The Thrifty Therapist: Cheap Laminating

I asked my sister, the second grade teacher, for a topic for today's Thrifty Therapist post, and she suggested that I talk about the importance of laminating and having a laminator.

Now, I am going to take this and make it my own, but know that I purchased my own laminator as soon as I possibly could because none of the methods that I had to use before I bought my laminator worked well for me. They work well for others, but not for me for some reason. On this post, I will talk about inexpensive ways to laminate visual aids (and then I will talk about the pitfalls that I have found with each of these materials - I hope that you will have better experiences with this than I do!).

Technique #1 - Clear Contact Paper - You can find this for about $6 USD if you do some bargain shopping. Make sure that you make note of the width and the length of the rolls to ensure that you are getting the best deal for your money. Clear Contact Paper is very good for covering large visuals. It is flexible, but difficult to tear. If you completely seal the edges, it is easy to clean with a wipe. Also, if you get the shiny version without a texture, you can use most dry erase markers on the top.

This was the way my internship director laminated everything, and, since I was an intern, it was my job to laminate most of the materials used in the music therapy clinic to get hours away from my internship duties. I swear that this stuff feels my gaze and crinkles up. I spent most of my after hour time trying to laminate things, failing miserably, messing up the visuals, having to re-draw the visuals, and then doing my utmost best to not have the Contact Paper crinkle. This, and this alone, was the reason that I bought a laminator as soon as I possibly could - because I NEVER want to use clear contact paper (or any Contact Paper for that matter) EVER AGAIN!!!

Technique #2 - Clear Packing Tape - This is less expensive, if you are trying to laminate small things. If you are laminating big things, then go for the Clear Contact Paper because it will cover larger areas more quickly. For small things, though, a roll of clear packing tape is a great alternative to laminating. It has a nice, shiny surface that also allows for dry erase markers. For me, I find the best results when I lay down all of the cards that I am laminating on the sticky side of the tape in a long line before doubling the tape over.

I have better results with this, but not much. Lots of wrinkles and creases happen, but it does keep my more destructive clients from ripping up their nametags when they are angry with me.

The best thing I ever did for myself was to purchase my first laminator. I got a Fellowes laminator way back (at least 15 years ago now), and it is still going strong. Since then, I have purchased four more. Yes, you read that right. I have five laminators that I use on a regular basis. I have one Scotch laminator, one Amazon Basic laminator (I do not recommend that one), and two generic laminators that I cannot remember the brands at the moment. I keep two at work and have three at home.

If you already have a laminator that you use in your music therapy life, may I recommend Lamination Depot to you for your laminating pouch needs? (I do not get any sort of financial benefit for recommending them or for recommending ANYTHING on this blog.) Check out their prices. I use them all the time, and they have pouches big enough for the file folders that I use all the time and little, bitty ones as well. I find their prices to be the best around. There you go.