Cinch

What is a Cinch and what can you make with it?

The Cinch from We R Memory Keepers is a binding machine for easily making your own book. In no time, you can bind several pages into a handy recipe book, a beautiful photo album or journal, a practical planner or a fun (birthday) calendar. The strong hole punch allows you to bind a book up to 3 cm thick and 30,5 cm tall. You can punch up to 20 sheets of printer paper at once. Cardboard, cardstock, paper or plastic are no challenge for the Cinch. Choose where to bind the pages and let the book-binding machine do the heavy work.

The Cinch book binding tool makes every idea possible. You can design the cover yourself, add pages and/or covers and create a beautiful book in exactly the style you want. So you are not dependent on the limited space offered by a ready-made journal or album, and you can also use all your creativity to make the nicest little books. You can even match the colour of the ring binder or discs to your cover. Besides black and white, you can choose from silver, gold, copper, pink, blue and many other colours. The Cinch binding wires are available in different sizes, so you have a suitable ring binder for every creation. Whether your booklet is 1, 2 or 3 cm thick, the Cinch makes it possible.

Step-by-step plan: how can I bind a book with the Cinch?

Binding a book with the Cinch is very simple. Just punch, bind & cinch! Step 1 is all about your design: think about what you want to create and in what way. For example, do you want to bundle some recipes or journals? Will you turn your scrapbook pages into a beautiful photo album? Or will you make a journal with blank pages to fill later? Once you have thought of the concept, start thinking about the size and then gather the necessary materials and tools.

To make a book or album, you will need at least the following:

• a Cinch binding machine;
• a cardboard cover, such as chipboard or book board;
• (homemade) pages and/or slipcovers;
• a pair of cut flatbed pliers;
• and a ring binder.  

Step 2: The exact dimensions of the cardboard for the cover, the paper for the pages, the inserts and the ring binder depend on your specific project. If necessary, cut the cover and pages to size using a (guillotine) paper cutter. For cardboard, a guillotine paper cutter is the most useful as it cuts through sturdy cardboard effortlessly. Use either a guillotine cutter or a regular paper trimmer for cutting cardstock and other paper.

Step 3: Have you collected all your supplies? Then this is the time to decide at what distance you want to punch the holes. You can also adjust the number of holes to the size of your book or album. On the machine, you will find a table indicating the corresponding setting for each size. Set the machine to your needs and practice on a piece of scrap paper to be sure. Punch the holes by pushing the lever downwards.

Step 4: Once you are satisfied with the setting, align one or more pages at a time and punch for the first time. If necessary, pull out the ruler and align the paper to the right size to punch a second time.

Step 5: Next, cut the ring binder to size and place it in the special holder on the side of the Cinch. Place your pages in the ring binder and add the front and back covers. Lay the covers with the nice side together to look good later. Finally, close the ring binder by pressing it at the back of the binding machine. First set the size of the ring binder and then push the small lever down. Use pliers to bend the ends of the ring binder and your book(s) are ready! Flip the back for the final result.

Watch this video for step-by-step instructions

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHmHGqqb5ug&t=121s   

Tip: Another option is to twist the ring binder through the punched holes and bend the ends with pliers (see example 2). Or, of course, you can bind your album with the discs (example 3).

What is the difference between the (Mini) Cinch and the Heidi Swapp Cinch?

We R Memory Keepers has no less than four variants of the Cinch book binding tool in its range:

1. The original Cinch
2. the Mini Cinch
3. the Heidi Swapp Cinch
4. and the Disc Cinch

The main difference between the four is the shape of the punch. The Original Cinch allows you to punch round holes, while the Mini Cinch and Heidi Swapp Cinch allow you to punch square holes. Unlike the other types, the Disc Cinch uses round discs instead of a ring binder to bind your book. This is because this binding method requires a different shape of holes: the notches for the discs.

In addition, the Cinches differ considerably in size. The handy Mini Cinch and Disc Cinch are only half the size of the other two machines and therefore punch six holes instead of 12 like the larger ones. Despite this difference, you can make books and albums up to 30,5 cm with each machine. In summary, the four Cinches are not inferior to each other - on the contrary! Each one brings new possibilities.

Ready, set... go!

To get started with the Cinch straightaway, we recommend the Mini Cinch Bundle. This starter pack contains everything you need: a Mini Cinch bookbinding machine, 16 ring binders (30,5 cm) in various colours, a wire cutter and six black book boards (20 x 28 cm). Also highly recommended is the Cinch Binding Wires value pack with 16 ring binders in the colours: silver, gold, copper, black, mint, dark blue, pink and red. A nice set of coloured discs is available for the Disc Cinch. So you immediately have enough ring binders and/or discs for all your booklets and albums.