Folding

I got 2 copies of my book printed yesterday and finished cutting them out this morning. The prints are just over three and a half metres long so I couldn't use a guillotine. Instead I cut the edges by hand with a scalpel and metre ruler. This has had some knock on effects, even though the books edge appears straight to the eye there are small curves throughout the books edge so when it came to folding the book I had trouble lining up the page spacing perfectly. I would normally use the folding machine in the print room but my page size was just too large to fit in the machine. I got some good advice on techniques to use and equipment I needed to help me. I used a set square to check the edges were straight and that the measurements on both sides match up. I bought a bone folding tool from the library shop that I used to create sharp folded edges. I have never had to use these techniques before and the pages would have been much more uneven if I hadn't been shown them. The pages are still not perfect and there is a certain amount of movement from where I originally planned the page edges but due to the design of the book it is not a major problem. If my book had a more rigid layout these shifts would ruin the composition so these processes are something I will have to improve on in the future.

This is one of the worst effected pages. One of the characters is cut in half, which isn't a problem if the book is viewed fully unfolded but if the book is viewed page by page the composition does not work as intended. The pages line up pretty well when the book is fully folded up except the last page.

The last page is noticeably longer than the others, luckily I plan it add a laser cut wooden cover to my book. The wooden cover will be lager then the page size and should disguise the variation in page size. I am happy with the print quality on the book and the matt finish, I had to lower the dpi on the image as Photoshop will not print an image larger than 3000 pixels wide, this is another constraint I have never come across before and something to bare in mind for future projects. This process has taught me to plan ahead more and try to think about all aspects of the processes I will need to undertake. My next process is laser cutting. I will need to check what materials to use to make the book user friendly (no splinters), what glues to use to make the book sturdy and long lasting and what materials to use as a spacer between the wooden cover and the paper. I need to find out when the woodwork inductions are and check on availability of the laser cutter. I will have to see what wood is available in the workshop, it could make or break the aesthetic of the book.