Pre-sewn journal bookblocks from Hollander's

[escribo]

Here's the link.

Pre-sewn, with spine reinforcement, ready to case.

Their site doesn't say much about them, such as:

- paper thickness

- paper surface (toothy/smooth)

- fountain pen friendly?

- - feather

- - bleedthrough

- lie-flat?

etc.

 

Just wondering if anyone has any experience with these journals?

Thinking about placing an order with them anyway for some other

stuff, so for $6.75 may just have 'em throw one in. (I kinda hate

sewing, though it allows you to use the exact paper you want.)

 

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

-jon

[inkypete]

What an interesting site - thanks Abide. Will be most interested to find out more about the paper stock and its FP compatibility. Keep us informed. Maybe if you email them they will send you a sample to test.

[escribo]

What an interesting site - thanks Abide.

Yes, isn't it? I've been impressed by some handmade journals/notebooks

I've seen here, so I have decided to give it a whirl. So far I've made two,

one finished and one finished today, still being pressed/drying.

If you're the obsessive/compulsive type (and what FP collector isn't?),

whatever you do, don't google bookbinding, if you're at all handy!

-j

[escribo]

Or can anyone suggest a very FP-friendly pre-sewn bookblock,

preferably coptic-stitched (open-flat)?

thx

-j

[ArPharazon]

Hollander's is an awesome store. I'm lucky enough to live pretty close to Ann Arbor and drive there occasionally to pick up supplies. I never thought I could be enthralled by racks and shelves full of large format paper . . . but I am! Not to mention the cool miscellaneous stuff like binding tools, threads, ribbons, coverboards, etc. It's also surprising how busy they always are for a place that sells such 'specialty' items.

 

From conversations I've had at work, I think a lot of people view them as a high end wrapping paper store. I suppose that's one good use for their wares . . .

 

Unfortunately I've never investigated their pre-sewn bookblocks . . .

[Aslan]

A fascinating site! Just what I need, another obsession hobby.

 

 

[escribo]

A fascinating site! Just what I need, another obsession hobby.

Glad I could help. :roflmho:

[TMLee]

Hollander's is an awesome store. I'm lucky enough to live pretty close to Ann Arbor and drive there occasionally to pick up supplies. I never thought I could be enthralled by racks and shelves full of large format paper . . . but I am! Not to mention the cool miscellaneous stuff like binding tools, threads, ribbons, coverboards, etc. It's also surprising how busy they always are for a place that sells such 'specialty' items.

 

From conversations I've had at work, I think a lot of people view them as a high end wrapping paper store. I suppose that's one good use for their wares . . .

 

Unfortunately I've never investigated their pre-sewn bookblocks . . .

 

 

Hi A ... ,

I am unable to find a leather paring knife where I live.

I have been trying veryhard to pare down the leather which I have with poor substitute tools.

 

Have you used one before?

Especially the English Leather Paring knife from Hollanders.

Won't it be painful to use , seeing it doesn't have a wooden handle?

Considering ordering online from Hollanders.

 

You are so lucky to live near Hollanders with all the bookbinding materials available.

 

rgds

TMLee

 

 

 

 

[escribo]

TMLee! I watched you go from making simple leather-cased notebooks

(like the first ones I made) to Meister status here. Very impressive!

After I go back and study that thread, I might have umm... a few hundred

questions to ask, if you don't mind.

Regards,

-jon

Edited December 16, 2008 by escribo

[ArPharazon]

Hi A ... ,

I am unable to find a leather paring knife where I live.

I have been trying veryhard to pare down the leather which I have with poor substitute tools.

 

Have you used one before?

Especially the English Leather Paring knife from Hollanders.

Won't it be painful to use , seeing it doesn't have a wooden handle?

Considering ordering online from Hollanders.

 

Interesting . . . I should have figured that such a tool existed!

 

I have never used one. Instead I use a plain old X-Acto knife with one of the blades in the pic below . . . mostly the bottom left, but also the rounded one above that.

 

http://p.office1000.com/mrp/X11HUN.jpg

 

I have a leather strop and some jeweler's rouge to keep them sharp, but after a while I just replace them. Most of the leather I use is pretty thin so I do very little paring. On the thicker faux croc leather I used, I did pare down a bit more, but the X-Actos did the trick.

 

It was not easy, but it worked.

 

 

[TMLee]

TMLee! I watched you go from making simple leather-cased notebooks

(like the first ones I made) to Meister status here. Very impressive!

After I go back and study that thread, I might have umm... a few hundred

questions to ask, if you don't mind.

Regards,

-jon

 

Tks Jon for yr encouragement. You're too kind with yr words. There are real bookbinders here in our midst.

I am just learning as I make mistakes along the way as is evident in that thread.

 

Sure you can ask all you want. My ways may elicit frowns from qualified practitioners here though.

My journal making grew out of a basic need for journals that work, thats all.

 

Rgds

[TMLee]

Hi A ... ,

I am unable to find a leather paring knife where I live.

I have been trying veryhard to pare down the leather which I have with poor substitute tools.

 

Have you used one before?

Especially the English Leather Paring knife from Hollanders.

Won't it be painful to use , seeing it doesn't have a wooden handle?

Considering ordering online from Hollanders.

 

Interesting . . . I should have figured that such a tool existed!

 

I have never used one. Instead I use a plain old X-Acto knife with one of the blades in the pic below . . . mostly the bottom left, but also the rounded one above that.

 

http://p.office1000.com/mrp/X11HUN.jpg

 

I have a leather strop and some jeweler's rouge to keep them sharp, but after a while I just replace them. Most of the leather I use is pretty thin so I do very little paring. On the thicker faux croc leather I used, I did pare down a bit more, but the X-Actos did the trick.

 

It was not easy, but it worked.

 

Hi A,

I have those X-acto blades.

Nope , I don't think they'll work. Too small, too short, not enuf flex.

Haven't tried but I am quite sure they won't work.

I am using a Stanley scraper that holds a razor blade.

Its the closest thing to a paring knife I can get my hands on here.

There's not enuf flex to allow me to skive properly.

The sharp corners of th erazor blades constantly snags the leather and can sometimes cause significant damage.

I overcame that by rounding out the corners though.

Took me a long time to pare down a 1mm thick leather just for an A6 journal which is close to completion now. Even so , its not perfect.

Will post soon.

 

Tks & rgds

 

 

 

 

 

 

[hexyr]

Hi TMLee,

 

I never had a problem using an English pairing knife. No pain even though there is no handle. I have 2 or 3 of them.

 

Good Luck with the binding

[TMLee]

Hi TMLee,

 

I never had a problem using an English pairing knife. No pain even though there is no handle. I have 2 or 3 of them.

 

Good Luck with the binding

 

 

 

Hmmm ... how does one hold it ?

Can u post a pic ?

 

 

 

[Vulcan1066]

Most interesting site. Thanks for posting the link.