers this season, I will be thinking of how hard they are working to capture the memories for all their couples. How much of their own energy is in each one of those shots, and how much they care about their couples and the stories they are conveying! The photographer’s process doesn’t end when the day is over. They are editing and culling and editing again, and then organising all those parts to make a final presentation to each couple. The complete package- about the day of someone’s dreams.

Good luck this season photographers, you are in my thoughts! You have even more of my respect and admiration…… Go make magic!

Winter Box Special

Hello there!

 I hope you Kiwis are having a breather after a busy summer, and enjoying some time working on your business. In between making I’m doing just that, so I thought I’d update you on some of the happenings here at the studio.

 This year I have been working hard on growing The Binding Studio. You may have seen the box making video, well- it’s now had over 45,000 views worldwide! My videographer, Joseph Jowitt, and I couldn’t be more excited! It’s out there promoting my craft and making The Binding Studio a globally recognisable brand. It’s been food for thought as I consider the possibilities of one day shipping beyond New Zealand.

 I have received some lovely testimonials and they are now up on the website. If your words are there thanks again, it means the world to me to have your support. Any feedback is useful, as it’s good to know that the service I provide is what you are looking for, or if not, how I can change things to suit you and your business.

 You may be aware that my part time helper, Gabrielle, moved to Wellington 3 months ago (I’m still in mourning). But I have had Chloe who’s a 3rd year graphic design student at AUT helping me out. She is really great and if she decides graphic design isn’t for her she will make a great bookbinder!

 To help you get organised before busy season comes around again- and so I can teach Chloe how to make boxes- you might want to take advantage of my Winter Box Special.

 In other news, The Binding Studio’s products will now discretely wear a little brushed steel button, making The Binding Studio recognisable- so clients know their boxes, albums, galleries, portfolios, books and more have been custom made by the best in New Zealand!

It’s all go around here, I hope it is at your place too. Feel free to call or e-mail me with any questions or enquiries, I’d love to hear how things are going for you and I look forward to making your next order soon!

All the best from Lou.