Naked Binders are made of “binders board”, a material traditionally used in book binding.   We use heavier, more rigid board that is relatively smooth and has a neutral gray color.  Look closely and you can see flecks of recycled paper and cardboard that make up the 100% recycled board. Our board is made of waste paper from the state of Connecticut, primarily newspaper, recycled office paper, magazines and carton / paperboard packaging.  The board contains 97% post-consumer waste.

The first step in manufacturing the board is to continuously drop bales of waste paper into a giant tub filled with hot water.  Paddles circulate the hot water and break down the paper fibers until the mixture is kind of a soupy gray slurry.  All foreign materials are skimmed off.

When the paper mixture is 97% water and 3% paper fiber, it is piped to the paper board machine.  The liquid flows over screens and the water is drained away over and over, leaving layer upon layer of wet paper fiber until the proper thickness is built up.  After drying and pressing, the board is laminated together with adhesive to achieve the proper thickness.  The board is cut to the desired size and is ready to be made into Naked Binders.

We do this by rounding the corners to prevent wear, applying the cotton spine wrap, then pressing in the spine hinge.  Finally, the 3-ring mechanism is riveted in and the binder is complete, ready for years of use and 100% recyclable.   In order to test the durability of Naked Binders, we sent samples to an independent testing lab where the binders were flexed more than 50,000 times with no visible change to the spine or board!  Just try that with vinyl!

Speaking of strikes against vinyl binders, besides the use of plastics and a toxic manufacturing process, they are not easily recycled. When you toss one away, it will be in the landfill forever. When ready to dispose of a Naked Binder, simply pop the rings out with a screwdriver and toss the metal and board into the appropriate recycling bin.   Couldn’t be simpler or safer.

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