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My first attempt at rounding a spine was with a soup can and a prayer
About two years ago, I was trying to round the spine on a thick journal and didn't have a proper backing hammer. I grabbed a full can of tomato soup from my kitchen, wrapped it in a towel, and tried to gently pound the signatures into shape... it mostly just made a weird dent and sprayed a little soup juice on my text block. I finally bought a proper bone folder and learned the slow, careful burnishing method from a workshop in Portland. Has anyone else tried a truly ridiculous 'tool' before getting the right one?
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the_wesley25d ago
My worst was trying to use a rolling pin on a cookbook rebind. Flour everywhere and a totally flat spine. That Portland workshop saved me too, the instructor showed us how to use a simple wooden dowel. What workshop did you take?
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the_elliot25d ago
Honestly it's a whole life thing, not just bookbinding. We all try to use a soup can before we find the dowel. Like using a butter knife as a screwdriver and stripping the head, or trying to cut your own hair with craft scissors. There's this weird phase where you're committed enough to start a project but not committed enough to get the right tool. You just hope force and a prayer will make it work.
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mason_fisher25d ago
Man you are so right. I once tried to smooth book cloth with a cold soda can because I couldn't find my bone folder. Left weird ring marks on everything. Another time I used a textbook as a weight and it left the cover pattern imprinted on my pages. That phase of just making do is so real and so messy. What was your soup can moment?
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