A trick I saw at the Portland book fair for dealing with warped boards

I was at the Portland Book Fair last month and watched a binder named Clara fix a badly warped cover board in about ten minutes. She used a small travel clothes steamer on low heat, not an iron, and worked it slowly under a weight. It got me thinking about how much moisture from the air can mess with our work. Has anyone else tried a steamer instead of an iron for this kind of fix?

3 comments

3 Comments

sanchez.beth2mo ago

And that control thing is really the key here. With an iron, you're pressing the board flat while simultaneously forcing moisture deeper into the paper fibers, which can actually make the warping worse long term if you aren't careful. But a steamer lets you introduce just enough moisture on the surface to relax the board, so when you put it under weight, the fibers dry and settle back into a flat position rather than curling up again. I've started doing this with any board that feels a bit wavy or has a dish to it, just a few passes with the steamer and then a heavy book on top overnight, and they come out dead flat every time.

wilson.anthony3mo ago

Oh interesting. I heard steamers give you more control than an iron for that exact reason.

thomas833mo ago

Totally, steamers are way better for delicate fabrics. I nearly ruined a silk shirt with an iron last month. The steamer just gets wrinkles out without that harsh heat.