VOLUME 28, NUMBER 4
AUGUST-SEPTEMBER, 2019
EDITORIAL As the French so pithily remark, plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose (the more things change the more they stay the same) and so as I take over the heavy resonsibility of editor, so ably filled by Colin Smith for so long, I pledge that I will try to live up to his very high standards and endevour to maintain the superior quality he has set for YAPP. I am an absolute tyro at bookbinding and everyone in the Guild knows more than I do, so I do feel a bit of a fraud, although I do know a bit about editing publications. For this reason I need to know what you would like to see in the newsletter and get your contributions. Otherwise it’s going to be filled with what I like to read and know - the absolute basics of bookbinding and the things about it that have caught my fancy. A feature I’d like to see included in future issues is profiles of the various members including what drew them to the Craft, their favourite aspects of it and so on.
SUBSCRIPTION NOTICE It is time to get those annual fees in, as you know we need this as early as possible to ensure that our insurance is up to date. The annual fees are $50 per person, $75 for a family. Please make your payments to the usual account, and mark them with your name so that we can match them up. BSB 066 121 A/C 009 034 81 WA Craft Bookbinders Guild Inc
INDEX Page Editorial 1 Title 2 Title 2 Title 2 Title 2 Title 2 Title 2 Title 2 Upcoming Events 16
DOS-A-DOS BINDING IN BOOKBINDING, a dos-à-dos binding (from the French meaning "back-to-back") is a binding structure in which two separate books are bound together such that the fore edge of one is adjacent to the spine of the other, with a shared lower board between them serving as the back cover of both. When shelved, the spine of the book to the right faces outward, while the spine of the book to the left faces the back of the shelf; the text of both works runs head-to-tail. The dos-à-dos format dates back at least to the 16th century, though they were most common in England in the first half of the 17th century. Two books frequently bound in this form were the New Testament and Psalter, presumably because both were needed during church services. Regardless of content, the outer boards of dos-à-dos bindings were usually embroidered, or covered with leather and then finished with gold. One example is Irvin S. Cobb's Oh! Well! You Know How Women Are! bound dos-à-dos with Mary Roberts Rinehart's Isn't That Just Like a Man! [published by George Doran -1920]
TÊTE-BÊCHE The term dos-à-dos is also used to refer to a single volume in which two texts are bound together, with one text rotated 180° relative to the other, such that when one text runs head-to-tail, the other runs tailto-head. However, this type of binding is properly termed
A modern version of the dos-á-dos binding
tête-bêche (from the French - head-to-toe, literally referring to a type of bed).
A miniature dos-á-dos book from the Pistner collection. Patricia J. Pistner is one of the foremost collectors of miniature books in the USA. About 950 books from her collection are on display at the Grolier Club. Pistner sees her tiny books not just as intricately designed, differently scaled versions of books, but also as important artifacts in the development of books and binding through history, reflecting “the finest examples of various binding styles,” she said.
Quintuple dos-á-dos binding from 1736
person accounts of a rocky marriage, one narrated by the husband, the other by the wife. The format became much more widely known in the 1950s, when Ace Books began to publish its Ace Doubles. This was a line of tête-bêche genre paperbacks that ran from 1952 until the early 1970s. The Ace Doubles binding was considered innovative, if somewhat gimmicky, at the time; the 18 October 1952 issue of Publishers Weekly describes it as a "trick format". More recently, the format was used for the 1990 Methuen paperback edition of Monty Python's Flying Circus: Just the Words, a two-volume collection of the scripts of the television series. Books bound in this way have no back cover, but instead have two front covers and a single spine with two titles. When a reader reaches the end of the text of one of the works, the next page is the (upside-down) last page of the other work. These volumes are also referred to as "upside-down books" or "reversible books". The tête-bêche format has been used for devotional books since the nineteenth century, and possibly earlier. It has also been used, for example, to bind two-way language dictionaries, and even for novels. An example is The Loving Couple: His (and Her) Story, by Patrick Dennis (1956). Here, the books are first-
HARD COVER FOR DOS-A-DOS By: AILSA GOLDEN “I thought you’d done every binding!” a friend exclaimed recently when I mentioned a structure I hadn’t made. Somehow, I was never, until this point, inspired to make a dos-a-dos binding. With three hard covers and two spines, it has never been one I’ve needed for a personal project. A dos-a-dos artist’s book that comes to mind is a lovely letterpress book made in 2005 by Ellen Knudson called Self-Dual: How to Walk a 30,000 Mile Tightrope about her weekly commute between
boards and cloth parallel to the spine. I learned quite a bit while I made this first
Self-Dual: How to Walk a 30,000 Mile Tightrope Mississippi and Alabama as she left her husband and young son to complete an MFA. She writes that the text were her “driving thoughts.” It’s a book I ask to see each time I take my CCA students to Mills College library to look at their book art collection. It was finally time for me to make my own dos-a-dos. As I scrounged for scraps to make a model to show here, I ended up with Niddegen, a textweight paper, for one side, and watercolor paper for the other. A perfect travel book for drawing or writing on one side, for painting on the other. The covers are made of book board/Davey board/binder's board, the spines are 4-ply 100% cotton museum board. The covering papers are from a frottage-style paste paper I made from Arches Text Wove/Velin Arches. Book cloth spine covers. All
duo, which means I also made mistakes. (2) 4-ply museum board spines: 1/2" x 5 3/4" (3) Book boards: I used 3 1/2" x 5 3/4" for all three. I recommend instead: (2) 3 3/4 x 5 3/4" and center board (1) 3 1/2" x 5 3/4" This is so top and bottom boards align with spines on both sides when closed. (2) Book cloth strips to cover spine pieces (one face up, one face down): 2" x 6 3/4"
(2) Covering papers: 3 3/4" x 6 1/4" Recommend instead for wider boards: 4 1/4" x 6 1/4" (2) head and tail strips for center board: 1 1/8" x 3" (maybe 1 1/8" x 3 1/8")
Find the centers on the backs of the book cloth spine covers and on the museum board spine pieces. Apply glue to the backs of the book cloth and press the spine pieces into place.
Measure and mark 1/4" from the edge of the spine piece or use a 1/4" spacing bar (should be three board thicknesses). Apply glue to back of the book cloth again. Press boards into place. Remember that once you have two boards attached on either side of the spine piece, you will turn that section over to attach the second spine cover and third board.
Apply glue to the head and tail of the spine covers and turn in.
Apply glue to the head and tail strips, center side-to-side, and attach to the center board.
Measure 3/4" from the center line, head and tail, and mark the board or book cloth. Apply glue to one covering paper and align the edge with the marks. Trim the corners, leaving about two board thicknesses between the corner of the boards and the cuts.
Apply glue and turn in the head and tail edges. Push in at the corners, then apply glue and turn in the fore edge.
What's wrong with this picture? My book cloth turn-ins and my covering paper turn-ins are different widths and don't align here. Turn-ins should make an even frame all around the edge. Even though you won't see them, you will be able to see a slight ridge under the endpapers.
My two book blocks, complete with purple endbands. I left the spines flat and did not round them since they were under 3/4" deep. Recommended size: 3 1/2"w x 5 1/2"h x 1/2"d (with folded papers 7"w x 5 1/2"h)
Instead of the common method of attaching the book block to the hard covers (case), but in this case I decided to try something different.
I glued a strip of mulberry paper under the mull/super and the tapes (ribbons, in this case). then glued all three parts to the boards.
Attach separate endpapers by applying glue to just a tiny bit over half of them, (about 1/4"1/2") using the bone folder and pressing down to the board and onto the edge (that 1/4"-1/2") of the book block, but leaving the rest of the paper nearest the book block to fly. (In this picture, the arrows point to the endpapers that are aligned with the head and tail strips, hooray!) (2) Endpapers (for the larger size recommended): 7 1/8" x 5 1/2" Measure and fold at 3 1/2" on one side. This will be the side closest to the book block. Once the book block is attached, check the endpapers before you glue them. You may need to trim the endpapers so they align.
Secret Belgian Binding/CrissCross, and even a softcover Crossed-Structure Binding made with an extra long cover. For the simplest of all: fold a three-panel accordion and sew a single signature into each valley fold. Published with the author’s kind permission.
Swing your partner!
Next time I would make my book blocks wider as well, so they reach almost to the edges. I'd also like to try different color covers front and back, possibly white and black with gray in the center and bright-colored book cloth. You could also try this format with Coptic,
Imaginative spines for The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
BIND 18 BIND 19 - AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF BOOKINDERS THE NSW GUILD of Craft Bookbinders is presenting a two and a half day bookbinding conference which will take place in Sydney from 25 – 27 October 2019, coinciding with the 40th Anniversary of the guild. The conference will explore contemporary and traditional bookbinding structures and design as well as restoration techniques. In the weeks before and after the conference there will be workshops available taught by key presenters from the conference. TICKET PRICING 3 day conference pass – $310 (earlybird pricing before 1st April 2019 at members prices $280). 3 day conference pass for NSW Guild Members – $280. Conference tickets include: Friday night conference launch, light snacks and book arts promenade Saturday conference session 9am-5.30pm including morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and trades fair Sunday conference session 9am-5.30pm including morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and trades fair Optional Extras: Saturday 7pm Conference Dinner (details, cost and tickets TBA). Associated workshops The workshops will include a variety of techniques including conservation bindings, medieval bindings, leather paring, a chemise and a slipcase and will be held in Canberra and Sydney. Workshops can be booked through Andersen’s Bindery: www. bookbindingaustralia.com.au Additional events Once you have your tickets to the conference main, you can also book into these exclusive events only available to conference participants: Friday 25th October Launch Promenade – free, bookings essential Saturday 26th October Tour of the State Library – free, bookings essential Tour of the Rare Book Collection, Fisher Library
University of Sydney – free, bookings essential Assorted workshops by our international speakers – bookings through Andersen’s bindery. Remember, you have to book your conference tickets first to be eligible for these exclusive events. Conference dinner – $60 per person, bookings essential Conference Schedule Day 1 – Friday 25th October 2019 Promenade book arts demonstrations, Conference opening at the Guild bindery, Writing NSW, Callan Park, Rozelle 18.00 – 20.00 Petra Weber: Making Bookcloth Petra will demonstrate backing fabric with Japanese paper to be used as bookcloth Craig Spink: Calligraphy traditional. Brigitta Summers & Rachel Boggs: Intaglio Printing Brigitta and Rachel will demonstrate the intaglio printing process Jerry Zylberberg and Laura Jamieson: Letterpress Printing Laura and Jerry will demonstrate letterpress printing on the Adana press Jean Riley: Paste Papers Isabelle Ting-McGowan: Book Plough Jean Kropper: Paper Engineering Techniques Day 2 – Saturday 26th October 2019 Location: The Connection, Rhodes 30 Shoreline Dr, Rhodes NSW 8.15am
Registration
9.00am Welcome by John Turner – President NSW Guild of Craft Bookbinders. 9.15am Talk Hinged Parchment Binding as per Fra Edgard Claes by Barbara Schmelzer. 10.15am Talk/Demonstration Paper by Kay Sonderlund. 11.00am
Morning Tea and Trades Fair
11.30am Talk Things to consider when rebacking a cloth or leather binding: Honouring the Bookbinder by Karen Vidler
12.15am Oliver
Talk Leather Dyeing Techniques by Nicky
1.00pm
Lunch and Trades Fair
2.00pm Demonstration Old Tricks and Bright Ideas – Some tips for Bookbinders by Dominic Riley 3.15pm
Afternoon Tea and Trades Fair
3.45pm Talk Rebinding Audubon’s The Birds of America in the Royal Collection by Philippa Räder 4.45pm
Trades Fair
5.30pm
Close
7.00pm (Optional) Conference Dinner – Not included in conference ticket price. Tickets on sale soon Keynote speaker: Kathy Abbott – Tomorrow’s Past Day 3 – Sunday 27 October 2019 8.30am
Trades Fair
9.00am
Update from Australasian Guilds
10.00am Talk Late 18th Century French Binding Techniques by Isabelle Ting-McGowan 11.00am
Morning tea and Trades Fair
11.30am Talk/Demonstration A Remarkable Journey by Julie Sommerfeldt 12.15am Demonstration End Banding Techniques by Kathy Abbott 1.00pm
Lunch
2.00pm Talk/Demonstration The Edelpappband by Dieter Räder 3.00pm
Afternoon Tea
3.30pm Demonstration The Islamic Box Binding by Michael Bourke 4.45pm Closing Address by John Turner, President NSW Guild of Craft Bookbinders.
INTERNATIONAL PRESENTERS Kathy Abbott Kathy Abbott served a four-year apprenticeship in bookbinding and then gained a Higher National Diploma from the London College of Printing, London (UK) followed by a BA (Hons) degree in Bookbinding from Roehampton University, Surrey (UK). She teaches advanced level Fine Binding at the City Lit, London and conducts bookbinding workshops across the UK and overseas. She is a partner in Benchmark Bindery, established in 2009 with Tracey Rowledge, a founder member of the group: Tomorrow’s Past and is the author of Bookbinding: A step-by-step guide, published by the Crowood Press in 2010. http://kathyabbott.biz/ Michael Burke Michael Burke studied Chemistry at Leeds University, going on to work in Occupational Health and Safety. He later moved to California and studied bookbinding with Dominic Riley and paper conservation with Karen Zukor. He now lives in the Lake District, where he teaches bookbinding. In recent years he has demonstrated at several Society of Bookbinders’ conferences, and taught many workshops for both SoB and Designer Bookbinders across the UK. He has presented at the Guild of Bookworkers Standards Seminar in the USA, and conducted teaching tours in Australia, New Zealand and Brazil. Last summer he taught at Montfiascone in Italy. Each year he teaches summer school at the San Francisco Center for the Book, and across the USA. Michael has a particular interest in the structures of ancient and medieval bindings, and has a Masters degree in the History of the Book from the University of London. Nicky
Oliver Nicky discovered bookbinding while studying for a degree in Graphic Design and Illustration (1996) and has pursued the craft ever since. After having worked for several years in various trade binderies she established her own business, Black Fox Bindery, London (2009). In
2010, Nicky was elected Licentiate of the Designer Bookbinders, UK. In the same year she won the ‘Silver Triple’: First prize Open Book; Folio Society first prize; and the Edgar Mansfield Silver Medal. She was elected a Fellow of the Designer Bookbinders in 2016. Many of her pieces are held in public collections including The John Ryland Library, Manchester, Elizabeth Soutar Library, Edinburgh, and The British Library, London, and private collections. Nicky has presented lectures and delivered workshops on various binding and decorative techniques in the UK, Europe, Australia and more recently the USA. Photograph by Stu Grimshaw @ Pennleigh www.blackfoxbindery.com/design-bindings/ Philippa Räder Philippa Räder is Head of the Royal Bindery at Windsor Castle, responsible for the preservation and conservation of books, manuscripts and archives within the Royal Collection and Royal Household, as well as the production of new fine binding work, primarily for presentation as state and other official gifts. Initially trained at the Getty Research Institute in California and subsequently holding positions at The Huntington Library, California and The National Archives (UK) before joining the staff of the Royal Collection. She is an Accredited Conservator-Restorer through the Institute of Conservation and a Professional Associate of the American Institute for Conservation. Philippa also directs The Queen’s Bindery Apprenticeship Scheme: a pilot programme of a new five-year apprenticeship in hand bookbinding based in the Royal Bindery, funded and supported by a wide group of charities and institutions. In addition to regularly presenting at national and international conferences and seminars, she is Chairman of the London & South region of the Society of Bookbinders and co-founder of Book Camp residential summer bookbinding classes. Dieter Räder DieterDieter Räder has been binding books for the past forty years. He started by serving a full apprenticeship in Germany, followed by a year teaching then
employment as a bookbinder in Marseilles and Vienna. Arriving in the UK for a holiday in 1983, he decided to stay and worked in London for two years under the guidance of Robert Green, specialising in the restoration of antiquarian books and fine bindings. In the early 1990s he opened his own bindery in Somerset which he ran for over eighteen years. After a move back to London, Dieter was engaged in establishing and managing the new fine binding and restoration department of a commercial bindery in west London. Deciding to return to self-employment in the Wiltshire countryside in 2017, he opened Dragon Press Bindery Ltd, where he also hosts Book Camp and local workshops. Dieter’s clients for bookbinding and book restoration projects range from private collectors, booksellers and film producers (for props) to major university libraries, museums and the Royal Collection. He frequently teaches masterclasses and demonstrates at Society of Bookbinders educational and training seminars. www.dragonpressbindery.com www.bookcamp.org.uk Dominic Riley Dominic Riley is a bookbinder, lecturer and teacher. He studied Art History and English at Leeds University, and bookbinding at the London College of Printing. He lived for ten years in San Francisco, where he founded the bookbinding programme at the Center for the Book: he returns there each summer to teach. He has his bindery in the Lake District, from where he travels across the UK teaching and lecturing. He specializes in restoration and design binding, and has won many prizes in various competitions. He was elected Fellow of Designer Bookbinders in 2008. His bindings are in collections worldwide, including the British Library, the Grolier Club in New York and the V&A. In 2013 he won first prize, the Sir Paul Getty Award, in the International Bookbinding Competition. Dominic co-founded both the SoB Seminar and the SoB/DB joint workshop series. He is President of the Society of Bookbinders.
LOCAL PRESENTERS Barbara Schmelzer Barbara studied bookbinding at the Buchbinder Kolleg in Stuttgart and obtained her Master Bookbinder qualification at the Berufliches Schulzentrum Alois Senefelder in Munich. She has 25 years of binding experience running her own bookbinderies first in New Zealand and now in Sydney, Australia. She specialises in one-off specialist projects, limited edition bindings and boxes, fine binding, book conservation and restoration and teaches advanced bookbinding. In 2013 she won the Society of Bookbinder’s UK 1st prize for case binding and in October 2018 won the Sydney Rare Book Auction’s Bookbinding Competition. www.barbaraschmelzer.com.au Julie Sommerfeldt Julie Sommerfeldt is Manager of Rare Books & Special Collections (RBSC) at the University of Sydney Library. RBSC is one of the largest rare and special collections in Australian University Libraries, containing many significant collections and treasures. Currently, one of Julie’s primary aims is to raise the profile of these wonderful and rich collections and to continue to develop opportunities for their use in a variety of ways including traditional education and research activities as well as nontraditional forms of outreach. With a Masters in Conservation Studies from the UK specialising in books and library materials, Julie has worked as a book conservator internationally, most recently at the Bodleian Libraries, the University of Oxford. Prior to that, she worked in Sydney with Bookbinder and Restorer, Sabine Piérard (now in France), and as a conservation framer at ASA Conservation Framing. Kay Söderlund Kay Soderlund, Director of Preservation Australia, has worked as a conservator for over thirty-five years. With a Bachelor of Applied Science in the Conservation of Cultural Materials (1982) from the University of Canberra, she has worked at various institutions in NSW
including The Australian Museum, the Powerhouse Museum, and the State Library of New South Wales where she headed the project to conserve several journals of the First Fleet. Kay has worked primarily in private practice since 1986, as well as working for some time with Museums Australia (NSW) – firstly as a conservator, then as Director. Preservation Australia is a boutique conservation business that specialises in paper conservation – including large format, works on paper, books, and photographs – as well as preventive conservation consulting, including Disaster Preparedness. It also runs workshops in conservation areas throughout Australia and SE Asia, and has an archival products side of the business – Conservation Resources. Isabelle Ting-McGowan Isabelle Ting McGowan has a background in Fine Arts and trained as a bookbinder in Florence, and at the bench of various fine bookbinders in Italy, France and UK. In 2006 she set up her own Bindery in Edinburgh, Scotland and worked for public and private institutions and individual clients. She provides bookbinding services to museums, galleries and libraries, heritage archives, bibliophiles as well as antiquarian book dealers. Karen Vidler Karen studied fine bookbinding and paper conservation at Guildford College before completing post graduate studies in book conservation at West Dean College. Her area of specialisation is the assessment of bookbinding leather for bookbinding and conservation work. Her current research, as part of her studies for an MA in Education, explores better ways of teaching bookbinding and conservation skills in higher education and vocational training. Karen has worked as a Book Conservator with the National Archives in Kew, London, the V&A Museum, London and The Leather Conservation Centre, UK. She has managed Book Conservation Services since 2006 and taught in the UK, Australia, Europe and East Asia. Further information about Karen’s practical
work and teaching can be found at: www.bookconservationservices.com/staff/portfolio www.facebook.com/bcsbindery Program subject to change. Speakers may be substituted and topics changed based on circumstances beyond the organisers’ control.
USEFUL LINKS AND WEBSITES Anderson’s Book Bindery and Bookbinding Supplies. www.bookbindingaustralia.com.au Canberra Craft Bookbinders Guild www.canberrabookbinders.org.au Association of Book Crafts www.abc-nz.org.nz Codex Antipodes www.codexfoundation.org Designer Bookbinders www.designerbookbinders.org.uk NSW Guild of Craft Bookbinders www.nswbookbinders.org Leather Direct www.leatherdirect.com.au Queensland Bookbinders’ Guild www.qbg.org.au The Society of Bookbinders www.societyofbookbinders.com Victorian Bookbinders Guild www.vbg.net.au
DID YOU KNOW? THE PRINTING PRESS was invented in 1447 by Johannes Gutenberg. Ok, you probably knew that, but did you know: • The first metal movable-type printing system was actually invented 216 years earlier in what was then the Chinese tributary state of Korea. The Korean inventors themselves were improving on movable type printing press technology that had been invented in China by printer Bi Sheng between 1041 and 1048. So the Chinese had Gutenberg beat by 400 years! • The oldest movable metal print book in existence is a Korean book, known as the Jikji, printed in 1377. The book is a guide for students of Buddhism. • The printing press was a key factor in the growth of the Renaissance movement in Europe. Improvements to the Gutenberg press allowed for mass distribution of printed materials and the first instance of mass communication in the world. The spread of ideas through the printing press led to everything from scientific advances to the Reformation, revolutions against monarchic governments, and nationalism. The Industrial Revolution may be best known for its huge influence on the textile industry. But those sewing machines weren’t just sewing clothes. Technological improvements affected the book binding industry too. • David McConnell Smyth patented one of the first sewing machines made for bookbinding in 1868. He invented the technique of sewing through the fold in a signature to create a strong binding. This technique is still used today and is known as Smyth Sewing. • Smyth also invented a number of other machines that enabled mass production in the book binding industry, include gluing, trimming, casemaking, and casing-in machines. • Perfect binding was invented in 1895. However, it wasn’t used for book binding until 1931, when a publisher in Germany, Albatross Books, used perfect binding to make the first paperbacks and Penguin Books followed suit in 1935.The first paperbacks used cold glues, which grew brittle over time. The DuPont Company invented the hot-melt adhesive binding process in the 1940s, which vastly improved the quality of paperbacks.
MEET THE MEMBERS
DOUGLAS SUTHERLAND-BRUCE was born in 1951 in Durban, South Africa and intended for an academic career, having been the victim of a literary background, developing a love of reading and learning from a very early age. Matriculating in 1967 meant that in 1968 he would be in the army, in exile or in jail. He became a Bren gunner in the Umkomaas Commando as Trooper 68574508K. At the time conscription was for sixteen years, firstly full, then part time. University students went into the Commandos and everyone else went into the regular army or navy. He saw active service in the so-called Bush War while studying medieval history at the University of Natal, a weird dichotomy that seemed perfectly natural at the time. In 1973 he married Angela and the following year they migrated to Australia, landing in Perth. The idea was to steadily move east until they found a place they liked, moving to New Zealand, then Canada if there was nowhere suitable. Forty-five years later, they’re still in Perth. There was no employment available in academia, so Douglas got a job as an underwriting clerk at Royal Insurance, concealing most of his education to get it. From there he moved into Risk Management, opening his own consultancy in 1981, which he ran
until the Workers’ Compensation law changed and employers lost interest in claim reduction. This led him to found the Swan Magazine in 2000, which is still going strong. For a hobby Douglas had the theatre, a lifelong passion. He first went on stage at the tender age of six in The King and I, directed by his godfather, who was looking for cheap actors. As Douglas said ‘I was the centre of attention, people were looking and me and clapping - it quite turned my head and began a life-long love.’ He has acted and directed many, many times since then and has garnered awards for both. His love of books and reading, particularly detective fiction led him to found The Sherlock Holmes Society of Western Australia in 1983, which is still going strong, although he himself has been kicked upstairs from Buttons-Cum-Commissionare (President) to Patron. He taught part-time at the University of Western Australia and this led to being asked to review books for Community Newspapers and others and that led in turn to being asked, in 1986, to write a restaurant review (the regular reviewer had asked for a raise and been fired and they needed someone in a hurry.) The restaurant, Chalet Rigi, was marvelous, he said so - the restaurant were pleased, the editor was pleased and the readers seemed to like his style and another career was born, one that continues to today, together with a five year stint as Gold Plate Judge. His love of books and the physicality of them and the collection of a reasonably sized library meant he loved books and their bindings without actually knowing the first thing about them. A chance meeting with a retired professional bookbinder led him to the WA Guild and the deep satisfaction of binding his first book. He describes himself as ‘an absolute tyro with a desire to learn’ and praises the classes and courses the Guild runs. He also loves the fellowship and friendly camaraderie of the Guild and hopes to for many years to come. Editor: Never ascribe to conspiracy that is easily explained by laziness. I am very well aware that their are far more deserving people of the first member profile, but I was running late and this one I knew best -DSB
UPCOMING COURSES BOXES 2 Saturday, August 17th, 2019 (9:00am to 4:pm) and Sunday, August 18th, 2019 (9:00am to 4:00pm) August Box Making Course Number 2. This is the next course in our very popular Box Making series, in that it extends your knowledge by introducing the box-in-a-box style, as well as decorative techniques rather than just the construction of a box. This is the only Boxes 2 course to be held in 2019. Note that no previous experience is required, although the Box Making course is helpful. This course is $95.00 for the course, and all tools and materials are provided. This course takes place over a single weekend, for a total of twelve hours of tuition. Payment is required prior to the beginning of the workshop. This course is held at the Roleystone Family Centre in Roleystone. This course is now full. Please email the convenor, Tony Lock, at wabookbinders@gmail.
com if you wish to be wait-listed. BEGINNERS COURSE Monday September 2nd, 2019 (6:00pm to 9:00pm) Monday September 9th, 2019 (6:00pm to 9:00pm) Monday September 16th, 2019 (6:00pm to 9:00pm) Monday September 23rd, 2019 (6:00pm to 9:00pm) September’s Beginners Course You will get to make a couple of different books, as well as learn the basics of box making suitable for holding books. This course is $95.00 for the course, and all tools and materials are provided. This course takes place over four Monday evenings. Payment is required prior to the beginning of the workshop. This course is held at Mc Dougall House in Como This course is now full. Please email the convenor, Tony Lock, at wabookbinders@gmail. com if you wish to be wait-listed.
SPRINGBACK COURSE Saturday, October 5th, 2019 ( 9:00am to 4:00pm) Saturday, October 12th, 2019 ( 9:00am to 4:00pm) Our very first Springback workshop. A springback book is a very technical type of book, with the spine made into a spring that snaps the book open to lay flat, and then snaps it closed again. This takes quite a while to prepare, so this course will take place over two weekends. This is the only springback course to be held in 2019. Note that it is recommended that you have made a number of different styles of book before attempting this one. You should have already done some rounding and backing, and be familiar with sewing on tapes. This course is $95.00 for the course, and all tools and materials are provided. This course takes place over two weekends, for a total of twelve hours of tuition. Payment is required prior to the beginning of the workshop. This course is held at the Roleystone Family Centre in Roleystone.
follows on from our very successful introduction of this course in 2018. This course is $95.00 for the weekend, and all tools and materials are provided. Payment is required prior to the beginning of the workshop. It is recommended that you have had some previous bookbinding experience before tackling this style. Register for this course now by emailing the convenor, Tony Lock, at wabookbinders@gmail. com Please provide your name and a contact phone number. This course is held at the Roleystone Family Centre in Roleystone. ADVANCED BOOKBINDING WORKSHOP Saturday, November 30th, 2019 (9:00am to 4:00pm) Sunday, December 1st, 2019 (9:00am to 4:00pm) December Advanced Bookbinding workshop This course is very popular and has been running for a few years now. It covers leather bindings, together with sewing onto cords. You cover how to prepare the adhesive, trim and pare the leather, and shape it over cords to give the book that very distinctive look with the raised bands on the spine and the beautiful, incomparable feel of a leather bound book. This is the only Advanced course to be held in 2019. It is recommended that you have already made a number of books, and be familiar with the rounding and backing techniques introduced in our Intermediate workshop.
This course is now full. Please email the convenor, Tony Lock, at wabookbinders@gmail. com if you wish to be wait-listed. BRADEL BINDING WORKSHOP Saturday, November 2nd, 2019 (9:00am to 4:00pm) Sunday, November 3rd, 2019 (9:00am to 4:00pm) Bradel Binding Bradel binding is a form of library binding whereby all the construction is hidden away between two boards that make up the cover. This gives a very smooth, very polished look, which combined with good rounding and backing gives an exceptional level of professionalism to your books. This is the only Bradel course for 2019, and
This course is $95.00 for the course, and all tools and materials are provided. This course takes place over a single weekend, for a total of twelve hours of tuition. Payment is required prior to the beginning of the workshop. This course is held at the Roleystone Family Centre in Roleystone. This course is now full. Please email the convenor, Tony Lock, at wabookbinders@gmail. com if you wish to be wait-listed.
UPCOMING EVENTS 2019 August 2nd-4th WA Craft Show Claremont Showgrounds 3rd (ongoing) Beginners Bookbinding Course Hazel McDougall House, Como 17th &18th Boxes 2, Roleystone Family Centre 26th Regular Guild Meeting Hazel McDougall House, Como September 2nd (ongoing) Beginners Bookbinding Course Hazel McDougall House, Como 30th Regular Guild Meeting Hazel McDougall House, Como October 5th & 12th Springback Course Roleystone Family Centre 25-27th Bind 19 (Bookbinding conference) Sydney 28th Regular Guild Meeting incorporating Royal Show entries and discussion. Hazel McDougall House, Como November 2nd & 3rd Bradel Binding Workshop Roleystone Family Centre 25th Final Guild Meeting for 2019 Hazel McDougall House, Como 30th & December 1st Advanced Bookbinding Workshop Roleystone Family Centre Â
If undelivered, please return to: The Secretary, WA Craft Bookbinders’ Guild Inc. P O Box 462, Kelmscott, Western Australia 6991
Guild Committee 2019/2020 President: Jo Shoobert 0414 144 035 Vice President: Peter Ruthven 9448 1623 Secretary: Tony Lock 0417 909 705 Treasurer: Margaret Curran 9367 5289 Committee Member: Peter Norrish Editor: Douglas Sutherland-Bruce 0406 510 959 Course Convenor: Tony Lock 0417 909 705 Contributions to the newsletter should be posted to, The Secretary, PO Box 462, Kelmscott WA 6991 or emailed to bookbinderswa@gmail.com The views expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the Guild.