Every Homeschooling Momma's Dream: A Laminator!

When I started homeschooling my girls I began perusing all the sites and printables. I kept reading, "You can laminate these to be used over and over!" So I looked into laminating at an office supply store. At nearly $3.00 a page this is just not a reasonable option! Little did I know I could actually have laminating in my own  house! 

I was so excited get the opportunity to review the new Purple Cow Laminator from MyBinding.com! First of all, how fun is that name? Who can't love a Purple Cow Laminator? I have no experience with any laminator except those incredibly huge ones in schools on those really big rolls. Do you remember those? I taught music for two years at a week-day summer camp where I laminated up a storm. They were so hot when they were finished and I was always afraid I would burn myself on them. Not to mention how big the thing was. 

When this laminator arrived I was shocked at how small of a box I received. This was just the first of many pleasant surprises about this laminator! 

It's also so cute! I love the purple color and it's compact size makes it very easy to leave out so I can use it whenever I feel a whim to laminate something...which is happening more and more. 

I mentioned that there were several things which surprised me about this laminator. Here is a list...

1. It's both hot and cold (There is such a thing as cold lamination?)

2. A home laminator is a much simpler machine than I imagined.
3. It is ready quickly, within about 7 minutes.
4. Laminating pockets are AWESOME!
5. It never really gets hot and the resulting lamination is nice and warm. 
6. The whole process is mostly hands free.
7. I can laminate up to 13 inch pages!!!!

So here is the process...

1. Plug in and turn on the lamintaor.

2. Choose the hot or cold switch depending on your laminating pockets. 

2. Place your page to be laminated in a laminating pocket.

3. Feed the pocket into the tray and let it go once the page is "grabbed" by the machine.

4. Wait patiently (Not very long though!)

It's really that simple! 

When I'm not homeschooling or just being Mommy around the house I'm teaching piano to 24 students. I am so incredibly blessed to have this part-time job from my home. Over the last few years I have spent a lot of time making games and activities especially for my younger students to aid them in their music lessons. I have often thought that laminating these items would be a wonderful thing, but laminating is so expensive. Because of this long-held desire I chose to laminate some of these items first! 

As you can see it's completely hands free! I remember when I used to laminate at the school I taught at I had to hold the paper on the way in and straighten the laminating roll on the way out. It was really a pain. This little beauty just grabs the page from you and does it's job. Fabulous! Here is one of my lovely ladies trying out our newly laminated music game!

The second thing I laminated was...don't laugh...plain colored paper. I know that seems silly, but when I tell you why you'll understand! My oldest girls share a bedroom and a closet. They are very close in clothing sizes, but not yet close enough to share clothes. They often get their clothes mixed up. I laminated purple and pink pages (My girls' favorite colors!) and hung them in the closet as dividers. Voilà! Instant organization makes this Mommy happy! 

I think my favorite feature of this particular laminator is its size. I've already mentioned that it is compact, but I honestly didn't expect to be able to leave it out all the time. It sits on the top of the shelf and is so pretty too. My daughters of course love it because it's purple! 

While I can't compare this laminator to others similar to it, I can tell you that it exceeded my expectations for a home laminator. I was even impressed that when I cut the edge of the lamination too close I could fix the seal by refeeding it through the laminator. It also comes in a 9 inch version! 

Take a look at the whole Purple Cow line at MyBinding.com. They have great customer service and are quick to answer e-mails. You'll love doing business with them!

*I recieved this laminator from MyBinding.com in exchange for an unbiased review. No other compensation was received.