Back to Bookbinding

I have a book of Carols which I have been asked to sort out. Diagnosis
- covers are in book cloth, very worn, board has come through at all corners
- text block sewing still reasonable
- several pages torn and one page has come completely adrift
- paper very brittle

Yesterday, I stripped it down. The covers will have to be completely replaced but I can rescue the titles and paste these on to the new covers. I do not think I have a midblue book cloth, just baby blue and dark blue. I stripped off the scrim and backing from the spine (there were no tapes). Today I separated out the section which has the torn out page, unpicked the sewing in that section and repaired the two separated sheets with bank paper. Then repaired the other torn pages. When the glue is firmly dry, I will sew this section into the other two bits of textbook, then sew on tapes

At the same time, I inspected the book I want to bind for the Society of Bookbinders. I have removed the cover. It was the property of Liverpool Council and they have stamped the book in all sorts of places, including on the top edge of the book in purple on dark green. So I spent a lot of time sanding down the top and bottom edges to get back to the cream colour of the text block. I need to get on with this binding and will be devoting lots of my time over the next ten days to it. I intend to use 4CDW in silk for the cover but need to carry out a series of experiments first. That is a job for Thursday.

I have woven for two hours on the brown handspun. And planted the last lot of seeds. I need to plant out some lettuce but it is raining hard. No hope tomorrow - I am off to see the Chelsea Flower Show! And I am taking back to Ruth her grandfather clock which was staying with me while she was in Malaysia. Her theory was the climate would not be good for it.