Wednesday 6 November 2013

Brief 3 // Iconic Cities // Binding Experimentation

After doing some researching for the format and style of the guide, I came across a guide which used an interesting binding technique. The use of an elastic band bound the book together, but it wasn't just put over the spine, it was in a way stitched through the pages to attach them all together, but at the same time make the pages removable if possible.

I liked the idea of this binding technique and how it could work within my project on the travel guide. I think it answers the criteria of the book - to create a different style and feel within the book, for the pages to be removable and to be able to add or remove pages at any point within the guide.

As I had only seen an image of the binding technique in the finished publication and I couldn't find any information on the name of this bind or how to create it, I just decided to give it a go and try work it out myself.




In order to create the elastic band bind, I used a strong piece of card to act as a back page, then used normal copier paper as the pages within the book. To form the bind i used a ruler, hole puncher, scissors and of course an elastic band. 


This was the result of the bind, which I was really happy as I didnt think I would be able to work it out and for it to actually work, but I did! The elastic band i used in this mock up wasn't really long enough, hence why the pages are a little buckled at the top of the publication. 



In order to create the bind and get the elastic band to weave through the pages, holes and slots had to be cut into the pages of the publication. This allowed the elastic band to fasten around the bulk of the inner pages, the slots allowed the elastic band to go through the back page which attaches it all together. 


As you can see here all the holes and slots had to line up with each other in order to make it successful. The back page only has holes punches into it, this is because the elastic band only weaves through this section. The two middle holes line up with them of the inner pages and the other two holes had to line up with the slots within the inner pages. 


To bind the publication together it was fairly simple, but a little tricky working with the elastic band. Firstly the elastic band goes around the bulk of the inner pages, this slots into the half cut circle on the bottom of the publication, once the elastic band reaches the slot, the whole band goes through the hole in the back page, this is then threaded back through the hole in all the pages.  


Once it has been threaded back through to the front of the publication, it then stretches across the front of the publication and threaded back through the next holes to the back page again. This then threads through the hole in the back page and through the slots in the inner pages, to stretch to the top of the publication and slot into the half cut circle. 


This creates the final bind shown above. 


I was really amazed at how this bind could be created by the use of simple tools and basically an elastic band. If i was to use this and do it again, I would need to get hold of bigger elastic bands to firstly create the bind more effectively and then to make the publication sit better as at the minute it buckles the pages as the elastic band isn't big enough. 

I really enjoyed doing this and researching into the binding technique then actually working out how to create it and doing it. This has always been an interest of mine within design and something I love to incorporate into my work, so I might create a brief from this in which I research into different binding techniques and put them into practice, creating a range of blank publication which have interesting binds - this could form a range of stationery books. The outcome of the products isn't really the point, its more to research and create the binds which I can then apply within my own practice. 

EXCITING!

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