The Thread that Binds, Part II

I finally finished binding my copy of The Thread that Binds. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I had thought about doing a wooden cover, as a tribute to master bookbinder Jim Croft (who is interviewed in the book) but as often happens, went charging off in another direction altogether.

I created a medieval-style leather binding that emphasizes thread and stitching, which seemed to fit the content of the book:



This copy of The Thread that Binds will have a home in my ever-growing collection of books on bookbinding.

The Thread That Binds

A while back, I sent away to Oak Knoll Books for an unbound copy of The Thread That Binds: Interviews with Private Practice Bookbinders. Here you can see the pages:

For the last couple of weeks, I've been pondering what sort of binding I want to create for it.

The bookbinders interviewed talk about their lives in the book arts -- how they got to be bookbinders, and the ups and downs of a bookbinding life. Jim Croft, who taught me many things about bookbinding, is one of the interviewees, and so I want to make a binding that honours his passion for gothic books with wooden covers, but also reflects my own bookbinding interests, too.

This part of designing a cover is always the most fun--thinking, making little drawings, thinking some more, messing about with papers and leather and wood and things, drinking tea, rejecting what I just thought about, thinking some more.....