Since there’s so much going to be ‘experimental’ with this book anyway I decided to add some more ot it. At the last binders fair I bought a sheet of papyrus paper (it’s really more of beaten papyrus fibres, one going short grain the other long grain) that I used for the cover. I have no idea how well it will hold up to wear and there were were some issues when applying it.
For one there are tiny holes here and there in the sheet. With the pale paper I used to even out the leather I could see it clearly shining through in some spots. To prevent that from being too obvious I gave the paper a light colouring so the bright cream wouldn’t glare through those holes too much.
The papyrus is also very stiff and woodlike when dry. I moistened it to get it more supple to work with without breaking, that worked well enough. I also decided to work with wheat paste glue to not get any shiny spots from where the glue would press through the tiny holes that I already knew where there. Problem was, the glue takes some time to dry and it was hard getting the edges worked around and stick (when my patience dissolved I just gave the turn ins a coat of PVA and was done with them). The edges do not look great, but what concerns me more is the fact that the papyrus fibers start to come apart where the paper has to go sharply around a corner. I let it dry and will check how much of an issue that is once it is dry.
On the upside, my hidden corners are really well hidden and almost equally so.
