Hessian: The Fabric That Goes Marching On!

Hessian is a woven fabric, that's usually made from the fibres of the jute plant. However, sisal fibres may also be used, or combined with other vegetable fibres to make rope, nets, and other similar products. In the USA and Canada hessian is called 'burlap'.

The Jute Plant

Hessian has always been a coarse fabric but today it's being produced as a more refined material to make bags, rugs and other products and is known simply as jute. Because it's an eco-friendly material, it's becoming more popular.

It's not know exactly where the word 'burlap' came from but it's thought it could mean 'coarse piece of cloth', or something similar. The name 'hessian' however, comes from the uniforms of German soldiers who came from Hesse and were known as 'Hessians'.

Jute Fibres Drying In The Sun

Hessian has many uses including bags and sacks, known as 'gunny bags, that were used to ship goods such as tea and coffee.

Hessian is also used to wrap the exposed roots when transplanting trees and shrubs and to prevent soil erosion on steep slopes.

Hessian is rarely used today to make clothes but it was used in the past, in Christian communities, where individuals wore a "sackcloth" on Ash Wednesday, as a kind of 'penitence'.

Bunnahabhain Whisky Box With Hessian Fabric Lining

Hessian has been used by many artists in the past as a stretched surface for painting and in the 1968 Georgie Fame song 'The Ballad of Bonnie and Clyde', there is a line that reads '...while Bonnie loaded dollars into the burlap bag'.

Polmac (UK) Ltd uses hessian fabrics extensively to line their custom made, wood presentation boxes, promotional boxes and gift boxes, where a more traditional, rustic quality is desired.

The hessian fabric is applied flat on the base and sides of our wooden boxes, or on moulded inserts, to the shape of the product/ s to be accommodated.

The lids are also lined with hessian fabric, on a foam base, to provide additional protection for the wood boxes inside, against impact damage in transit.

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To Mitre Or Not To Mitre? That Is The Question!

A wood mitre joint is made by bevelling two vertical panels together at 45 degrees, to form a 90 degree corner, with no end grain showing. This makes the mitre joint visually appealing and is just one of the traditional jointing methods used by Polmac (UK) Ltd to make custom made, wood presentation boxes, promotional boxes and gift boxes.

Inserting A 'Tongue' Into Mitre Joint Groove

Mitre joints, without additional strengthening are only slightly stronger than butt joints, because the ends are cut at 45 degrees and this creates a wider surface area for adhesive to be applied. This conceals the end grain, thus giving the corner joint an uninterrupted 'clean' appearance.

The best results for mitre joints are achieved by cutting the angle of the joint with a drop saw rather than a hand saw, as this creates neat and very straight edges. However, for consistent accuracy Polmac (UK) Ltd uses a special mitring machine.

Assembling Sides Of Box

Mitre joints don't require much holding strength. However, for making wooden boxes, additional strengthening is required.

After the panels are mitred, two narrow grooves are cut at the centre and the entire length of each mitred surface. Then, a wood 'tongue' is glued and tapped into one groove, leaving a protrusion of about 3 -4 mm depending on the thickness of the panels.

Tapping The Mitre Joints Together

The second panel is then glued and tapped into position creating a much stronger 'tongue & groove' joint. This process is repeated for the two remaining wood panels, creating the sides of the wood box.

The entire assembly, comprising four mitred panels is then placed in a special metal cramp that ensures the joints are tight and the assembly perfectly square, during the glue drying process.

Cramping Sides Of Box

When the glue has dried, the excess tongues are carefully removed and the top and bottom ends of the 'box' are sanded off to present a perfectly even surface ready for the base and lid panels to be glued into position.

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Screen Printing: A Printing Technique That's As Smooth As Silk!

Polmac (UK) Ltd uses a number of printing techniques, including screen printing, to print logos and text onto it's custom made wood presentation boxes, promotional boxes and gift boxes, when a more personalized finish is required.

Screen Printing: Using a Squeegee

Screen printing is a traditional ink printing technique, also known as silkscreen, serigraphy and serigraph that was developed in China about 2000 years ago. The Chinese used human hair stretched across a wooden frame as the screen and stencils made from leaves that were stuck together.

The process however was soon adopted by the Japanese and they used woven silk rather than human hair for the screen and various lacquers to make the stencils. It was in Japan that the name silk screen printing was derived.

Today, the design, or image is applied to a fine mesh screen usually made from synthetic polyester, with the blank areas coated in an impermeable substance.

Once set up, a 'fill blade' or 'squeegee' is moved by hand across the screen 'stencil' to force the ink through the openings in the mesh to the substrate below. 

The stencil openings determine what the printed image below will look like. The pressure of the squeegee stroke forces the screen down and as it recovers, the ink is left on the substrate.

Screen printing has always been popular for printing posters, signs and general stationery. However, there are now many other uses such as printing cd covers, t-shirts, vinyl labels and of course printing onto wooden boxes.

In screen printing, only one colour can be printed at a time, so several screens are needed to produce an image or design that has multi colours.

Screen printing has developed rapidly over the years. The basic technique remains the same but with innovation and the introduction of computers, it is barely recognizable as the technique the Chinese invented all those years ago.

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Storing & Curing Timber: An Essential Process!

Polmac (UK) Ltd Alder and Linden wood, rough sawn planks need to be 'cured' before they can be used to make our wood presentation boxes, promotional boxes and gift boxes. This is because freshly sawn timber, delivered straight from the mill has a high moisture content and will warp very quickly if used.

Cutting Logs In The Saw Mill

For most commercial uses, including manufacturing wood presentation packaging, the moisture content of the wood should be between 10 - 15 %. Freshly sawn timber can have a moisture content as high as 45 %.

Polmac uses a natural air curing process that is normally undertaken in an external covered area with open sides which allows plenty of natural air circulation between the planks.

75 x 50 mm battens are placed on the ground and the planks are arranged on top with spaces between. The battens are treated with a preservative to prevent dampness from the ground reaching the planks above. Each layer of planks is the same thickness to ensure the even distribution of weight.

Stack Of 'Air Cured' Timber Planks

Smaller untreated Pine or similar spacer battens or 'stickers' are then placed on top of the planks at approximately 400 - 450 mm centres. These spacer battens are usually no more than 25mm thick to restrict the air flow to prevent the timber planks from drying out too quickly.

The planks at the bottom of the stack are weighted down by the pressure of the planks above, and will be kept flat during the curing process. The top layers however, are only lightly weighted and are vulnerable to moisture movement.

Therefore, a thick 25mm plywood board is placed on top of the stack and then weighed down with concrete blocks or bricks. A thick 25mm plywood board is placed on top of the stack and then weighed down with concrete blocks or bricks. This distributes the weight evenly and prevents the top layers from warping and keeps them flat during the curing process.

The natural air curing process can take up to two and a half years and even after this period, some kiln drying may be necessary to achieve the right moisture content. The timber planks will now be ready to be taken inside the workshops for the manufacturing process to begin. The wood is now cut, shaped and jointed to make our wooden boxes.

Polmac custom made wood boxes and wood packaging products are beautifully made, versatile and terrific value and are designed to boost company branding and sales!

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