Monday-Friday, 7/16-7/20
9:30am-5:30pm

This intensive master class will introduce students to the classic (and luxurious) English leather binding, which was a popular style throughout the 17th & 18th centuries and is very useful for creating handsome “period” bindings.

The sections will be sewn on raised cords using the sewing frame. Following that, traditional “made” endpapers will be sewn on, after which the book will be trimmed, rounded, and backed. The edges will be sprinkled and polished, two-color headbands sewn on, and the cords frayed out and laced into boards.

The book will be covered in a smooth calfskin, and particular attention will be given to careful and accurate paring using the English knife and spoke shave, ensuring a neat fit over the binding. The leather will be pasted out and applied to the book, taking care to shape it over the raised bands, forming the headcaps and making neat, simple corners.

The binding will be decorated in the Cambridge Panel style, which first involves sprinkling with leather dye using an ingenious template to create the classic paneled effect. Then, using a few tools and working with a traditional formula, the covers will be enhanced by handsome blind tooling. The endpapers will then be put down, and the binding polished and waxed.
Prerequisites: Traditional craft bookbinding experience recommended. Experience with leather paring and knife sharpening also recommended.

Materials to bring: Scalpel and blades; cobbler’s knife; metal ruler; dividers; bone folder; scissors; cutting mat; paring knife; old toothbrush; natural sponge; ace bandage. Please bring (if you have): paring machine; paring knife and strop; spoke shave; paring stone; finishing tools: two-line wheel; decorative wheel; lozenge tool; one-line palette; finishing stove. 

Materials Fee: $90