Bookbinding Workshops

Level I:
Participants will take home a blank book they create in class, using the methods that were employed from about the first century through the mid 19th century. They will hand-sew the book sections (called signatures) secure the hard covers add a leather or cloth spine, and decorative paper, to the covers and lay down the endpapers. Participants will also be provided step-by-step written instructions they can take home.

Level II:
This is an advanced class only for participants who have taken the introductory Bookbinding I workshop. Students will take home a fully leather-bound book. They will learn new techniques that are not taught in the basic course such as Rounding & Backing and Headbanding.

Bookbinding I & II Workshop Weekend:
In this weekend workshop, participants will immerse themselves in the art of bookbinding. Each attendee will participate in both Levels I and II in one weekend to create two complete books. Class will take place on Saturday (Level I) and Sunday (Level II).

Participants must take part in both days.

Introduction to Book Sewing:
In this class, participants will learn sewing techniques not taught in the Bookbinding I class, the French Link Stitch, the Herringbone Stitch, and the Double Needle Coptic Stitch.

The introductory class will last three hours.

Marbling is the art of floating and designing watercolors on a base fluid then permanently transferring the design to paper. It was developed by the Persians in the 15th Century.

Participants will be instructed in preparing the paper to accept the paint mixing the colors for marbling creating the base fluid floating the colors on the base, then designing them and transferring the design to paper.

Students will take home their finished papers at the end of class.​
Marbling students who take the bookbinding course may use their papers for book covers.

Introduction to Book Restoration:
Participants will be taught basic book repair techniques, and in the process learn about the book’s components and traditional hand bookbinding methods. They will dissect a book and reassemble it. Participants will deconstruct the book by detaching the covers and spine removing the sewing and disassembling the text. They will then reconstruct their book by performing page repair, resewing the textblock, and rehinging the covers and spine.

Advanced Book Restoration:
This advanced class will include a brief overview of the techniques covered in the basic class and then into the more advanced topics of board attachment, text block repair, corner repair, spine lifting and re-back as well as tissue and coloring.
The book and all additional materials are included, and tools will be provided.
Participants may bring their own book if they first get pre-approval.
No prerequisite required.

“Gold, that most precious of metals!”

Have you ever seen an old leatherbound or cloth book decorated with gold? If you enjoy reading books, love the look of gold, and enjoy the feel of leather then this is the workshop for you. Using gold leaf, gold foil and Historic Sugartown’s collection of bookbinding finishing tools you will learn traditional methods of designing and decorating leather in gold, the same way fine books were gold-tooled hundreds of years ago.

Students must have taken Bookbinding Level I and Bookbinding Level II prior to taking the Gold Tooling Workshop.

All materials are included, and tools will be provided.