With the beginning of a new year just around the corner, there’s no better time to create your own custom calendars! Whether you’re using them for promotional giveaways for business associates or as unique gifts for friends and family, custom calendars are a great way to share your message with others all year long. Even if you don’t have the budget for large runs of professionally-made calendars, it is still possible to achieve professional-looking results in your own home or office when you use wire calendar hangers – and it’s surprisingly easy! In this post, we’ll take a closer look at wire calendar hangers and discover how they can transform ordinary color copies into a extraordinary wall calendars.
The Basics
Wire calendar hangers are small, sturdy pieces of wire that have a shallow curve located in the center. This curve is aligned with a notch on the edge of the document (which is created using a half-moon punch), and the resulting opening allows the calendar to be hung using a nail or push pin while still providing clearance for the pages to be turned. They are available in two sizes – 6” wires that accommodate calendars that are 6”-9” on the bound side and 10” wires that are designed for calendars that are 10” or larger on the bound edge. The calendar hanger is secured in place by a standard wire binding spine (recommended size: 5/16”).
The Process
Creating a custom calendar with wire calendar hangers is easy! All that is required is a 3:1 pitch wire binding machine, a half-moon punch, 5/16” twin loop binding wires (3:1 pitch), wire calendar hangers, and color copies of your photographs or promotional images that have been prepared with your favorite calendar software. Begin by using the half-moon punch to create a semi-circle notch in the center of the edge to be bound (the edge that will be used to hang the calendar). Next, align your document in the punching portion of your wire binding machine so that it has an even number of holes on both sides (note: this may require you to disengage a few pins to avoid punching partial holes in either the notched section or the outside edges of your calendar). After punching your document, cut your wire binding spine down to the appropriate length for each side of the top edge. Insert your pages as well as the wire calendar hanger into the two spine sections, and use your wire closer to complete the bind. Now your custom calendar is ready to share with a friend or colleague.
In Review
Almost everyone has a calendar hanging in their home or office, so creating a custom calendar is an excellent way to share your photographs or promotional messages with others throughout the entire year. Though professionally-produced calendars can be expensive (and often require large production runs), making your own calendars is a cost-effective and surprisingly simple process. By using a wire binding machine, half-moon punch, twin loop wires, wire calendar hangers, and your artwork, creating small or large batches of calendars is as easy as binding a document. If you’re looking for an original gift idea for friends or family, or a useful promotional piece for business associates, custom calendars may be an ideal choice for you.