Binding
Cheat Sheet
The Ultimate Guide to Binding
Revised Edition
Saddle stitching, Smyth binding,
Singer sewing, there are so many
creative binding options available
to you. But do you have too many
pages for a particular technique?
Do you have the budget for it?
Don’t worry, I’ve been there, and
I can help.
My mission is to empower fellow
graphic designers to unlock their
creativity and create printed
pieces that WOW their clients.
And the best part?
My favorite thing to do is give
you the insights and tips to make
this happen, which is exactly
what I’ll be doing in this binding
cheat sheet!
Let's dive in!
Sabine Lenz, Founder PaperSpecs
© PAPERSPECS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Binding Overview
Saddle Stitching Screw Binding
Ideal for 8 to 64 pages Ideal for 4 to 640 pages
$$$$$ $$$$$
Square Back Binding Smyth Binding
Ideal for 24 to 200 pages Ideal for 8 to 720 pages
$$$$$ $$$$$
Loop Stitching Singer Sewn Binding
Ideal for 8 to 64 pages Ideal for 4 to 60 pages
$$$$$ $$$$$
Side Stitching Case Binding
Ideal for 4 to 160 pages Ideal for 24 to 720 pages
$$$$$ $$$$$
Spiral Binding
Hand Sewn Binding
Ideal for 4 to 640 pages
Ideal for 4 to 480 pages
$$$$$
$$$$$
Tape Binding Swiss Binding
Ideal for 20 to 720 pages Ideal for 4 to 200 pages
$$$$$ $$$$$
Perfect Binding French Folds
Ideal for 40 to 720 pages Ideal for 8 to 400+ pages
$$$$$ $$$$$
Layflat Binding
Ideal for 80 to 610 pages
$$$$$ Page count is a rough estimate, based on 80 lb Text uncoated paper with a 322 PPI.
Processes are determined and limited by thickness and type of substrate more than page count
and vary depending on the bindery’s equipment.
Thanks to the binding experts at Roswell Bookbinding, Fey Printing and MET Fine Printers.
© PAPERSPECS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Saddle
Stitching
Saddle stitching gets its name from
the equipment used to perform this
binding method.
Printed signatures are opened at their centers
(half the pages on one side, half on the other)
and then gathered, or nested, together in proper
page order.
The signatures are draped over the part of the
machine that resembles a saddle, then stitched
together along the crease of the fold.
Your page count will be in multiples of four.
The “stitches” are most commonly made with
wire that looks like a staple.
IDEAL FOR
8 to 64 pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Wires come in many colors
so you don’t have to pick
silver or gold.
Saddle stitching can also be
done with thread for a
completely different look.
This involves hand-sewing,
though, so be sure to ask
your printer what’s
possible.
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Square-Back
Binding
The perfect solution for a perfect
bound impression on a saddle
stitch budget.
The effect is created with the help of a special
module that is added onto a saddle stitch
booklet maker.
This “square folder” applies pressure to the spine
of the saddle-stitched book to give it the “square
back” found in perfect-bound books.
Extra bonus, with a square back you have
no center gap, a common pet peeve for many
creatives when it comes to saddle stitching.
IDEAL FOR
24 to 200 pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Wires come in many colors
so you don’t have to pick
silver or gold.
Square back binding gives
your piece an actual spine
to print on - extra real
estate for your creativity.
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Loop
Stitching
Loop stitching is a variation of saddle
stitching, which is a method of binding
that uses wire staples.
In saddle stitching, the wires remain flat against
the finished spine. In loop stitching, the wire
extends beyond the spine to form a loop shape.
Done on the same kind of equipment – but with
special stitching heads to form the loops –
printed and folded signatures are opened at their
centers. Signatures are gathered or nested
together in proper page order by being draped
over the part of the machine that resembles a
saddle. All are stitched together along the crease
IDEAL FOR
of the fold.
8 to 64 pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Silver or stainless steel wire
are most common. Try gold,
copper, red, white, blue
or black.
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Side
Stitching
[ Stab or Wire Stitched ]
The easiest way to understand side
stitching is to imagine an industrial-
strength desk stapler.
Single leaves and/or folded signatures are
trimmed to final size, stacked on top of another,
then stapled together in two or three spots about
a ¼ inch to the right of the spine. The staples are
placed parallel with the spine and will be visible
from the front cover.
Unlike saddle stitching where folded signatures
are placed over the saddle of the binding
equipment and staples placed through the fold of
the spine, side stitching is done from the top of
IDEAL FOR
the book block through the stack of inside pages
4 to 160 pages to the back cover.
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Design a dust jacket-style
cover to wrap around the
side-stitched piece.
Glue a decorative piece of
fabric, leather, paper, or
Washi tape over the spine
area, which will hide the
wire staples.
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Spiral
Binding
[ Comb, Spiral, Wire ]
The spiral binding process is
pretty straightforward and widely
available.
Pages are trimmed to final size, collated in
proper order, holes punched along the spine
edge, and a spiral coil threaded through
the holes.
This is typically done on a machine, but can be
done by hand as well.
Spirals, sometimes called coils, can be made of
uncoated wire, wire coated with plastic, or
plastic alone.
IDEAL FOR
4 to 640 pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Design the cover or some
of the pages with unusual
materials such as wood,
plastic or metal.
If you choose plastic spiral,
order a custom color.
Give the book a more
polished look with a semi-
concealed double wire loop
cover.
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Tape
Binding
Often thought of as a “cheap office
supply store way of binding,” tape as
finished binding offers colorful options.
Usually done with a Fastback thermal tape
binding machine (aka Fastback binding), a
collated book block is loaded into the top of the
machine; a binding strip is placed into a feeder
on the side of the machine. With the push of a
button the binding strip is moved under the
spine and heats it, thus activating the glue, and
forms the binding strip around the spine.
Books are bound one at a time, but the process
is very quick, making it very affordable for
IDEAL FOR
larger runs.
20 to 720 pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Perfect bind or side stitch
your book, then use Washi
tape as a decorative element.
Make your own unique
designs by drawing
or printing on paper or
cloth tape.
image courtesy Studio on Fire
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Perfect
Binding
Perfect binding is a process that
involves gluing a soft cover onto
text pages.
Folded signatures are gathered together, one on
top of the other. (Single sheets of paper may also
be gathered in or interleaved with the folded
signatures.) This creates a block of pages called a
book block.
Glue is applied to the milled edges of the book
block to hold the pages together, and a second
layer of glue is applied right before the cover
goes on to ensure a stronger bond between the
cover and the book block.
IDEAL FOR
40 to 720 pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Dress up your perfect-bound
book with a headband (those
checked cloth strips that hide
the raw spine edge of the
text pages).
Tired of the rectangle?
You can die cut a shape after
your project has been
perfect bound.
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Lay Flat
Binding
Contrary to popular belief, this is not
one specific form of binding. Lay flat
is referred to both as a technique
(Otabind) and as a characteristic.
In most cases the term is used on combinations
with perfect binding, but in this case stretch
paper for the spine is used as well as PUR
(polyurethane reactive) glue, which holds
stronger than standard perfect binding glue.
The spine of the book is not attached to the
spine of the cover.
All in all allowing a publication to lie fully open.
IDEAL FOR
80 to 610 pages
$$$$$
LAY FLAT TECHNIQUES
Spiral, Wire-O, photo books
and most Smyth-sewn
books will lay flat as a
characteristic – meaning the
way they are bound allows
them to lay flat.
Several book binders have
also developed their own
proprietary lay flat
techniques.
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Screw
Binding
[ Chicago Screws, Grommeting, Eyeleting ]
Often referred to as Chicago screws or
studs, screw posts are all basically the
same two-part item.
For this binding loose sheets are collated
together to form the book block. Two to three
holes are drilled evenly spaced along the spine
side about 0.25 inches from the spine edge.
A barrel post is inserted into one of the holes,
and the slotted cap screw is screwed into the
barrel post by hand.
A final tightening of the slotted cap screw is
done with a tool that looks like a flathead
screwdriver.
IDEAL FOR
4 to 640+ pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Mix stock to your heart’s
content.
Vary the number of holes –
four, five or more depending
on the finished size of
the piece.
Place holes in an
aesthetically pleasing way
that are not evenly spaced.
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Smyth
Binding
[ Smyth Sewn or Thread Bound ]
Also known as Smyth sewn or thread
bound, Smyth binding is synonymous
with quality and durability.
It’s THE binding method for any book that will
be used repeatedly, that needs to evoke a certain
air of prestige, or that must remain in an open
position during use – cookbooks, art books...
The printed, folded, gathered and collated pages
are sewn as one at the spine in individual
signatures. Then, for extra durability and
flexibility, these signatures are likewise sewn
together with thread.
The resulting text block is usually inserted into
IDEAL FOR
case, creating a Case bound book.
8 to 720+ pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Choose different papers for
each signature.
Let all of the raw stitching
show by not adding a proper
case cover.
If you leave the spine
exposed, choose a contrasting
thread color.
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Singer Sewn
Binding
[ Saddle or Side Sewn ]
Many binders use altered Singer sewing
as well as industrial sewing machines
made especially for binding books.
In either case, the basic stitch is the same – a
basting stitch that resembles a line of en dashes
on the outside with a simple interlocking loop on
the inside.
The process is straightforward and can be done
in two ways: thread passing through the fold of
the spine OR stitching next to the spine from top
to bottom of the book block.
IDEAL FOR
4 to 60 pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Don’t cut the threads off
flush with the top and
bottom of the book; rather,
let the extra thread hang for
added texture.
Select a thread color in sharp
contrast to the paper color.
Choose two different colors
of thread: one for the bobbin
and one for the needle.
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Case
Binding
The term “case binding” is perfectly
logical if you know that a case is the
cover of a hardbound book.
The case – front cover, back cover and spine –
are made of bookbinding board (usually very
thick cardboard), covered with a substrate such
as paper, cloth or leather to add beauty,
functionality and durability.
The cover is prepared separately from the text
block.
The book block is Smyth sewn or perfect bound
first, then encased with a separate hard or
soft cover.
IDEAL FOR
24 to 720 pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Cover the book boards with
embroidery, needlepoint or a
painted canvas.
Design a dust jacket with
translucent paper or diecut
windows to accentuate the
hardbound cover.
Present the book in a custom
box, wrapped in fabric or
inserted into a slipcase.
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Hand Sewn
Binding
[ Coptic or Japanese Stab ]
Hand-sewn bindings exude luxury and
preciousness in the very best sense of
the words.
While some rules apply (it takes needle and
thread), the stitches can be as simple as basting
(looks like a series of em dashes) or as complex
as the Centipede stitch (yep, it looks like an
ornate bug crawling across the spine). Either
way, holes or notches are drilled to make the
sewing easier and more accurate.
The two hand-sewn bindings that are most
familiar – Coptic and Stab.
IDEAL FOR
4 to 480 pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Cover the book boards with
embroidery, needlepoint or a
painted canvas.
Design a dust jacket with
translucent paper or diecut
windows to accentuate the
hardbound cover.
Present the book in a custom
box, wrapped in fabric or
inserted into a slipcase.
© PAPERSPECS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Swiss
Binding
Swiss binding does not refer to how
your pages are bound together, but
rather to the way the text block
...(the already-bound printed pages) is mounted
inside a case.
While you see this method most often used in
combination with Smyth binding, you can also
choose to perfect bind, saddle stitch or side sew
the inside pages.
What makes it Swiss bound is when the text
block is fully glued to the inside back cover of
the case that holds your book, leaving the spine
of the case exposed.
IDEAL FOR
4 to 200 pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
The outer case does not have
to be a hard cover one, use
a paperback style option
instead.
Mount text blocks to the
front as well as back cover,
which cleverly divides a book
into two sections.
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French
Folds
French folds does not refer to the way
the pages are bound together, but the
way the pages are folded before binding.
A single sheet – 4 pages – is reverse folded in
half so that the front and back cover are the
main visible pages.
The open edges are then bound together with
other sections, usually using perfect binding.
This increases the bulk of each “page” and is also
the perfect way to hide bruising from foil
stamping, embossing and letterpress printing.
IDEAL FOR
8 to 400+ pages
$$$$$
BREAKING THE RULES
Rather than leaving the
inside of the folded pages
blank, flood them with a
contrasting color.
Use the inside of the French
folded pages for extra -
hidden - messages or design
elements (this is also referred
to as an Easter egg).
Paul Hekkert by Chris van Diemen
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Unlock Your
Creative Freedom
These binding insights are just the tip of the
print design iceberg.
My mission is to empower fellow graphic
designers to unlock their creativity and create
printed pieces that wow their clients.
My favorite thing to do is give you the
swatchbooks, insights and tools to make this
happen, which is exactly what we do in our
PRO Membership.
Instead of wasting hours on research, enjoy
your creative freedom and wow your clients.
TELL ME MORE
Because you deserve
the tools and resources
to create printed pieces
that wow your clients.
