Progress in bookbinding!

[luzula]

After binding my ninth book, I think I've leveled up in my skills! I can think of no more mistakes to fix, anyway, and at each stage of binding, I know what to be careful about. And I'm quite happy with how it looks! : D I still wish I could stamp the title in gold or silver letters on the front of the case, but that's far beyond the tools and material that I have...


Here's the closed book. The cloth color is "cranberry", isn't it lovely?


Sorry for the bad lighting, but I sent the book away in the post, so I can't retake it. The endpapers are still not entirely smooth, but I'm okay with that. Because of the linen tapes and the cloth that's keeping the case and the book block together, there will always be some unevenness there.


And here's the book lying open to a chapter break!

Comments

[chestnut_pod]

So elegant!

[luzula]

Thank you! : D

[jesse_the_k]

Looks swell!

[luzula]

Despite the bad photo quality of the second two, heh. Thanks! : )

[petra]

Oo, gorgeous! I do like the cranberry a lot.

[luzula]

There were various color options when I bought the bookcloth, and this one really appealed to me!

[osprey_archer]

That's so beautiful! What book did you bind?

[luzula]

Thanks! : ) It's my Flight of the Heron poly fic. I can't believe I wrote a 140K book, ha ha. I used to think I couldn't write novel-length...

[osprey_archer]

I think lots of people think they can't write novel-length until they accidentally a novel. Sometimes you just have to find the right idea!

[nnozomi]

That is gorgeous! Easy on the eyes in terms of both pretty and readable. <3

[luzula]

Thanks! The layout work is my least favorite part of the process, but a very necessary one...I'm glad it looks nice.

[sovay]

After binding my ninth book, I think I've leveled up in my skills!

That's really beautiful!

[luzula]

Thank you! : D It's such a satisfying thing to make with one's hands.

[scintilla10]

oh, that's really beautiful! I love the cranberry colour.

[luzula]

Thanks! Yeah, it's a lovely color--less neutral than the blue which is my other favorite.

[isis]

Wow, it's a BOOK!

[luzula]

It is indeed a book! : D

[skygiants]

That looks beautiful!!

[luzula]

Thanks! I'm very happy with it. : D

[cathexys]

Wow, this looks amazing!!!

[luzula]

Thanks! I'm so glad I decided to try out bookbinding.

[whimsyful]

This is so cool!

[luzula]

Thanks! : )

[helens78]

Wowwww, that looks so amazing!

[luzula]

Thanks! Bookbinding is such a rewarding hobby, and I get to have my own works standing in my bookcase. : D

[cahn]

Oh wow, this is fantastic! That just looks amazing.

[luzula]

Thanks! I'm so glad I actually tried bookbinding, and didn't just keep wistfully thinking about it...

[aria]

I love your bookbinding posts, the books are always so gorgeous <3

[luzula]

Have you tried it yet? : D

ETA: Or at least, I seem to remember from book club that you were thinking about it?

[aria]

I was thinking about it! I haven't even really started in on figuring out how bookbinding works, so if you have any resources you'd like to recommend to me I'd be delighted, but obviously no worries if I should just do my own research :)

[luzula]

Here is a good starting resource from a fannish bookbinder, with some more resources here. That said, I don't follow it exactly!

To learn the sewing you really need a video, here's one, for example. But I make the holes with an awl, not like what's done in the video. Here's another onefor the casing in. And there are loads more videos on Youtube!

Would be happy to Zoom if you want tips--much easier to explain than in text.

[regshoe]

Absolutely lovely—and it's great that you're making progress in your skills, that must be very satisfying!

Heh, your comment about titles reminded me of Mr Norrell's library in JSMN and all the nicely bound books: clean modern bindings ... he favoured, it seemed, plain calf with the titles stamped in neat silver capitals. What tools/materials would one need to do that?

[luzula]

Thanks! : D Well, the place where I shopped sell lamb and goat skin but not calf. I don't think binding that way would be more difficult than with cloth, just a lot more expensive!

But getting metallic titles, I don't know enough to even say. Here is a site explaining the difference between various techniques...

[hurry_sundown]

Oooo, pretty! I'm so impressed that you know how to do this.

[luzula]

Thanks! : ) It did take some time, and some trial and error, to learn.

[toft]

It's beautiful!

[luzula]

Thanks! : D

[china_shop]

Wow, that looks amazing! *stares in admiration*

[luzula]

Thank you! I mean, even knowing all the steps and how it's done, I still sometimes get that "eeee, it's a BOOK!" feeling. : D

[lyr]

Very professional looking!

[luzula]

Thanks! : ) Now I'm on my tenth, and of course, just because the last one was perfect, I failed at lining up the endpapers so that they're symmetrically aligned with the case. /o\ I think probably the fault lies in the case itself not being perfectly symmetrical.

But it'll still be an okay book!