Flat Size vs.
Finished Size
The flat size is the exact dimension of the printed piece
when laid flat. This measurement should include all folding
compensations, but should never include bleed allowances because
bleed is pulled past the edge of the page in the digital document.
Digital document page dimensions and flat size should always
be the same measurement.
Finished size is
the exact dimension of the printed piece when completely folded.
Panels vs. Pages
Panels are 2-sided sections of the printed piece, defined
by the crease of the fold. A page is one side of a panel.
For example: The
Accordion fold below is three panels, each of the three panels
is 2-sided, and each side is considered a page. So, the three-panel
Accordion has 6 pages. If we take that same fold and make
it a Broadside Accordion instead, then it changes to 6 panels
(although it's finished in a 3-panel Accordion format) and
the page count rises to 12.
Panels vs. Flaps
Panels are 2-sided sections of the printed piece, defined
by the crease of the fold. Flaps are shortened versions of
panels, and can also be called short panels, since there is
no official guideline as to when a panel becomes a flap. Below
is a Letter Fold. Next to that is a Letter with Hidden Flap
(there is also an Exposed Flap version of this fold). They're
really the same folding style—the only difference is
the width of the fold-in. Flaps are usually less than 1/2
the dimension of the finished width or height, depending upon
the direction of the fold.
Pages vs. Spreads
A page is a one-sided section of a folded piece, defined by
the crease of the fold. Spreads are 2 or more pages meant
to be viewed as one. For example, in the Letter Fold, the
cover is a page, the back cover is a page, but two or three
of the inside pages are viewed at the same time when the piece
is opened up, and therefore those pages together are considered
a spread.
Parallel Folds
vs. Right Angle Folds
The first
fold of any folding style is always a parallel fold. The next
fold can be a parallel fold or a right angle fold, depending
upon the folding style. Parallel folds are parallel to each
other. Right angle folds combine with parallel folds to make
right angles. So, a right angle fold cannot happen without
a parallel fold. Parallel fold number 7 (P-7) is a perfect
example:
Broadside vs.
Short Fold
A broadside-style fold doubles its area by folding in half
on itself before any characteristic folding style is created.
For example, a Broadside Letter fold is 12 pages, whereas
the Letter Fold is 6.
A short fold is
a broadside fold, too. The only difference is that the broadside
fold is a little less than twice the area because in a short
fold the fold-over panels are shorter than the finished height.
Printer vs.
Bindery
There are several types of printers—commercial printers,
quick printers, publication printers, digital printers, packaging
printers and more. Printers specialize in putting ink on a
substrate (paper, or other, depending upon what type of printer
they are). For convenience, most print shops have at least
some in-house binding capabilities.
There are several
types of binderies as well—commercial binderies, specialty
binderies, publication binderies, and more. Binderies specialize
in print finishing, which includes folding, binding books,
brochures and periodicals, and often die-cutting, gluing,
foil stamping, shrink-wrapping, wafer-sealing, auto-inserting,
and other related finishing needs. Binderies can be very large
or moderate in size, but they generally have more finishing
equipment than the average print shop, which gives them more
capacity, speed, and flexibility to manage longer run jobs
and specialized projects.
Bindery vs.
Specialty Bindery
As mentioned above, binderies can manage a multitude of finishing
needs, but specialty binderies can handle the most challenging
and creative bindery work. Some are normal binderies with
some specialized capabilities, and some are capable of just
about anything a designer can dream up. Certain specialty
binderies can mechanize difficult folding styles—often
"rigging" machinery to do extremely difficult work
that might have normally been considered hand work. Some can
handle miniature folding, large map folds, stringing tags,
pop-ups and more.
So, how does one
discern a specialty bindery from a regular bindery? It's not
usually in their name—there are some well-known specialty
binderies that can be found by word-of-mouth or on the Web.
If all else fails, ask your favorite bindery—you may
not know the breadth of their capabilities.
Mechanical Fold
vs. Hand Fold
A mechanical fold is any fold that can be done by machine.
Most of the folds in this book are mechanical folds. Hand
folds are folding styles that must be done completely or partially
by hand. Often, due to limitations of equipment, a fold is
taken as far as it can go by machine, and then the last fold
or two is done by hand by a group of workers in the bindery.
Some folding styles that are considered hand folds can be
done by machine at specialty binderies. Hand folding is very
expensive, and requires a die-score and more time built into
the finishing schedule.
