All the information you need to know on stapled booklets, also known as saddle-stitched. Complete with a healthy dose of diagrams!
A saddle-stitched or stapled booklet is a booklet of up to about 64 printed pages (32 leaves), which are bound in the centre using two staples. This is usually the most economical method of binding a booklet.
However, if your content only covers a number of pages like 10, or 7, that can’t be done using the saddle-stitch method. I’ll explain why!
THE NUMBER OF PAGES
The number of pages in a saddle-stitched booklet has to be a multiple of four. This is because one sheet of paper has two sides. Consider this as two pages. Once folded in half, that then means that it has created four pages – two on the inside and two on the outside.
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
To create a saddle-stitched booklet, multiple sheets of paper are folded in half, laid across a “saddle” then stapled together along the spine with two wire staples, to make the “stitches”.
The top, bottom, and outer edge are then back-trimmed for a nice, neat finish.
To create a booklet with A4 pages, the open (or “flat”) size of the sheets will be A3.
Each sheet of paper has a front and a back, so this will make up two pages.
A flat piece of paper, dreaming of becoming a stapled booklet.
Fold the sheet in half. Unless you have messed up royally, you should now have a piece of paper folded in half. What does this mean? You now have four pages!
But what if you need eight pages? Take a second sheet of paper, fold it in half, slide it inside the other folded sheet, and staple those suckers together right on the fold.
Now you have eight pages.
But wait, you need more? Add another folded sheet. Boom, twelve pages!
This means that if you would like your booklet to be stapled, your total number of pages must be a multiple of four.
“But MJ, I have ten pages!”
If a page in your stapled booklet is blank, does it cease to exist?
You can either reduce your stapled booklet back to eight pages, or pad it out to twelve, e.g. by adding blank pages, or a ‘notes’ page.
SUPPLYING THE FILE
One more important thing to consider here is that when setting up the design for your booklet, every printer will want this supplied as single pages, and NOT as spreads. When the pages are printed they will be actually be done in “sections”. This is perfect for the outer cover, and the inside spread. But the rest of the pages will not be printed side by side.
The smaller dimensions your stapled booklet has, the more complicated the imposition can be! Lucky our stellar prepress department can take care of the hard part for you.
Booklets are one of our favourite projects. If you have one coming up, we’d love to help! Contact us on 9544 9055 or send us an email.