Happy Birthday, Mrs. “Big” Paperclip!

In English: “Binder clip”, in German: “Foldback-Klammer”, the French say: “Pince-notes”, we call it a “big” paper clip, a binder or simply: a paper clip. One way or another, in any office you will find dozens of such clips of small and large, all colors of the rainbow.

Bright glossy surface and shiny steel clips delight the eye. It is always a pleasure to rotate such a clip in your hands, talking on the phone or thinking over difficult questions.

Its calm and soft design enchants and relaxes. Maybe that’s why therefore we always try to stole, a badly lying paper clip, from colleagues at work.

Meanwhile, the “big” paper clip this year marks 100 years. And she can not only fasten paper.

A paper clip was born back in 1910, when a 15-year-old boy from the US capital, Louis E. Baltzley, decided to help his father Edwin. Edwin Bolzley was a writer, and he was also an inventor, so a pile of papers on his desktop was a common occurrence.

At that time, there were no methods of fastening papers without punching holes in them. Louis suggested using a steel clamp strong enough to firmly squeeze a hundred sheets, but without sharp parts, so as not to tear the paper.

It’s worth noting that Bolzley’s invention is obviously in the blood: Louis’s grandfather, Elias Howe, invented the first US sewing machine and “automatic, continuous fastener for clothes” (which, after 40 years, Whitcomad Judson modified to a modern zipper )

The invention of Louis Bolzley is economical, elegant, simple and functional. The design of his paper clip changed five times, but the basic idea remained the same. For its innovative design and ease of use, proven over decades, the Bolzley clip takes its rightful place in the Phaidon publisher's Design Classics Encyclopedia.

Paper clips are now being produced in China in all colors of the rainbow and any size. They can be found in any office.