Saddle Stitching and Perfect Binding are the 2 most common options used to bind a multi-page booklet, catalog or magazine.
2 Most Common Print Finishing Options
In Saddle Stitching, multiple pages are bound together along the fold with 2 staples. The line created by the fold is also known as the “spine.”
Let’s take an 8.5” x 11” magazine for example. When the magazine is printed it will print at 11” x 17” size and each sheet will fold in half to 8.5” x 11”. All pages of the magazine will be gathered together and stitched (stapled) 2x along the spine.
Saddle Stitching is used to bind multi-page booklets that are 8 pages or larger. For the saddle stitch method to work, the pages of your booklet need to be multiples of 4. Usually a booklet can be saddle stitched up to 68 pages (it can vary depending on the thickness of the paper). Once a book has more pages, it will need to be perfect bound.
A Perfect Bound booklet has a flat spine. In this option, the sheets of the book are gathered together, a glue is applied along the binding edge and the cover of the booklet is placed over and around it. A book can be perfect bound as long as it is 28 pages or larger. In Perfect Binding, the final page count just needs to be a multiple of 2.
Helpful note: In printing, a sheet of paper has 2 sides, so 1 sheet is referred to as 2 pages. If you have an 11 x 17, that folds in half to 8.5 x 11, your printer will refer to this as 4 pages.
At Clear Print, we have both Saddle Stitch & Perfect Binding options available to you. If you’d like to see samples of the various bindings available please come by or request some samples.
We are located in Chatsworth, CA and serve many areas including Los Angeles, Burbank, Glendale, Valencia, Santa Clarita and more. Or contact one of our Sales Reps at 818-709-1220 or info@clearprint.com.
