Saw a post about using a bone folder instead of a Teflon folder and it got me thinking

Was scrolling through a bookbinding forum last night and read this whole thread where someone swore by using a cheap bone folder for delicate paper work instead of spending $40 on a Teflon one. They said the bone folder gives more control on thin Japanese papers if you sand it down smooth first. I've been using a cheap plastic one from a craft store for the last 2 years, never even thought about trying bone. Has anyone else here made that switch and noticed a real difference in your creases or paper handling?

2 comments

2 Comments

anna_hill1mo ago

@nina_hall that's such a good point about the kitchen scissors thing lol. I was the same way with my old bone folder, just a cheap plastic one from a craft store that worked fine. But last year my friend brought over a real bone folder she got from an antique store and let me try it on some washi paper. The difference in how clean the crease was, especially at the edges? Night and day. It made a way tighter fold without that weird fuzzy look you get from plastic sometimes. Now I keep that old plastic one as a backup but only use the bone one for anything thin or tricky. If you can find one at a thrift shop or online for cheap, it's totally worth trying out.

nina_hall1mo ago

Yeah, isn't it funny how we get stuck on one tool and never question it? It's like that with so many things, not just bookbinding. I switched my kitchen scissors after ten years because a friend told me to try hers, and now I can't believe I waited that long. Same with a cheap coffee grinder I replaced with a manual one, way better control. I bet the bone folder thing is similar, you just don't know what you're missing until you try it.