Boxes, lids on
Envelopes that match a sheet we sell.
We keep envelopes for the paper in the drawers, not a wall of every commercial size. The gum is dextrin. The lid goes back on the box. One envelope may come out for you to see. The rest stay closed.
| Envelope | Measure | Fits |
|---|---|---|
| #10, 25% cotton, and #10, 100% cotton. Gummed. | 4.125 × 9.5 in | A US Letter sheet folded in thirds. Not a half-folded letter. |
| #10, 25% cotton, self-seal. One box of 100. We do not break it. | 4.125 × 9.5 in | The same tri-fold. The strips can grab each other in a warm pocket. Gummed is the one we recommend. |
| Monarch, 100% cotton, gummed | 3.875 × 7.5 in | Our monarch sheet, 7.25 × 10.5 in, folded in thirds. Folded once, it does not fit. |
| C6, 100% cotton, gummed | 114 × 162 mm | Our A5 sheet folded once, to A6. |
| A7, 100% cotton, gummed | 5.25 × 7.25 in | A card no larger than 5 × 7 in. We do not stock the card. A half-folded letter does not fit. |
Counts are 25 or 100. The 25% cotton #10 is stocked deeply enough that we will break a 100-count box and sell 25 or 50. We will not break a 25-count box of 100% cotton. The remainder sits with the gum already exposed, and it does not sell cleanly. Self-seal is the exception already noted: 100, or nothing.
Moisture, gum, and the ink on a damp sheet
Dextrin is dry glue. It wakes when it meets water. In Iowa City that water is often not a tongue. March is freeze at night and wet pavement by noon, and the river fog sits on Clinton until the wind comes up. An open box on the counter will tack flap to flap. We learned this with a #10 cotton box left open for a sample. Twelve flaps had sealed themselves by Saturday. The account, and what the same damp does to a dye line on cotton, is A damp sheet in March.
If a flap seals in your own desk during a wet week, a thin bone folder slid under it usually lifts it. Do not steam the stack. Steam cockles the cotton and wakes every flap at once.
We do not sell square envelopes. A square piece often takes a non-machinable postage surcharge. We will not guess the current rate. If you need the number, read the postal notice or ask at the post office. We do not print addresses on the envelopes we sell, and we do not stuff them.
The sheets these sizes belong to are listed on the cotton page. A box that has left the shop with the lid off is not a return. See the terms.