INTRODUCTION

This book was produced for the Wordsworth Trust 1996 Book Collectors Weekend held at Dove Cottage in Grasmere, Cumbria.
It was part of a book surgery held by Derek and Owen Bradford, then the Manager and Deputy Manager respectively of the Bindery and Conservation Workshop which is based in The Robinson Library, University of Newcastle Upon Tyne.
The book itself is a single section, quarter bound in cloth with decorative paper sides. that has been three-hole or figure-8 thread stitched.
There are many varied forms of binding in the world of which this is one of the simplest. We hope that anyone attempting to re-create this volume will be encouraged to develop the art to the best of their ability and strive, like ourselves, to learn as much as possible about this ancient craft and art-form.

Owen Bradford
1996

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Many books comprise of sections made up of folded sheets that  are then sewn together.
(In the original book this was 6 X A4 short grain sheets)

Take the flat sheets and fold them in half. Be as accurate as possible!

Use a bone folder to sharpen the crease. If you do not have a bone folder then a blunt, bone or plastic, letter opener will do.

Inset one page into the middle of the last for all sheets. This will form a section.

Fold two blank sheets around the outside of the section and re-inforce the fold with a linen strip cut to the length of the fold and 3cm wide. This will form the endpaper and fly-sheet.

Allow to dry

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To hold the pages together you will need to sew them.
(In the original book this was 6 X A4 short grain sheets)

Take a needle and a stout piece of thread.

Make three holes through the fold, one in the middle, and one at either end approximately 2cm from the edge of the page.

Thread the needle.

From the outside, insert the needle through the middle hole leaving a tail of thread on the outside of the section.

Next, take the needle from the inside through one of the other holes.

Move to the third hole and from the outside take the needle through the section.

Finally, from the inside, take the needle back through the first hole and pull the thread tight.

Taking the two ends of thread, straddle the thread running down the outside of the section and tie them together in a secure knot.

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If you have folded a lot of sheets you will need to level (trim) the foredge. To do this use a steel rule and a sharp knife.

Place the section onto a cutting mat or board and lay the rule along the edge to be trimmed.

Lightly run the sharp knife along the ruler cutting only 2-3 sheets at a time until the whole section has been trimmed.

Repeat for the other edges (Head and Tail) if necessary.

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A simple lining will suffice to protect the sewing and folds of the section.

Cut a piece of material or paper which is the length of the fold and 4cm wide.

Glue this onto the outside fold of the section.

Allow to dry.

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The cover protects a book’s sections from the rigours of use and also from the elements.

Cut two boards, one for the front and one for the back. Both boards must be of the same size. Their height must equal the height of the section from head to tail plus 3mm at each end and their width must equal the width of the section from spine to foredge.

Cloth must be cut to the height of the boards plus 4cm. (2cm for each end)

The cloth must be able to wrap around the spine with enough width to reach onto approximately one fifth of the board, front and back.

A material must also be cut to cover the rest of the board. This can be of a decorative paper or a contrasting cloth to that of the spine.

The cover material must be the height of the boards plus 4cm (2cm for each end) and it’s width should be four fifth’s of the board plus 2cm.

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Place one board on the front of the section and one on the back.

Stand the section and boards on the head and tap gently to enable the section to slide level with the boards at one end.

With the section still on the bench, slide the boards forward so that they overhang the section by 3mm at the fore-edge.

Lay the whole thing flat allowing the spine to hang over the edge of the bench. Ensure the boards do not move!

Place a heavy weight on the top board to help prevent movement of the boards and section.

Glue the cloth strip and place the cloth around the spine ensuring that it is central head to tail and that it is glued equally to the boards front and back . (A line pre-drawn on the front and back boards may help to achieve this.)

Ensure good adhesion to the boards.

Remove the section from between the joined boards.

Lay the cover open and fold in the glued cloth which should be hanging 2cm over at the head and tail.

Turn case over and rub down cloth thoroughly using a bone folder or thumb.

Take the cover material and glue it out.

Lay the cover material onto the outside front board so that it just overlaps the cloth by about 1mm.

Rub out any air bubbles until smooth.

Turn the case over and using scissors cut the corners from the  cover material at a 45 degree angle where it projects beyond the corners of the board. Do not cut exactly to the corner, allow just over the thickness of the board away from the corner.

Fold in the head and tail overlaps ensuring the material is tightly stretched over the edges of the board.
 At the foredge slide a folder inwards along the edge of  the board nipping in any cover material in the process. This prevents the production of pointed “pixie” corners!

Fold in cover material along foredge as with head and tail.

Repeat this process for the cover material on  the back board.

Turn case over and rub down any areas that have not adhered solidly.

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Place the case around the section once more and ensure the section is centralised. It should have approximately 3mm square or overhang at the head, tail and foredge.

Lay the section flat on the bench and open the front cover.

Glue the front endpaper and carefully close the book ensuring that the book does not move and the fit of the cover is correct.

Turn the book over and repeat the process for the back.

Place between clean boards and press under a heavy weight or press.

Remove from the heavy weight and inspect for any excess glue which should be removed at this stage.

Place back between clean boards and leave under a light weight for 24 hours.

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Produce a label on a suitable paper.

Cut label to size.

Glue label and place it in the optical centre of the front cover material. (Centred left to right and slightly above centre, head to tail.)

Place a clean piece of waste paper (NOT Newspaper) over label and rub gently to ensure adhesion.

Leave to dry.

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NOTES
 This publication is a limited edition produced as a workshop for amateur binders.

Many thanks to Andrew for lending me his hands for the images!

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