#bradel binding

[zhalfirin]

Extinction - VER

Full cloth Bradel binding with paper onlays

Yet another binding of this story by @sticksandsharks. Thank you for the kind permission to bind your work.

Materials used

Case Boards - grey board 1mm Spine stiffener - cardstock Covering material - book cloth (green) Paper onlay - chiyogami paper (paper backed for opacity) title - gold foil (hot stamped)

Inner book ' Text block - Schleipen fly 05 (115gsm) Endpapers - chiyogami paper (70gsm) Endbands - linnen core (10/3) and chiyogami paper

format: ~A6

[zhalfirin-binds]

Fitting the case of a Bradel binding

When I do a Bradel binding, I usually leave the covers wider than needed and adjust them later. This has the benefit of being less likely to cut them too short and accommodating for any skew of the book block (or, as another bonus, a slight skew/unevenness of the hinges). The later is particularly helpful when rebinding old books. Those are often slumped and not quite square or even anymore. With a completly square angled case, that does not take the aging into account, you might end up with a perfect cover that still looks odd and clumsy on the book block. In such a case, making the cover skewed to fit the book block creates the illusion of a book more balanced than it actually is.

To get there I mark the top side to which I align all parts of the case, pre-round the spine stiffener for rounded books and do the dry fitting on the finished book block. For the fitting it has endbands and oxford hollow already attached before marking the front squares on top and bottom. I used to use a compass to make sure your squares are perfectly even, but now I just eyeball it.

It's important to keep the book block pushed well back into the case and firmly in place to mark both covers on top and bottom. Otherwise the skew doesn't get get accounted for!

For the last part here I trim the front squares and now I have a well fitted case for the book block (no matter how skewed it might be).

[erratum-paginae]

The Scarlet Letter was my first restoration, and first traditional Bradel bind. It's been almost a year since I completed it (I really need to get better at updating this blog.)

Bookcloth is Relmafil, and the endpages are from the collection Queues de paon from Relma too. (As usual, picking endpages was the HARDEST step of all, but these ones felt perfect, like haunting flames fitting for the atmosphere of the book.)

The cover is embeded, and I wish I had made a note of the font for the A, but I wasn't as diligent with it then as I am now.

Some photos of the step-by-step beneath the cut. It was an adventure. I was EXTREMELY lucky to be supervised for this first attempt, which probably saved it from certain disaster.

I think the very first step might be one of the scariest things I have ever done. This book does not look amazing, but it has History(tm) you see. So guillotining the back felt sacrilegeous... But also, almost morbidly fascinating?

Still, I remained for a few minutes with the back in my hand and the flying sheets of the body in the other hand, stunned at the fact that I had, actually, indeed, guillotined a book I loved. (#JustFrenchThings)

This was my first time sewing loose pages. The stitching to build signatures was fascinating, and nothing like I had done before. I love the look it gives it. And I got to borrow my supervisor's binding frame for the first time. It made me realise that, while I don't mind manually sewing ribbons, this was incredibly more convenient and faster (I guess there is a reason bookbinders use it, I'm just being stupid about it.) It was still not enough convenience that I'd need to buy one for my own workshop, though. I have my limits.

You have to admit, though, that those stitched pages sewn together and bound on ribbons make for a satisfying result. I almost wouldn't have minded keeping the book like this... except the fun was only starting.

Rounding and backing. HAMMER TIME.

There's something quite intimidating in backing an old book. It feels so fragile. I felt like I was going to tear the paper, expecting the fibers to explode. It was ugly, but I was, once more, lucky to be supervised in this adventure. Hammering became fun, and somewhat... cathartic. (I had just found out my role at my job was being disestablished and I was going to be made redundant, so. I probably needed the catharsis. Bookbinding as a healthy coping mechanism, yay?)

Adding the endbands was somewhat gratifying, because it started to really feel like a fancy book at this point. These were machine-made, I can only learn so many things at once, but I will make my own someday. But even more satisfying was...

Preparing the casing and realising the boards fit *perfectly* within the hinges. That had to be the highest high of the project, seriously. Things coming together as they are intended to be.

The cover was made by adding a layer of cardboard, in which the capital A had been cut with a Silhouette Cameo, over the initial board. I was concerned the cut would not look good, but I was wrong. It worked beyond my expectations.

I sadly don't have photos of the casing itself, but I'll conclude with the part that I'm most happy with.

Look at these hinges. I've never managed getting this result again, at least so far.

Overall, a super instructive project, although I won't be doing too much restoration in the future. I'm not sure my heart can take more of guillotining my favourite books.

I do look forward to more Bradel binding, unsupervised this time. Hammer, here I come!

[maniacalshen]

I hand-made a copy of Jack London's Before Adam for my friend's birthday. The little sabretooth is hand-embroidered, and the title is slightly inset.

Text courtesy of Project Gutenberg but formatted by me! Oh, and the oak leaf is courtesy of Openclipart.

Don't mind the crease on the front... I was am still working out how to properly iron fat quarters.

[dddots]

Stub-Bound Birthday Wishes Book

I was asked to bind a stack of beautifully calligraphed birthday wishes into a book, for a lovely customer who is now a great friend.

The birthday wishes were written on a thick card stock of about 300 to 350gsm, and they were in the wrong grain direction. I wanted to make a book that could open completely so that the calligraphy can be enjoyed. Since most of the single sheet bindings do not allow for that to happen, and also considering the thick card stock and its wrong grain direction, I decided to use a stub binding technique. 

My customer previously requested for some journals to be made, and she really loved deckled edges. So i decided to tear the stubs by hand to create a deckled edge. The book is then bound, rounded and backed, using Bradel binding. The covers are made using the paper bags of the bakery my customer owns. She said she loves the patterns and would love it on the book as a feature. Hence, after getting my hands on 2 large paper bags, I created this beautiful birthday dedication book for a lovely boss, from her lovely staff. 

[zhalfirin]

Notebook Bradel binding, half cloth binding with front rail and paper onlay

Materials used

covers - grey board 1mm spine stiffener - cardstock cover material - uncoated cloth onlayed paper - chiyogami paper endpapers - chiyogami paper endband - chiyogami paper with linen core (18/3)

size: ~A7

[zhalfirin-binds]

Bradel binding - reducing the edge of the connective paper and board (without sanding)

For a quick bind or when the endpapers have a lively pattern I often don't care about smoothing this small edge where the connective paper ends on the boards. With single coloured endpapers it's more noticable though or sometimes I just want a binding to turn out more pretty.

Generally there are a few ways to deal with that visible step:

1. glue the connective paper all over the cover board so there simply is no step (which is great, when one expects the cover material to have a lot of pull!)

2. glue in a piece of cardstock to even out the turn ins of the cover material. That way you don't have to bother with the connective paper since there's something glued on top anyway. (nice, for more really smooth inner covers, but also with some pull and, like the first one, it's an additional step that usually also requires some sanding, but great for high quality bindings)

3. glue the boards to the connective paper, but make sure there is some of the connective paper left loose to tear away later (see picture below)

This one is a quick and easy, low effort option. Once the glue is dry the loose parts can be torn off with the goal of getting the paper to split as wide as possible to have a smooth transition between board and paper. I just make sure the connective paper is wider enough that in the end there's still about 1,5cm firmly attached to the board to make sure the connection is still strong. For the last step I smoothen the slightly rough area where the paper has been torn away with a bone folder and am done. One could take this further and sand... but I do this for a fast and easy version.

[zhalfirin]

ANBU Legacy 2.1 - @anbu-legacy

With kind permission of the authors

Full cloth binding with title hot stamped on the spine.

case materials covers - grey board (2,4) spine stiffener - cardboard covering material - coated book cloth, black hot stamped title - heat reactive foil, silver

inner book text block paper - Munken polar, 100gsm endpapers - Chiyogami paper endbands - book cloth and cord

Format: ~A6 (10,5cm x 14,8cm)