Care and Storage

Where I live, new comics are put out on the shelves on Friday (unlike other places, where it seems to be Comic Tuesday). So today I went along to acquire my haul, and while it's not that impressive a haul compared to some, new comics are new comics.

Rat Queens Vol 1 "Sass and Sorcery" and Ms. Marvel #9

So now I've bought them, what happens next?

Well, that entirely depends on how much I'd want to protect them and what resources I have on hand. Rat Queens goes straight into my bookcase, because I need to do further investigating into what I could use as a cover and the book is sturdy enough as it is. Ms. Marvel, on the other hand, being a floppy and thus more fragile, I devote a bit more care to.

Before I bought the proper materials, I just used an A4 plastic sleeve that I adjusted the size of using sticky-tape - not the most elegant of solutions, but provided the sleeve is archive quality (and these types aren't that expensive), it will do the job. If you wind up having to do this, make sure the sleeves are of archive quality: certain types of cheap sleeves will end up sticking to the comic and damage them. Now, thankfully, I have materials actually designed for comics (or rather, I caved and bought them). The usual advice for storing comics is that you need three things: bags, boards, and boxes. As I'm still storing my comics in the bookcase, I'm only dealing with the first two.

One note to remember when buying your materials: make sure they are the right size for the type of comic you have. For modern comics, anything marked 'current' will be the correct dimensions. Materials designed for older comics (such as Golden or Silver Age) will have different dimensions. 

Back to Ms. Marvel #9. First, I bring out my storage materials. I then take one of the cardboard boards and turn it so the shiny side is up - this is the side that the comic will rest on. Then I slide the board into one of the bags (they are more like a plastic sleeve, but the lingo is 'bags' as far as I can tell) before sliding the comic in. I've read some people put the comic on the board first and slide both into the bag at the same time, but I find my way easier.

All safe and sound...the comic, anyway. Characters are looking more concerned.

And ta-da! All that remains is for the bag's flap to be folded over, and the comic is right to be placed in my bookcase along with the others.

As mentioned, currently I'm storing my comics in a bookcase. I may or may not branch out into boxes later. But if you were planning to store your comics in a box, this article goes into more detail. Also, if you'd prefer a video or would like to know more about taking care of comics (and consequences of not), then the following video is pretty useful: