If you buy one tool this year, make it a bone folder. Here is why it earns its place on the table.
We tested everything on the long table at print night, with real zines and real volunteers, not in a lab. Our criteria were simple: does it work, does it last, and does it hurt to use for an hour.
What we tested
- A long-reach stapler with a depth guide
- A Teflon bone folder
- A self-healing cutting mat, A2
- A metal ruler with a cork back
Cheap tools are fine for learning. The moment you notice a tool slowing you down, that is the moment to buy the better version.
Buy the cheap one first. Then buy the one that lasts.
What we'd buy again
Nothing here is sponsored. We paid for all of it, and some of it we paid for twice because the first one broke.
Rosa Lindqvist
The pull quote is going on my studio wall.
Lou Ferreira
Yes! Bring it to Thursday print night and we’ll swap.
Marcus Yoon
I have never thought about paper weight this much and now I can’t stop.
Lou Ferreira
Honestly this made me dig out a box of my own old zines.
Jonah Mbeki
Good question. We will add a note to the post.
Hana Sato
Is there a way to do this with legal-size paper? That’s all our copier takes.
Ollie Brennan
The photos are great. Is that the laundromat on Elm?
Wren Castellano
Thank you for writing this down. It’s the kind of thing people only ever explain in person.
Ollie Brennan
Sharing this with the zine club at school. They are going to love it.
Wren Castellano
Thank you for writing this down. It’s the kind of thing people only ever explain in person.
Jonah Mbeki
Sharing this with the zine club at school. They are going to love it.
Ben Achterberg
Legal size works; just trim a strip off the long edge first.