Keeping it punchy

Care and maintenance for your paper punches

With the plethora of cards that I’ve been making lately, I’ve begun to notice that my paper punches are starting to, well, lose their punch. This, of course, caused some concern – punches aren’t cheap, after all. So, I got my research on, chose a punch to be my tester/sacrificial victim if things went wrong, and discovered a few ways to keep paper punches in perfect working order.

1.     Store punches in a dry place. Protect them from dust and moisture, which can cause rusting and other issues.

2.     If paper gets jammed in the punch, use tweezers to remove it. If the paper is too jammed to remove with the tweezers, put the punch in the freezer for 20 seconds. This will cause the metal to contract, making paper removal easier. Do not freeze the punches, however, or leave them in for too long. Freezing temperatures can cause the plastic casing to become brittle and crack.

3.     When the punch becomes dull, sharpen it by punching through some heavy-duty aluminum foil.

4.     Punch several times through wax paper to lubricate the punch when it starts to stick.

I hope these tips help your punches live a long and productive life! Come back on Wednesday, when we’ll return to the crafting for a cute and coordinated way to package up gifts. See you then!