coptic binding @ mcba
last night i went to mcba‘s coptic binding workshop. i have taken it before, but it was over 3 or 4 years ago, and the binding technique never really stuck. i remember trying to teach jenn after a few glasses of wine and it was a mess! but i have book ideas for my etsy shop that involve coptic binding, and i’m itching to make them. i have the paper and ideas ready to go!
sue, the instructor, was great. she shared her knowledge, was very friendly & funny, and patient. i’m pretty sure she taught the first coptic binding workshop that i attended. buuuttt…
while the plan was to bind 2 books: one with 2 needles, the second with 4, we barely made it through the 2 needle binding. i think the process of covering book boards for 2 books and then sew them together was a bit too ambitious for a full class, which consisted of a lot of course-mates that were new to book binding. it took us a little longer than i think was expected to get past covering boards/folding signatures, leaving us with less than an hour’s time to devote to sewing/binding. we didn’t have time to explore the 4 needle technique. however, we did take some awesome curved needles home to experiment with!
despite my disappointment with not being able to spend more time on binding/sewing, i will still take mcba’s workshops, as i always learn something new from the instructors. last night’s valuable tip: teflon “bone” folders do not burnish your paper as much as traditional bone folders do. that’s big for me — i was wondering how to avoid shiny areas on my paper when utilizing the bone folder. (and frankly, as a vegetarian, my bone folders freak me out a bit – where have they come from?! please don’t tell me. but then, what does the production of teflon do to our environment? arg!)
and despite the little sad book i produced (pictured above, on the guillotine, awaiting its execution), i do feel a little more confident about coptic binding. i just will need to do a few more practice runs before i jump into the etsy projects!
February 21st, 2008 at 8:23 am
Yeah!! I’ll practice with you. And make Indian. And on a bone-folder side note, my dog Loves, Loves, Loves, my bone folder. Huh.
February 21st, 2008 at 9:52 am
yay! to practicing and indian! boo to bogey wanting to chew on the bone folder!
February 21st, 2008 at 11:10 am
Nikita used to try and steal my bone folder as well. This was a bit odd as she didn’t really care for regular dog bones unless another dog had chewed on them. I like your little polka dot book and I know Seth would like the color. Why aren’t you satisfied with the result? Is the binding loose?
February 21st, 2008 at 11:16 am
the binding is loose, and i did mess it up a few times. i also didn’t get all the signatures in, because i wanted to put the back cover on before i left. it was rushed… but i’ll keep at it!
are you guys keeping your bone folders on the floor?
my dogs have never seen one, but now i’m curious to see what they’ll do if they get a chance to sniff one…
February 21st, 2008 at 12:25 pm
Bogey could smell mine from the coffee table. It was as bad as if I was eating something. I had to put it up high and eventually in a different room because he was crying like a baby!! :p