angela sutton_ bookbinding techniques
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Book binding methods for making your own booksTRANSCRIPT
9/08/10 8:32 PMAngela Sutton: bookbinding techniques
Page 1 of 2http://www.angelasutton.eu/techniques/index.html
Photography (sections 1-4) by Peter Bryenton
MENDING PAGES
Japanese tissue, which has very long fibres and is
thin and strong, is torn to shape, pasted lightly and
applied to the torn edge so that the fibres are just
overlapping. Repairs are always completed before
the book is sewn.
SEWING AND MARKING UP
The picture shows tape of varying widths, two
weights of hemp cord, and waxed linen sewing
thread.
When the book has been cleaned and repaired it is
put in a press and the sewing points are marked, in
this case for tapes. This is known as ‘marking up’.
Books are sewn together one section at a time. This
book is being sewn on tapes and the needle is in
position to make the final knot at the end of a
section, known as the ‘kettle’ stitch (from the German
Ketel meaning ‘chain’).
Book backs showing different kinds of sewing: on
tapes, on sawn-in cords and on raised cords.
ROUNDING AND BACKING
Once the book has been stitched together it is rolled and hammered to turn the flat spine back into a rounded
shape, which protects the sewing by reducing the strain on it when the book is opened. The book is put into
the lying press, two large pieces of wood which are tightened by means of wooden screws and a bar known as
a ‘press pin’. When the book is the correct shape it is covered by a piece of open weave cloth called mull and
a strip of thin strong paper known as ‘kraft’ paper.
The book is rolled and hammered into its rounded
shape.
It is then put between specially-shaped backing
boards and lowered into the lying press.
The lying press screws are tightened.
The spine edges can then be shaped over the backing
boards with the backing hammer.
Glue is applied to the spine.
Mull is placed on top.
The mull is rubbed down.
Kraft paper is placed on top.
The kraft paper is rubbed down with a bonefolder.
It is also rubbed down with the ball of the thumb to
make sure it is well stuck on.
It can be left to dry in the press or taken out and left
between pressing boards with a weight on top.
9/08/10 8:32 PMAngela Sutton: bookbinding techniques
Page 2 of 2http://www.angelasutton.eu/techniques/index.html
COVERS & TITLES
Books covered in leather are described as bound in quarter leather (spine only), half leather (spine and
corners) or full leather. Many old books are bound in calf, but modern-day bookbinders mostly use goatskin.
This comes mainly from Africa. It is strong and durable, and good to work with.
Books to be bound in leather are sewn on cords
which are then ‘laced in’ to the boards through holes
and pasted in place.
Headbands are used to strengthen the spine of the
book when it is pulled out of a shelf. Some are glued
on, but a stitched-on headband as shown here is
much stronger as it is sewn on through the back of
the sections.
A strip of pared and pasted goatskin spine is applied
to the spine for a quarter-leather binding.
On a half-leather binding leather corners are pasted,
applied to the book and worked into shape with a
bonefolder.
When the leather is dry a cloth side is cut to fit the
corner and glued into place.
A piece of goatskin for a full-leather binding is pasted
and applied to the book.
The boards are held open and the leather is turned
over them.
Titles are applied to the back of the book by means
of brass ‘finishing’ tools.
These are heated on a finishing stove so that the gold
foil or gold leaf will adhere to the leather.
Materials
Marbled Papers
Angela Sutton often uses marbled papers designed
and made by the late Ann Muir. Happily Ann Muir's
work is being continued. See the Contact page of
this website for a link to the Ann Muir Marbling Ltd
website, which includes an extensive catalogue of
beautiful designs.
Leather & Bookcloth
Leather is expensive, but it is a beautiful material. It not only looks and feels pleasant for the user, but it also
feels good to work with, and is flexible and durable. Bookbinders now mainly use goatskin for covering books.
In the past calfskin was extensively used as this was the leather most easily available. Calf is still used but
mainly for repairing old books. It has a smooth surface and is obtainable in several shades of brown to match
existing covers as well as a variety of other colours and in a natural shade which can be dyed.
Goatskin comes mainly from Africa and
India, where it goes through the local
tanning process, but it is treated and
dyed in this country. It is obtainable in
a wide variety of colours, finishes and
grain patterns, and you can often see
the backbone of the animal, a slightly
darker line running down the length of
the skin. For most books it is necessary
to thin or to pare down the skin so that
it can be turned in easily over the
boards of the book. How much paring
needs to be done depends on the size
and weight of the book.
Paring is done with sharp knives, either
an English one, which is a long straight
angled blade, or a French one, which is
curved. A spokeshave is also used, and
a blade on a stand is useful for paring
small pieces of leather.
Pigskin is sometimes used but tends to lose its strength when thinned down.
Sheepskin is not strong enough for bookbinding and cow hide is too tough.
All sorts of skins have been used at one time or another but have been found unsatisfactory in some way or
other.
In the early nineteenth century,
bookcloth was developed as a cheaper
substitute for leather. It was quicker
and easier to apply to books, and it was
then that the ‘case’ became more
common as a book covering. Many case
bindings were produced that were very
elaborately decorated and stamped with
pictures and titling and are now
collectors’ pieces. Other plain case
bindings fulfilled their function of
protecting the book as economically as
possible. Modern hardback books are
case bindings covered in bookcloth. It
is manufactured in a range of colours
and weights.