Atelier du Marais: Part 3

There are two finishing steps that I learned in the bookbinding studio in Paris and I'd like to share them with you in this post.

Lining the inside boards

Have you ever made a book and when you glue the papers to the insides of your covers, you discover there is an annoying ridge where the fold-ins from your covering material end? Sometimes it isn't a problem, especially if your lining papers are fairly heavy, but with a lighter paper, like the japanese one in the photo above, the ridges can detract from your nice neat finish.

The answer is very simple, but it wasn't something I had seen before. You line the insides of the cover boards using thin card.

From my notebook, May 2012

To glue, we used a generous coat of wheat paste. The cards are then put aside for at least 10 minutes, to allow the paper fibres to expand and contract.

The cards are placed into (a) and (b), fitting closely and accurately to the spine. Trimming will be necessary because the card will have expanded and this is more easily done over the leather.

To trim, you first score your line creating a gutter. The Stanley knife can then be run lightly along the gutter to remove the excess without cutting the leather.

Finally, put the book block inside the cover boards and place the whole thing in the press while the paste dries.

Books in the press. Note the protective red and pink cards, which stop unwanted glue reaching the book blocks.

Making rolled leather headbands

I saw some of the other students make beautiful, woven headbands with different coloured threads for the books they were binding. Sadly my time ran out before I had the chance to try that for myself, but I did learn to make rolled leather headbands for both my books.

I've scanned the notes I made so that hopefully my sketches will help to clarify the steps.

1) cut some leather cord to the width of the spine
2) bevel both ends

3) cut a rectangle of thin leather so that the short sides are a bit longer than your cord
4) apply PVA to a bit more than half of the rectangle
5) put the cord in the centre, at the bottom of the glued area
6) fold the leather down over the cord and press it down, shaping over the cord

7) when the folded leather is holding in place, make cuts down either side of the cord and across at right angles, as shown on the left. The area which remains is the rolled head, which will be visible in the closed book.
8) next, carefully remove only the top layer of leather in the areas marked with red stripes
9) apply PVA to the "spotted area", ready to glue the headband onto the book block
10) the final sketch shows the "wings" created in step 8, which are used to position the headband and allow you to pull it in close and flat, ensuring a nice tight fit.

Above you can see the wings have been removed now, and the head sits in tightly over the spine.

That's all I'm planning to post about my time at the Atelier du Marais, but if anything is unclear or you have any questions at all about it, please drop me a line in the comments.

Atelier du Marais: Bookbinding Part 2

In today's post I'm going to show you the method I used for making of the covers of both the books I made in Paris. Some of this was new to me, and some was familiar. Hopefully you may see something helpful.

First off, I'm continuing with the book with watercolour paper and a linen cover, started in the last post.

Before going any further with the book block, the card which will form the spine

of the covers is cut to size. Below you can see the formula used, and above you can see that height of the card is not a concern at this point.

 The spine edges (in grey) are folded to create a nice, sharp edge prior to glueing to the boards .

The boards are cut to size and their orientation is marked (VH= verso haut=back top; RH=recto haut=front top) before sanding the spine-side edge. The goal is to create a very thin edge, (~1mm) with the board gently curving back to its full thickness within a couple of inches.  Above you can see the boards and spine after glueing with PVA.

For glueing the fabric to the book boards, I first marked the outline of the book onto the fabric, and then generously applied PVA to the outlined area. To position the boards accurately, place the top and bottom left corners of the front board into the left side of your outline. Then carefully "roll" the boards into position from left to right, taking care with the placement of the right corners. Use your hands to press the boards and fabric together, taking special care with the spine area. Now you can trim your corners, as you see above. (Actually, this isn't trimmed closely enough, but go slowly - you can always cut more off, but you can't stick it back on).

It's a simple step to apply PVA to the bare fabric with an appropriately sized brush. I started with the shorter sides, folding them in carefully, followed by the longer ones. You use your thumbnail to fold the sliver of fabric over the corner of the board, making a lovely neat corner (if all goes well!)

  

Here you can see the boards with their full fabric covering (please disregard the ruler - it isn't there for any good reason). 

Making Leather Covers

As I've already mentioned, the other book I made was covered with leather. The book boards were made in the same way outlined above, however the way the leather is applied is rather different. I'm afraid I was so engrossed in the process that it didn't cross my mind to take any photos. Nevertheless, there were a couple of aspects that were really new and surprising to me, which I'd like to share with you.

1) The Glueing

 Both wheat paste and PVA were used, but rather than mixing the two before application, each was applied in turn. First, I had to apply a generous coat of wheat paste. (And I mean generously. I thought I was being generous, but when Madame Malouvier saw what I was doing, she up-ended jar of glue, creating a pool of paste on the leather for me to distribute!!)

The brush is used to work the paste into the surface and remove the excess. (You shouldn't be left with any pools of glue.)

Next a moderate coat of PVA is applied over the top of the wheat paste, and you're ready to place the covers onto the leather.

2) Working the Leather
I had hoped that I would learn how to prepare the leather for covers, but it turned out that nobody does that themselves at Atelier du Marais. Each person cuts the leather to size and then it is "sent out" to a leather specialist a few streets away. My leather was shaved perfectly for me for the princely sum of three euros. I imagine that it is organised this way so that Mme Malouvier doesn't have to deal with any thumbs or fingers being chopped off in the Atelier.

The students do bevel the angled corners of their leather, prior to glueing. This experience was enough for me to realize that it was just as well my leather had been "sent out".

However, once prepared I was surprised  how easy the leather was to manipulate. It is quite an elastic material and can be not only stretched, but contracted (by gently pushing it back with the fingers) to a surprising degree. As a result, it is actually much easier to create a beautiful, neat corner than it is when using fabric or paper covered boards. 

Look at that neat corner!

When the glue has dried, you can clean up your leather with a sponge dampened with a little white vinegar and water. 

I have a few more finishing touches to tell you about, but that will be in the next post. I do hope that you aren't bored! I'm enjoying going over all that I learned, and am pleased I took decent notes.

À bientôt!

(see you soon)

Atelier du Marais: Traditional Bookbinding for Beginners

Peeking through the window into Atelier du Marais

If you've been reading this blog for a few months or more, you'll remember that the highlight of my trip to Paris was attending Atelier du Marais for classes to learn some traditional bookbinding skills.

In Brisbane we are lucky to have Studio West End, run by book artist Adele Outteridge and printmaker/painter Wim de Vos, but they would be the first to say that they do not teach traditional bookbinding. There is also the Queensland Bookbinders Guild, but because their Introductory Courses are organised as two full consecutive days, I haven't been able to attend. 

You may be surprised to hear that I had never made a case-bound book before, so I was keen to gain some experience working with someone with these specialized skills. I found that Mme Malouvier was not only an experienced teacher, but passionate and fun, and despite language-challenges, the students made me feel very welcome. The best aspect was taking part in something "real", something not set up for tourists, being part of a group of like-minded Parisians.
 I feel very lucky to have discovered the Atelier.

Above you can see the two blank journals that I made under Mme Malouvier's careful guidance. My initial plan was to walk you through their making, but despite taking quite a lot of photos and even more notes, I don't think this would really be worth your while. I couldn't really put together an adequate "how to" which would be the aim. Instead, I've decided to use the photos to show you the things that I did that were new to me, and share the tips I picked up, and hopefully something will be new or different to you too.

But first, a little look around the Atelier.(Apologies for the quality of these photos. In order to be unobtrusive I used my phone).

This is the view from the door. You can see the full length of the Atelier. At the back you can see a tiled wall - that is a little bathroom with a toilet and basin. On the right at the bottom of the photo, you can just see a stool. Beyond to the right, out of shot, is the work bench which runs the length of the wall. And that is it! There is room for about six students at a time.

A closer view of the left hand wall. There are three presses in view, although the one at the left (with the blue wheel) is being used more as a bench in this shot. The lovely boxes are for students to store their spare supplies (excess leather etc)

The right hand wall of the Atelier, looking along the work bench. Most supplies and tools are conveniently stored on the wall, either hanging, in handmade boxes or as below, in cork tumblers.

Sewing signatures on the frame

For my first project I used a commercially available book block, but for the second I bought sheets of watercolour paper, which I tore to size, folded and assembled into 8 signatures. 

There was a very clever jig at the studio, which you placed your signatures onto, and it told you exactly how many sewing points were needed for your book according to its size and also where they should be placed.

My book required 5 sewing points and three tapes. This was the first time I have used a sewing frame, so while it's not extraordinary in any way, I was quite excited to give it a go.

Above you see the sewing frame, with my book block lined up to the tapes.

This is a close-up view. You tie the tapes onto the big woolly bits above (? name) and pull them as tight as you can, lining them up in the space between your sewing holes. Then you use a large nail and push it through the tape and under the wooden shelf of the frame.

In this photo you can see that a piece of wood slips into the frame, covering the nails from view and providing a smooth work surface. You can also see the sewing in progress.

I found the sewing to be quite logical - you pass waxed thread in at the top hole of the first signature, leaving a tail of about 8cm. Continue weaving the thread in and out to the bottom of the signature. NB. The thread should pass on the outside around each tape. At the bottom of the signature, ensure your thread is tight by pulling out to the side (ie in the direction you are sewing). Take your thread into the signature above and continue back to the head. Here you need to sew back into the signature below and tie off with a double knot to attach the signatures securely.  At the end, tie off securely, working back into at least one signature below.

Up close. Hmm, not very even Amanda. (But it is my first go!)

Usually when the sewing is completed, the book block is ready to be glued. However, when using a heavy paper like I was, the block needs pressing overnight before glueing. Without this, the signatures would simply spring apart.

This is the book block after a night in the press. The tapes have been trimmed and glued down.

Next are the covers and glueing the book block, but that will have to wait till next post.

 

A Little Show & Tell: Books

As you can see, we've moved on to the UK now,  but on our last day in Paris we went to an antiquarian book fair at Saint Sulpice. This is held annually, and if you were reading this blog last year, you may remember that we went then too, and bought this beautiful old book.(scroll down a little).


This year I had a specific goal in mind, and I struck gold! Yes, I am now the proud owner of my very own tunnel book. This one is from the 1939 World Fair, and is therefore considerably younger (and cheaper) than the ones I mentioned in my last post. Nevertheless, I am thrilled to own one and I have to thank my dh for searching it out on my behalf. Perhaps it could be the start of a little collection?

This is the front cover.

Looking through the peep-hole.

And again. Look at that "vehicle" on the left! Is it a fore-runner to the segway?

A view from the side.

And to finish off some photos of the books I made in Paris at Atelier du Marais. I promise I will share my experience there in more detail a little later.

Project 1

Blank journal for writing and sketching. Leather cover, marbled end-sheets and prefab book block.

Rolled leather headband.

Project 2

Blank journal for drawing with hand-torn watercolour paper for pages .Linen covers, rolled leather headband.