Iron book dustjackets represent some of the easiest and authorial ways to display your books.
They come in countless styles, and virtually any book can be made into a stylish jacket. So, can you iron book dust jackets?
Sure! You can iron book dust jackets, but it’s often not worth the effort.
First, book dust jackets are usually thin and lightweight, so ironing them takes a long time and a lot of heat. Second, book dust jackets are made out of paper, so ironing them often leaves them wrinkled and damaged.
Finally, book dust jackets are usually covered in plastic or laminate, so ironing them isn’t very effective. For these reasons, it’s much easier to simply fold book dust jackets in half and put them away in a drawer or stack them on a shelf.
Contents
Can You Iron Book Dust Jackets?
Yes, you can iron dust jackets! Although cloth dust jackets are typically not ironed by readers, they are made of a cloth-like material that can be ironed.
However, if you do choose to iron your dust jacket, you should first test it out on a swatch. If the swatch doesn’t get damaged, then you can go ahead and iron the dust jacket.
Ironing dust jackets is a variation of the “cold ironing” technique. With the cold ironing technique, you first use a hot iron to warm up the dust jacket, and then chill it in the freezer.
The cold iron technique should be done on a swatch first to ensure that you don’t damage the dust jacket.
Before you iron your dust jacket, you should have it cleaned by a professional bookbinder.
Bookbinders use a special spray that removes dust and dirt without damaging the dust jacket. The spray will dissolve the dust, making it easier for you to brush it off.
When cleaning your dust jacket, first brush the upper half with your hand and then use the brush to remove the rest.
This will clear out any dust that is stuck on the dust jacket.
After cleaning your dust jacket, you should read and follow the manufacturer’s instructions on how to iron your dust jacket.
How To Iron A Book Dust Jacket
Do Not Press Too Hard
This is one of the biggest errors that people make when attempting to straighten out a wrinkled or bent book cover.
You should never press too hard on your book cover.
People make this error because they push too firmly with their fingers or their palm when trying to straighten out the cover.
Your best option is to iron the cover only enough to smooth out the creases.
If you iron the book’s dust cover too much or apply too much pressure, you run the risk of damaging the book’s binding or even bending the cover out of shape.
Iron The Entire Book Jacket
When you are certain that the book dust cover is clean of dust and dirt and that you have followed the manufacturer’s instructions on how to properly straighten out the book jacket, it is time to start ironing.
This is the best method of straightening out a wrinkle in a book jacket: just lay the entire book jacket flat on a flat surface and begin to smooth it out with the hot iron.
A lot of errors are made when people try to straighten out a book jacket by trying to smooth out a single crease or a bend in the cover.
This involves taking the heated iron and pressing down on one spot on the cover and trying to smooth out the creases.
You should iron it across all corners to flatten out all of the wrinkles in the book jacket’s fabric.
Set The Iron To Lowest Heat Setting
Excessive heat is used while ironing a book cover.
You don’t want to find yourself in a situation in which you’re afraid to touch the iron to the book cover because you might burn yourself.
When it comes to this sort of setup, a 2 setting on an iron should be plenty to get the job done.
The lowest heat setting is ideal since you won’t need to apply a lot of pressure to the iron to smooth out the wrinkles in the book cover.
You risk scorching the book cover if you use a higher heat setting.
This is an error that should definitely not be made when attempting to fix a wrinkled book jacket: attempting to straighten out a wrinkled book jacket by applying excessive pressure with your heated iron.
Place A Sheet On Top Of The Ironing Board
Place a sheet on top of an ironing board before you attempt to straighten out a wrinkled book jacket.
This is to keep the cloth of the ironing board from getting burned by the hot iron.
Many individuals will push too firmly on their hot-iron and accidentally scorch the fabric on the ironing board that they place their book on.
You’ll need an even surface to place your books on while you straighten them out.
Do not allow this to happen, and use a sheet to protect your work space from harm while you’re ironing your book jackets.
Placing the sheet on your work surface will prevent it from overheating and catching on fire while you work on straightening out your book covers.
It will enable you to focus on the task at hand without worrying about your work area catching fire while you iron your book jackets.
Also Read: Can You Iron a Non-Iron Shirt?
Final Words
You can iron a book cover if you have the necessary equipment, such as a steam iron, and the ability to follow a set process to complete the task.
Place a sheet on the ironing board, turn on your steam iron, and place the book onto the board and iron it out with as little force as possible.
This is how you’re supposed to fix a wrinkled book jacket, so use it as a guide the next time you need to straighten one out.
You don’t want to be in a scenario where you burn your books by accident because you tried to straighten them out with the hot iron and didn’t follow any of the tips above.
You should also put the iron through a proper cleaning routine on a regular basis, so that you can clean it out well to avoid rust and other sorts of build-up that could potentially ruin the quality of your work.
This will allow you to consistently maintain the quality of your work and avoid making simple mistakes that could lead to disastrous consequences.
