STILT® Weights

Second only to the human hand in elegance and dexterity.

Our Weights are our pride of design here at STILT®. As far as we know, we are the first to consider applying weight at the fore-edges of books to keep the pages open, mimicking the function of the human hand.

How they work

A little demonstration

Features of our Weights

Compatible

All of our cradles come ready to attach our STILT® Weights.

Versatile

The ribbon can be moved anywhere along the side panels to centre it against the margin of your book.

Adjustable

The ribbon can be shortened by rolling it to adjust it to the width and margins of your book.

Boxed

Our weights come as a pair, beautifully packaged in a cushioned box to help preserve their finish.

Hand-made

Our weights are each individually hand-made, right down to the stitching of the ribbon.

Choice of sizes

They come in 3 different lengths: 13cm, 16cm & 20cm. Each length comes in two widths: 8mm & 10mm. For very large books, we now offer XL (20cm x 12mm).

Hand-finished

All of our brass weights are hand polished and finished with an anti-oxidation coating to preserve their finish.

Anti-slip

Our weights have an anti-slip base to keep them in place in the margins of your book.

STILT® Weight Sizes.

Books come in so many shapes and sizes and our Weight system accommodates this wondrous diversity. Some books tend to spring closed easily and require more weight to keep them open while others open to any page without any need for weights at all.

Some books are thick and wide, requiring a longer ribbon, some are thin and slim and require a shorter ribbon. Some books require more weight when opened to the first or last few pages while they open more easily towards the middle.

What you need to know about Weight Sizes.

sextodecimo(16mo): Small; thin
duodecimo (12mo): small; thin/thick
octavo (8vo): small/med; thin/thick
quarto (4to): med/large; thin/thick
folio (fo): large; thin/thick, XL
elephant folio: large; thick; XL
- Small = 13cm long
- Med = 16 cm long
- Large = 20 cm long
- Thin = 8mm wide
- Thick = 10mm wide
- XL = 20cm x 12mm wide

If you have book that tends to spring closed, choose for the heavy weight. The longer the weight, the more weight it has, so choose for the longest weight that still fits within the margins of your book.

If your book has very narrow margins and is particularly springy, consider using melinex (mylar) tapes to hold it open.

The longer the weight length, the longer the ribbon. If your book is particularly wide (for example somewhere between a regular and an oblong book) choose for a longer weight as this will give you more ribbon length.

You can easily loop or roll the ribbon up should it be too long.

For oblong books, we suggest a cradle that is one size larger.

Our regular anti-slip surface is perfect for pop-up display in open spaces. In these settings, they can be used against both paper and parchment pages. For longer term display, consider using melinex strapping.