RSS Feed

Posts Tagged ‘leather’

  1. Bookbinder of the Month: Edgar Mansfield

    November 11, 2012 by Erin Fletcher

    I wish this image were in color, it’s a really striking design; the marks are almost sketch-like appearing at random to build a dimensional landscape. Thirstland Treks by Carel Birkby was printed by Faber and Faber in 1936 and this copy was bound by Edgar Mansfield in 1948. Covered in a native dyed yellow-brown morocco skin with slight creasing in the grain. The tooling is a combination of light and dark blind with a small amount of gold on the cover and spine.

    This is the first experiment with using the grain as an active and expressive element in the design.

    Reference: Modern Design in Bookbinding: The Work of Edgar Mansfield, pg. 27

  2. Bookbinder of the Month: Edgar Mansfield

    November 4, 2012 by Erin Fletcher

    Throughout Edgar Mansfield’s career as a bookbinder, he bound several copies of Victor Gollancz’s Through the Woods. Twelve of them are represented in The Work of Edgar Mansfield. The binding in the first image was bound in 1958; covered in a native tanned natural morocco with brown markings (both natural and added by Mansfield). The grain creases were induced during covering. All tooling is blind, with inlays of rust-red, greens and chrome yellow.

    left side: Bound in 1959 in a native dyed red morocco. The inlaid design spans over four levels built into the cover; inlay leather of chrome yellow, warm black, stone, neutralised green, natural and lemon yellow. All tooling in blind.

    right side: Bound in 1959 in a native tanned natural morocco with natural markings. The grain was creased during covering. All tooling in blind; the solid areas are built up with a short pallet to produce tonal and textural variations.

    left side: Bound in 1960 in a native tanned natural morocco. Inlaid design spans over three levels built into the cover; inlay leather of white, yellows, orange, browns and greens. Tooling in green and blind.

    right side: Bound in 1960 in a native tanned natural morocco with creases added to the grain while covering. Brown staining was added to the areas of the leather built up. Recessed inlays in yellow, red, white, black, grey and green. Tooling in light and dark blind.

  3. Bookbinder of the Month: Rose Adler

    October 28, 2012 by Erin Fletcher

    Bound in full black calf is this 1927 edition of Auguste de Villiers de L’Isle-Adam’s Trois contes cruels with illustrations by Jean-Emile Laboureur.  Rose Adler created the design for the binding in 1929, which was then executed by Emmanuel Lecarpentier. The scroll design is created with ivory and beige calf onlays with a purple calf line onlay running behind and roundels are tooled in solid gilt. Title is tooled in aluminum, inlays of purple calf and gilt tooling, author’s name and title tooled in gilt on the spine. Doublures in beige calf with a pattern of black and purple calf at the bottom where Rose Adler’s signature can be found. Endleaves of alternating purple and aluminum watered silk; second endleaves of glazed aluminum paper. 

    The design is representative of the geometric focus of the first period of the Art Deco era. The design is quite striking, the roundels and descending title create a perfect balance along either side of the scroll.  

    Check out Art Deco Bookbindings: The Work of Pierre Legrain and Rose Adler for more of Rose Adler’s work.  

  4. Bookbinder of the Month: Rose Adler

    October 21, 2012 by Erin Fletcher

    Simulacre, a surrealist novella by Michel Leiris with illustration by French artist André Masson was printed in 1925. The binding was designed by Rose Adler and executed by Emmanuel Lecarpentier in 1927. Bound in full black calf with an inlay of cabochon of agate capping off a semi-oval of coral-pink crocodile set within an aluminum fillet. Title on the spine overlaps an inlay of red calf, tooled with aluminum on the black and black on the red. 

    The edges are gilt in aluminum, full leather doublures lacquered in gilt with endleaves of black watered silk. This is an impeccable binding, the vast negative space is perfectly balance against the bold and highly textured crocodile skin.

  5. Bookbinder of the Month: Rose Adler

    October 14, 2012 by Erin Fletcher

    In 1930, Rose Adler created this design for Francis de Croisset’s Aux fétes de Kapurthala, the binding was executed by Emmanuel Lecarpentier for Jacque Doucet’s collection. Bound in citron calf, the front cover has an inlay of cabochon of chrysoprase topped with a patterned band of black and ivory calf outlined in a gold gilt fillet, at the base of the cover is an inlay of black calf. The title and author’s name has been tooled blind along the spine. Edges are gilt with aluminum. Doublures of ivory calf line the inside of each board paired with black watered silk flyleaves.  

    The book is housed in a wrapper and slipcase decorated with black, orange and gold paper, bordered with citron calf. The wrapper doublure is done with almond-green, hard-grained leather.

  6. Bookbinder of the Month: Rose Adler

    October 7, 2012 by Erin Fletcher

    In 1918, this copy of Guillaume Apollinaire’s Calligrammes: Poémes de la paix et de la guerre was printed with an original etching by Pablo Picasso (engraved by René Jaudon) and an original drawing by René Jaudon. In 1925, Rose Adler created the design and the binding was executed by Adolphe Cuzin for Jacques Doucet’s collection.

    Bound in ivory calfskin with overlapping inlays of black calf and beige goatskin. All tooling on cover and gilding on the edges has been done in aluminum. The turn-ins are ivory calf embellished with aluminum fillets bordering an inlay panel of black calf with a mosaic of beige goatskin. The fly leaf is silver lamé (fabric woven or knit with thin ribbons of metallic threads). The binding is housed in a wrapper and slipcase of aluminum paper framed by red and black calf.  The title and author’s name are tooled over three inlays of beige goatskin in aluminum over a black spine.

  7. Bookbinder of the Month: Sybil Pye

    September 30, 2012 by Erin Fletcher

    Even though this book is more heavily tooled then her other bindings, she keeps to the same rhythm of repeating her signature tools in order to create the design.  The same tool is used in each corner and lines are used to break up the already complex design. This edition of Francois Villon’s Ballades and Miscellaneous Poems was printed in 1900 by the Eragny Press and bound by Sybil in 1928.  Covered in red goatskin over 5 raised bands, the design also includes onlays of green and natural goatskin. This book can be seen in detail online at the British Library.

  8. Bookbinder of the Month: Sybil Pye

    September 23, 2012 by Erin Fletcher

    Another edition of Thomas Sturge Moore’s The Little School, this copy was also printed by Eragny Press in 1905 (but on paper instead of vellum).  Unlike last week’s binding, Sybil didn’t bind this edition until 1940, much later in her career.  Covered in a turquoise goatskin with inlays of jade-green, light red, black and natural goatskin. Again you find the familiar shapes gilt in gold, anchoring the corners with the fat “o” tool, repetition in the stacking of the rounded triangle, and lines that run the full height of the book.

  9. Bookbinder of the Month: Sybil Pye

    September 16, 2012 by Erin Fletcher

    Sybil Pye was a long-term companion to artist and poet Thomas Sturge Moore and throughout her career bound several copies of his book of poetry The Little School. This copy was printed on vellum by Eragny Press in 1905 and bound by Sybil in 1916. Covered in green goatskin with inlays of vellum and gold tooled with her familiar brass tools. Marianne Tidcombe’s Women Bookbinder 1880-1920 gives ownership to the Wormsley Library, but you can view this binding on the British Library’s online catalogue. 

  10. Bookbinder of the Month: Sybil Pye

    September 9, 2012 by Erin Fletcher

    The British Library houses an immense collection of bookbindings. But if you can’t make it to London you can view incredibly detailed scans of their collection online. This binding of Sir Thomas Browne’s Religio Medici, Urn Burial, Christian Morals and other essays was bound by Sybil Pye in 1940 and is owned by the British Library. Only the upper cover has been digitized, but we can see the book was bound in a black goatskin with 5 raised bands on the spine. The design on the cover has been implemented with onlays in a fair goat and tooled in gold with her signature brass tools. 

Older Entries
Newer Entries
  • My name is Erin Fletcher, owner and bookbinder of Herringbone Bindery in Boston. Flash of the Hand is a space where I share my process and inspirations.
    The StudioNewsletterInstagramEmail me
  • Archives