Crafting is a beautiful form of art where you can let your imagination run wild with Knick knacks around the home. But sometimes you end up creating some extra special crafts which you want to preserve. And the easiest way to do that is to get them laminated.
Sure, you can go to a store to get your crafts sealed up, but that would cost a lot and would build up over time. Having a laminator cuts down on this cost, not to mention you have access to it at all times.
The best laminator for crafts should have good speed and high compatibility. This way you can get most of your work laminated, and fast too. Of course, other factors matter too, but we shall look into details down below.
In the DIY world, nothing gets used once. Having this laminator will let you see all the hundreds of things you wish you had laminated. Which is all the more reason to get one!
Contents
| IMAGE | Name | Number of Rollers | Speed | Compatibility | price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Toyuugo | Two | 280mm/min | A4, A5, A6, card paper | |
 | Sinopuren | Two | 300mm/min | A4. A5, A6 | |
| | Swingline | Two | 9inch/min | 3mil, 5 mil | |
 | UALAU | Two | 250mm/min | 3mil, 5 mil | |
 | Bonsaii | Two | 12 inches/min | A4. A5, A6 | |
 | Xyron XRN900 | N/A | N/A | N/A | |
 | Crenova | Two | 250mm/min | 2 x 2.5mil to 2 x 4mil | |
| | Scotch Brand Pro | Two | 15 in/min | 3mil, 5 mil | |
| | JIEZE | Two | 10.2 inch/min. | A4. A5, A6 |
This Toyuugo laminator is one that comes with two options. There is a hot or thermal mode and a cold mode. This comes in handy when you want to laminate different pouches.
When using the thermal mode, you will need to give the machine around 3 minutes so it can heat up and do its job. 3 minutes is not a lot of time for something you are using at home and will get the job done pretty quickly too.
Like most good laminating machines, this one has a two-roller design. Using this the lamination process becomes smooth and the final work comes out without any bumps.
The speed is an impressive 200 mm per minute. It helps to increase your efficiency, and a fast laminating process also ensures that you do not experience any curling, blistering, or wrinkles.
Sometimes you will find that laminators can make a lot of noise. If you have kids around, which most crafters usually do, you want a quiet machine.
The noiseless advantage is provided with the device. So you do not need to worry about a loud machine when working.
Paper jamming is another common issue users tend to face. For this reason, you need to look out for the anti-jam feature. Here you have the ABS button using which you can clear jammed or wrapped pouches if you feel any resistance occurring.
Coming to the compatibility, this machine can be used for papers that have a maximum width of 230 mm for the A4 size. As for the kind of paper, you can use postcards, pictures, business cards, and of course photos and get them all laminated using this machine as long as the sizes match.
The working time on this machine is 30 minutes. This might not seem like a lot for professionals, but when you are using it at home for arts and crafts, 30 minutes is a pretty good.
It is recommended however that when you are using the thermal mode, you pay close attention to the temperature. This is because if it ends up becoming too hot, the pouches can become unstable and lead the glue to boil which eventually causes bubbles on the lamination
A cold mode is good if you are laminating something very sensitive, such as old photos or documents which need special attention. For crafting in the home, you will not need this feature a lot.
This laminator is a 6-is-1 desktop machine. And besides the laminating feature which we are here for, this one also has a paper trimmer, a hole puncher, one corner rounder built into it. Now that is truly an investment worth making for crafters require more or less all these features.
With the double roller system, this laminator has a high speed of 300 mm/minute. This is pretty impressive for a machine to be used at home, and in fact, can be used at work too thanks to this high speed.
The warmup time is also pretty low at only 3 minutes. After this, the machine becomes ready to move forward with the laminating process. You will know this when the green light is on.
It also includes the ABS lever, which is designed to prevent any form of paper jams so you do not have to face such issues without a professional by your side.
This also has an intelligent temperature control system. We love this addition because it helps you to select and control the temperature while working, which is very important. After all, high temperatures can become a hazard when left unseen. Not to mention controlling the temperature also makes the machine last longer.
The maximum width that this laminator can accommodate is 230 mm. Meaning we can insert papers and documents of the A4 size or anything smaller. While the maximum thickness supported is 0.5 mm.
This is a very compact laminator that is made mostly for personal use, so you know it will sit well on your desk. A popular choice for schools and home offices, this is a very slim and stylish machine that you wont be bothered to have on display.
The laminator takes a mere four minutes to warm up. Once it is warm enough to start laminating the indicator light will come on.
The maximum length of paper this machine can accommodate is 9 inches, so it will let you work with a lot of papers which is highly necessary when crafting since you never know what you end up with.
Like most good laminators, this one also has a double roller design. Using this you can rest assured that the laminating will be done smoothly and without any form of wrinkles or bumps.
It is compatible with any 3 mils or 5 mils of laminating pouches which will let you work with most documents or papers that you have.
It also comes with a jam release lever which is here to help you clear out any paper jams. If you find any jammed pouches, using this will let you release it quickly.
Besides the regular thermal lamination, this has a cold lamination setting as well. Here, instead of heat, you have to work with pressure-sensitive adhesive pouches. This is more suitable when you are trying to laminate any sensitive documents, your old papers, or photos, which are more vulnerable than your crafts.
This is a 4-in-1 laminator that gives you a lot more than the laminating feature that you have come here for. Other tools included in this are the corner rounder and the paper trimmer.
While these might not seem like a great addition, it really comes in handy when you are dealing with crafts. These features also make it a common choice to be used at schools where kids often want to preserve their work.
The machine is very versatile and can laminate papers or crafts up to 9 inches wide. In other words, it can accommodate A4 sized paper.
Looking at the thickness, you can work with 3 mils to 5 mil pouches. This lets you laminate more than just A4 papers, but business cards, photo cards, and other crafts too, since these are mostly done on papers that are slightly heavier and thicker to provide structure.
The preheating time is also great at only 3 to 5 minutes depending on what you plan to do. The laminating speed is 250 mm per minute. This lets you cover a lot of papers, which is something you will have to do a lot at school.
Using time is up to 30 minutes. This lets you laminate papers for 30 minutes before you need to give the machine a break. So whether you use it at home or school you get a pretty decent working time.
To prevent paper jams it comes with the ABS button. When you experience any paper jam occurring, simply use this to fix it. UALAU also recommends that when inserting the paper, you set it evenly inside the laminating pouch to prevent jams in the first place.
If you are looking for a big laminator, then this one is something you should check out. It has a maximum width of 13 inches which is more than what you normally get. This lets you laminate papers and documents up to A3 size.
Since we are talking about crafts, a wider laminator also means that we can laminate multiple crafts at once to create one big piece, which does save a lot of time.
The pre-heating time is as short as three minutes. And the laminating speed is as high as 300 mm per minute. These features together overall increase the efficiency with which you can work, and if you're using this for a professional setting or a school, you will really enjoy this increased performance.
It also features cold lamination which you can use for sensitive papers you do not want to apply any heat to.
Thickness is supported by this machine is between 3 and 5 mils. Of course, it also has the ABS switch. No good laminator comes without this. This allows you to pull papers from the machine effortlessly and you will not face any jamming whatsoever.
Since these machines can be a bit noisy, this one has a low motor speed. You will not experience the squeaking noise and can work peacefully.
So the width of the laminator is one of the first things you need to look at. Because the wider the laminator, the wider the papers you can insert.
You might have one or two things you want to laminate at the moment, but do not let that trick you into buying a small one. Even if it is for the home, you should get a good size, so you do not end up regretting it later on.
9 inches is the common size for most households. It is big enough for laminating crafts and papers you need. Of course, you can go with bigger machines too, but this should be considered a minimum mark of sorts.
When you are laminating papers, you usually do not have to worry too much about the capacity. But when you are looking for the best laminators for crafts, the capacity becomes very important. Since crafts can be made from various materials, hence have varying thicknesses.
Laminators carry a pouch or gauge of roll that determines this thickness. While you can find ranges and numbers here, look to the maximum allocation first. You will find this provided in mils. A higher mil means the laminations can be thicker and stiffer, while a lower mil means thinner and lighter.
You will mostly find the 3 to 5 mil range, which is a good capacity when it comes to laminating crafts.
For a smooth and seamless lamination, you need good rollers. The number of rollers also need to be taken into account, which can affect how well the lamination turns out.
These rollers are heated and used to melt the glue onto the pictures or document, and then rolled for precision. So the more rollers you have, the better this process becomes.
In most cases, you will find two rollers, and that is good enough for the home, where you will mostly laminate cards, photos, and your crafts.
Since the entire lamination process uses heat, it is important to make sure you have the right temperature settings. Otherwise, it could become a hazard where the laminator overheats accidentally or ends up melting itself.
This is where temperature settings come in. Having more control systems and temperature modes can help prevent such occurrences, and you can choose the setting required each time.
Paper jamming is a common issue which users face with laminators. And since you are not getting the work done professionally, you want to avoid such problems as much as possible.
This is not rocket science, however. When papers get stuck, you have to wait longer, which is tedious especially if you are in a rush.
So lookout for the anti-jam technology when buying. This is as simple as it gets. It makes sure the papers do not get stuck and come out as smoothly as they go in.
As a machine that relies on heat to get the job done, you should pay attention to the energy-saving features, otherwise, it will suck up a ton of electricity.
Simple additions like an auto-shutoff or cold mode can help save energy in the long run and reduce bills too.
Amazon Basics 9-Inch Thermal Laminator Machine - Walmart Link
Laminator Machine, BONSEN 4 in 1 Thermal Laminator with 50 Laminating Pouches, A4 - Walmart Link
Scotch Thermal Laminator Combo Pack, Includes 20 Letter-Size Laminating Pouches, Holds - Walmart Link
Scotch Brand PRO Thermal Laminator, Never Jam Technology Automatically Prevents Misfed - Walmart Link
Laminator Machine, Nic pow A4 Laminator Machine with Laminating Sheets,4 in 1 Thermal - Walmart Link
Laminator Machine for A3/A4/A6, YE381 Thermal Laminating Machine for Home Office School - Walmart Link
13 Inches Laminator Machine, Dekewe A3 Laminating Machine with 20 Laminating Sheets for - Walmart Link
Amazon Basics 9-Inch Thermal Laminator Machine - eBay Link
Laminator Machine, BONSEN 4 in 1 Thermal Laminator with 50 Laminating Pouches, A4 - eBay Link
Scotch Thermal Laminator Combo Pack, Includes 20 Letter-Size Laminating Pouches, Holds - eBay Link
Scotch Brand PRO Thermal Laminator, Never Jam Technology Automatically Prevents Misfed - eBay Link
Laminator Machine, Nic pow A4 Laminator Machine with Laminating Sheets,4 in 1 Thermal - eBay Link
Laminator Machine for A3/A4/A6, YE381 Thermal Laminating Machine for Home Office School - eBay Link
13 Inches Laminator Machine, Dekewe A3 Laminating Machine with 20 Laminating Sheets for - eBay Link
That is a total round-up of all the laminators which we think are worth checking out. From the number of rollers to the compatibility, all the necessary points have been discussed. Please refer back to the guide if you feel lost, which is common for first-time buyers.
In either case, the best craft laminator will let you protect all your precious work, so every craft you have worked so hard for can be preserved for years to come. And you get to do all that from the comfort of your own home.
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About Dror Wettenstein
Dror Wettenstein is a software engineer and entrepreneur with more than 15 years of experience in the industry. He is the founder of TechTreeRepeat, a company that enables technical writers to publish their work faster and share it with readers across the globe. Dror has a master’s degree in computer science from San Diego State University and a bachelor’s degree in physics from UC Irvine.
When he’s not working on software projects, Dror enjoys writing articles and essays on various topics. He also likes playing guitar and spending time with his wife and two young children.
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