I recently did a live video on my Facebook page giving some tips for using glue in your handmade books. I’ve summarized them below and included a link to the video:
General Tips
- Store your glue in a heavy-bottomed jar so you don’t tip it over. Place a piece of wax paper between the lid and mouth of the jar when storing.
- Choose an appropriate-sized brush for the project. If you use a small brush on a large project, the glue might dry too soon. If you use a large brush on a small project, you’ll use too much glue.
- Wash your brushes quickly or leave in a jar of water until the project is finished. This is especially necessary when using PVA.
- Use a piece of parchment paper and a bone folder to smooth out your glued surface.
- If the recently glued book cover is cool to the touch, then it’s still wet and needs longer to dry.
Making Book Covers
The following are tips for gluing paper or book cloth to book board to make covers.
- Ensure that the grain of the cover and end paper run in the same direction and parallel to the book’s spine.
- Put the paste or glue on the thinner items because this gives the paper time to expand and stops the boards warping when dry. In other words, spread the glue on the paper and not on the book board.
- To further prevent warping, use papers of a similar weight on the front and back of the bookboard. This only applies to machine-made, not handmade papers.
- Apply glue to the back side of the paper in a star pattern from the center outwards and in one direction. This stops glue from getting onto the front of the paper.
