Notes for paper and bookcrafters
Craftspeople creating items using paper often employ a small folder to make a firm crease or to score thicker materials. The most common items for this are wood or bone [124744] .
Because I am always losing or mislaying my folders I tend to have several in use at any one time. Recently I have added an agate folder to the armoury. This stone folder is as useful as any other but has several advantages which are worth mentioning ~ although they are not really relevant for paper-crafters.
A small agate folder
A large agate folder
Agate folders are readily available nowadays and have considerable novelty value. This makes such a stone folder an ideal ~ and probably surprising ~ gift for a fellow craftsperson. Agate folders are lovely to look at ~ being a natural item ~ and a pleasure to handle and use.
Folders of different sizes
I read and kept a note ~ from somewhere (with apologies for failing to acknowledge the source) ~ that 'Agate has the power to harmonise the positive and negative forces that maintain equilibrium in the universe. It is also known to cleanse and stabilise the aura ~ stimulate and strengthen our analytical capabilities ~ encourage us to think clearly and concentrate on daily activities.' This balance of the yin and yang is important for some people ~ another good reason for having some agate around ~ preferably in the hand and in daily use.
Although bone folders are made from otherwise unwanted thigh-bones of cattle they are objectionable to vegans. Stone folders are environmentally friendly ~ although the dust produced in making them is not a good thing to be inhaling.
Agate is very hard. This means that it will take a fine polish and once shiny it will stay so. There are few everyday substances that will scratch agate - even the hard steel of a craft knife blade will not mark a true piece of agate. Agate is rated at six ~ nearly two stages higher on the Mhos Scale then ordinary steel (at four) [112331].
Yesterday I was gluing and creasing. ~
Today there is a crust of dry glue stuck to the agate folder. ~
The muck can be scraped away by a craft blade ~
without fear of scratching the agate
Modern material science has produced chemicals ~ resins and such like ~ that can resemble many materials. Faux agate is onesuch ~ it is not as hard as the real thing. I have no experience of it and so cannot write notes on it. I do know that some ~ usually cheap ~ plastic folders melt under the frictional heat as they do their job.
We have a sister site that sells agate folders ~ amongst many other items ~ [124761] and they can also be obtained from the craft shop Etsy [Etsy].
