Making A Medieval Book By Hand - Part 4 - Paring and Applying Leather

Hello everyone, and welcome to my bindery! This is Part 4 of my in-depth video series on making a medieval-style book - for more information see Part 1 at the link below. This series has no speaking and a minimal amount of music for those who want to enjoy the peaceful simplicity of quiet hand-work. For those seeking insights into my materials and techniques, you can turn on subtitles to read my full commentary on the process as you watch! This installment in the series is devoted to covering our book in leather. That simple statement may make it seem like a straightforward task, but in reality it is a multi-step process that requires a great deal of care to execute. To make the process a bit more manageable I break it down into two main stages: attaching the leather to the spine, and pasting down the covers and doing the turn-ins. In addition, the only adhesive I’m using in this video is wheat flour paste. The paste has a very long working time, which means I can perform all the various operations required without the stress of the glue setting up before I’m ready. It also helps to soften the leather, which helps it mold to the many contours of the binding. When dry the paste is extremely strong, and what’s more, it is an entirely appropriate medieval adhesive, so I think it’s fitting. I make the paste myself with this simple recipe: Wheat Flour Paste 2 tbsp (18 g) white flour (strong flour or bread flour preferred) 1 cup (250 ml) water Combine the flour and water in a double boiler or bain-marie and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, whisking constantly until thick and smooth. Transfer to a clean jar and cool completely. When cooled the paste should be solid, with a jelly-like consistency. Force the cooled paste through a sieve 2-3 times until smooth. Add a bit of water to thin to the desired consistency if necessary. Store in the refrigerator and use within 2-3 days. In the next episode I will be hand-crafting all of the brass hardware for the book, so do consider subscribing and activating your notifications so you won’t miss out! And if you’re new here or have missed any of the earlier installments in this series, you can find them here: Part 1 - Folding Pages, Endpapers, Piercing & Sewing: Part 2 - Trimming & Rounding, Edge Decoration, Sewing Endbands: Part 3 - Wooden Boards, Carving & Mortising, Attaching the Covers: Thanks for watching! ________ List of Materials Used in This Episode Veg-tanned Goatskin Leather - 1 mm Wheat Flour Paste Water List of Tools Used in This Episode Stainless Steel rulers, various sizes Stanley Knife Paring Knife Double-Sided Leather Strop Green Honing Compound - .5 micron Paring Stone White Pencil Black Marker Natural Sponge Paste Brush Laying Press with Tying-Up Peg attachments Bone Folder String A Soft Cloth Various bits of scrap card / waste paper Scissors Micro Spatula A Brick Blotting Paper / Release Paper Pressing Boards Selected list of Suppliers (Not affiliated) Woodworking / General Tools: Lee Valley Tools - Bookbinding Tools & Materials: George Hill & Co. - Writing Materials: Wonder Pens - ________ You can now buy me a coffee here: Or you can drop a tip in my PayPal account: Four Keys Book Arts marbled papers and handmade books are available for sale in my Etsy shop, with worldwide shipping available: Follow me on social media: Instagram Facebook All original works of art in this video are copyrighted exclusively by Four Keys Book Arts. Music Credits: ’Yonder Hill And Dale’ by Aaron Kenny - ’A Song Without A Name’ by Poor Inked Endings - Listen to and support Poor Inked Endings here: Image Source Bibliography: ’Fig. 21: Mediæval Book-Binding’, from ’Gately’s World’s Progress’, Edited by C. E. Beale. Édition de luxe, Boston : Gately & Co, 1886, p. 283. ’Fig. 8: ’Travail de la Reliure’, from ’Procédés de la gravure (Nouv. éd)’, Lostalot, Alfred de, A Quantin, Paris, 1882. p. 26. #bookbinding #fourkeysbookarts #handmadebooks #medievalbook