How to Create Dividers | record-revival

Step One: Purchase 30 Records

30 records! But that's a lot of moolah. If you're frugal and thrifty enough, you can luck out and find some thrift stores selling records 10 for $1. I really lucked out, and found a little thrift store selling them 20 for $1. The covers need to be sturdy and in pretty decent condition. The record's condition does not matter because you are never going to actually listen to it. Although there are only 26 letters in the alphabet, I would recommend purchasing a few extra records for practice, or in case something goes wrong during the gluing process.

Step Two: Add Glue to Cover

Open the record cover so that you can see all sides. Begin to squeeze Elmer's liquid glue onto all sides of the cover. It should typically look like the photo above. It's important to not use too much glue if the record cover is flimsy or thin. The cover itself will absorb too much glue, and begin to wrinkle. Unless this is a desired effect, I would use caution when pouring the glue.

Step Three: Add Record to Glue

While the glue is still wet, place the record halfway back into the cover. I would leave roughly half of the record sticking out, so that the dividers are easy to read amongst your collection. Once the record is halfway into the cover, begin to press down on each side. While the record is on a flat surface, such as a table or bench, begin to smooth the cover over the record so that there are no visible bumps or bubbles.

How to Create Record Dividers for Organization

I am going to show you how to create alphabetical record dividers made out of old or scratched records. Recycling records is one of my favorite things to do. I'd hate to see a record get thrown into the trash or smashed because they are no longer able to produce a quality sound. So, why not put them to good use? In order to create the dividers as I have below, you will need the following items:

30 Records (of any condition, preferably used and unplayable)
1 containers of Liquid Elmer's Glue
1 set of medium A-Z Letter stickers, which can be bought at your local AC Moore or Michaels Crafts
1 textbook or heavy flat item

Step Four: Let the Dividers Dry

Once the record is secured in the cover, allow them ample time to dry. Typically, each record takes 30-45 minutes to dry completely. A great way to keep the covers flat while they dry is to stack each divider on top of one another. Typically, I will create one divider and place the record facing towards the left, and then add the next divider on top with the record facing towards the right. Continue this pattern until all of the dividers are created. You may want to create two small stacks of records to reduce the risk of the tower tipping. I will then place a large textbook or heavy flat object on top of the stack of dividers to keep the top divider flat.

Step Five: Placing the Letters

After the divider is completely dried, it's time to add the lettering. Depending on your lettering style of choice, each divider should fit 1 alphabetical letter. When purchasing the letters, be sure to buy ones that are on the medium size, so that the entire letter can fit comfortably onto the record section of the divider. Take one divider, and place the A on the record section. Continue this process with each letter of the alphabet. In addition, I also created a divider with the label of 1, 2, 3, so that I can organize bands that have a name with a number as the first word.

Step Six: Organize those Records!

Wasn't that easy? Now you have 27 homemade record dividers for less than $10, if you're thrifty enough. Now, the biggest task is to alphabetically organize your collection. When I began to organize the collection, I first separated each record by letter. Then, I organized each letter alphabetically. It seemed like a much less daunting tasks to organize 27 little piles rather than 1 very large pile. Place the dividers in between each small pile on your shelf, and you're all set! Now, finding Led Zeppelin IV won't be a difficult task!