Facsimile title page. Replace marbled endpaper
This attractively-bound children’s novel from the early 19th century had like many old children’s books, seen better days after years of ‘enthusiastic’ use by previous young owners.
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Leather spine reback with spine reused
This article is about a leather spine reback where the original spine was reused in the repair. This little 18th century volume arrived with its front cover detached. The edges of its covers were quite worn and spongey and it lacked its original spine label.It is often near-impossible to remove the spine intact on these […]
Repair of a torn pictorial endpaper
This article is about a pictorial endpaper repair and binding restoration of a Winnie the Pooh story book. This well-worn copy of ‘The World of Pooh’ had been in the owner’s possession since childhood. It had quite obviously seen a lot of service over the ensuing years. The hinges of the cloth binding were torn […]
Book restoration of John Constable’s notebook
This article is about a book restoration carried out on a notebook owned by the artist John Constable. One of the most absorbing projects that I’ve worked on recently is the book restoration of a 19th century notebook. This book of handwritten notes was reputedly owned and compiled by the artist John Constable. The book, […]
Morocco binding reback and refurbishment
This article is about a Morocco binding reback and refurbishment. This handsomely bound volume on Maori art would have looked splendid when new at the turn of the 20th century. It was almost certainly bound as a special ‘presentation’ copy of this work. However, many years of exposure to sunlight and central heating had dried […]
Cloth book repair & resewing disbound books
This article is about a cloth book repair and resewing a disbound text block. Many of the examples of repairs that I’ve featured in older posts here, are on books bound in leather. Cloth-bound books come in just as often for repair. Many exhibit the same problems as their leather counterparts. The covering material on […]
More examples of leather family Bible repair
This article describes examples of leather and cloth bound family Bible repair. Its not uncommon for a family with a long history to own an old ‘family Bible’. This may well have been passed down through multiple generations. Many of these contain important handwritten information about the family’s history. Over time, these Bibles sometimes become […]
Leather family Bible restoration – step by step
This article shows a step by step demonstration of a leather family Bible restoration. Large family Bibles One of the most common tasks that I undertake is a leather family Bible restoration. This is usually required when the covers or the spine have become detached from a large Victorian Bible. These hefty family Bibles, all […]
Leather corner repair & binding refurbishment
This article is about corner repair on leather bound books and the refurbishment of leather bindings. Leather bindings can dry out over time and become rubbed, especially at their hinges and corners. Small splits can start to appear at the tops or bottoms of the hinges. Also, the leather covering over the corners can become […]
Spine, corner and Bible repair
This article is about Bible repair, leather spine restoration and corner repair and restoration. It’s over a year since I last added anything to this work diary and 2016 was a very busy year. A wide selection of books both antiquarian and modern passed through the bindery for restoration or repair. These ranged from treasured […]