Friday
05Jun2009
Wooden Board Bookbinding
Posted on 
Jun 5, 2009 | by Marcus
Jun 5, 2009 | by Marcus My partner Marysa de Veer and I have just finished our first joint project. Marysa is a bookbinder, and we have combined skills to bind a copy of The St Brides Notebook (printed by the Incline Press). The binding is based on Coptic techniques. The boards are of quarter sawn brown oak with a shellac finish. They are link stitched onto leather thongs. We are pleased with how it has turned out, so there will be more to follow!
Reader Comments (3)
What a beautiful piece of joint work. It looks to me that there could not be any more felicitous choice of wood for this project than oak with its rich colour and sheen, and characteristic sturdiness at the same time . The binding exposed in this way is extremely good-looking and it shows the skill of the binder very effectively as well as giving aesthetic pleasure. The end result is reminiscent of those medieval manuscript books that still keep all their power and beauty even after hundreds of years.
This is the first time I have seen such a thing done. It looks really exquisite. Can this be done on any book, for example a set of encyclopaedia? They are probably not worth anything today, but they have sentimental value to me because they belonged to my grandfather. He bought them for my mother when she was young. The covers look worn and it's such a waste to leave it that way.
Hi Tom, this particular binding can only be done on books up to a certain size (about 8'x11') due to the danger of larger boards warping. However it is possible to do something similar on larger books using laminated construction.