November 14 – Hole Punch Day!

nPosted on November 14, 2019

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nAs long as there has been paper, there have been people needing to make holes in paper. Book binding and collecting papers in binders are major reasons for holes in paper – although of course there are all manner of decorative “holes” as well…

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n…For book binding, people have used awls and needles of various sorts, and for collecting books in binders, people either buy paper with holes already cut or use a tool to make holes…

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nWe can use utility knives or scissors to cut holes in paper, and even pencils and pens can be used in a pinch. But the neatest, most even holes are made with a hole punch. And it’s easiest if we have a hole punch that easily punches the right number and spacing of holes to fit our binder.

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nThat’s where today’s historical anniversary comes in:

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nOn this date in 1886, entrepreneur and inventor Friedrich Soennecken filed a patent for a two-hole punch in Germany. Soennecken also invented two-ring binders, an ink container that is more stable than earlier containers, “round writing” (which is basically the style of script we use now), and more…

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nAround the world, either two-hole or four-hole binders are most common; in the U.S., Mexico, and the Philippines, three-hole binders are used most. Of course there are also specialty hole punches used to prepare paper for comb binding and coil binding. 

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nPlan ahead:

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• nNovember holidays

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• nNovember birthdays

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• nHistorical anniversaries in November

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• nDecember holidays

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• nDecember birthdays

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• nHistorical anniversaries in December

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