About Us
ABout us
Chaz & Katie Ross
We are a husband-and-wife team who bind and create each of
our books by hand. From handsewn signatures to handmade paste papers, slipcases and clamshells, our goal is to bring classic works of literature from our workshop
to your library.
Scroll through the pictures below for a closer look at our process:
design process
Formatting
One of the very first steps is formatting raw text into a digital layout. A lot of tough decisions are made early on. What type of font will we use, what images to include, writing a foreword for the edition and the size of the text block. We also lay out the text into 12 or 16 page signatures, so as not to leave too many blank pages at the end of the book. Our limitation page also has to be finalized, meaning the overall design and materials must be decided and locked in.
design process
Outward Design
As mentioned above, the limitation page in each edition is locked by the time the files are sent to the printer. Listed on that page are all the details for each state of the title. So early on, outward design elements have to be decided. What color of leather, the type of hide, where can it be sourced, shipping time and which supplier delivers the best quality. That's just considering the leather.
Also considered are the myriad of other supplies needed. End page papers, headbands, type of paper to print the text block, book board, slipcase and clamshell designs, etc.
The leather pictured, was delivered last year. It was to be used for our "In Our Time" edition. It wasn't up to snuff in our eyes, so we had to scramble to find better quality hides.
Yeah, the design process is a lot.
binding process
Preparing Signatures
Once the signatures are delivered from the printer, we can finally get to work on binding!
It's such a good feeling to be finished with design and digital layout.
Each signature is folded by hand, either with fingers or a bone folder.
binding process
Prepping for Thread
After we have folded all of the signatures, we next use an awl to puncture multiple holes into each signature by hand. They have to be precise as their location will determine how the signatures line up when sewn. We use a pattern to help us know exactly where to punch each hole.
Fun fact: In the 1800's and earlier, all books were sewn by hand. Many of the workers were so accurate that they would skip this step and perfectly sew each signature around the tapes.
binding process
Sewing Signatures
Once the holes have been punched, we start sewing. Book thread that has been waxed is used to help the thread more easily slide.
There's a bit of a learning curve. Pull too tightly and the thread rips through the paper. (Nooooo!!!!) Don't pull tight enough and your book is not bound well.
When your length of thread runs out, you use a special book binding knot to add to the length. We like to tie the knot on the outside of the signature, hiding it from view.
binding process
More Sewing...
Sewing by hand takes a long time. It may be one of the longest steps in the entire process. But it is worth the extra effort!
A hand sewn book opens beautifully when finished. It is a strong durable binding and will last for many years.
Katie and I like to put on an audiobook or podcast to keep our minds occupied. After a few days of only sewing, it can get a little monotonous.
In the picture, you can see the knots where the length of thread ran out and more was added.
binding process
Sewn On Endpages
We like to not only sew the signatures together, but also to sew on the endpages of each book.
Many books, even hand sewn ones, simply have the endpages tipped on. That means a bead of glue is spread down the edge of each endpage and pressed to the book block.
Sewing on the endpages adds a nice extra bit of strength to the binding and we think it looks nice too.
binding process
Rounding & Backing
From here, the text block is rounded with a book binder's hammer. It feels counter-intuitive to take a text block you've been treating so delicately and now pinching it in a finishing press and hitting it with a hammer. But "you gotta crack some eggs to make an omelet", right? Honestly, you're not hitting it too hard, but you can definitely mess up if not careful... or if too careful. Good ol' book binding.
We add the "scrum" to the spine, which adds a good bit of stabilization to the binding. Also, the headbands are added. at this point.
binding process
Hand Sewn Headbands
Some of our Lettered Editions feature hand sewn headbands. It is an hours long process that involves looping and stitching satin thread over a leather core. The headband itself is made up of the width of a thread repeated over and over until it has reached the width of the text block.
When you've finally finished one, you flip the book over and repeat the process on the other side. This step adds hours to the production of each book.
I usually give in after a few books. But luckily, Katie loves this step. She's better at it anyway.
cover process
Leather Prep
Now we leave the text block for the next few steps and work on construction the cover of the book. The steps involved vary depending on the materials used.
When using leather, each panel (either full or half) is cut from the goat/sheep/calf skin and pared around the edges. This involves using a very sharp blade to cut the edge at an angle. Doing so leaves a nice finished look when it is pasted to the book board.
Getting the size of the cover right involves a bit of tricky math and triple measuring. We also emboss the spines before casing the text block in to the cover.
cover process
Making Paste Paper
Each of our paste papers is made by hand. It starts with our making our own wheat paste (with just a touch of Clove for longevity). The paste is mixed with paint to the desired color and then brushed on to the paper.
Katie is also the master of paste paper. (Wait, do I actually do anything in making these books?...) She'll spend an entire day brushing, drying and pressing these papers. They're spread all around the house overnight and then ready to be used by morning.
Cover process
Leather Work
Leather is an actual, honest to goodness pleasure to work with. The smell, the feel, the malleability, it's simply the best.
There is also a terrible, constant danger of ruining it at any given second. There are a lot of little things you need to know about leather before you start cutting into a high grade hide. Just one thing that we've learned is the need to wet down the outside of the hide before putting paste on the inside. This allows the ouside to dry at the same rate as the inside and keeps the paste from seeping through and leaving big splotches on the outside of your finished book.
In the picture you can see big spots on the outside of the leather I'm working on. That is the water I applied before applying the paste. After this book was left overnight, it dried beautifully, without any spotting.
The bands on the spine of this edition are made from leather lace. The goat skin is stretched over them which leaves the raised hubs.
Final conclusion: Leather is the best. But don't mess it up.
cover process
Spine Labels & Casing In
There are a variety of spine labels used in book binding. Some are printed on beautiful, textured paper. Others are embossed to a leather tag or directly onto the book spine.
For the pictured edition, we used the suede side of the leather hides to emboss the titles. After a bit of trimming, they're ready to attach to the book spines.
From there, the text blocks are cased in to the finished covers.
slipcase and clamshell process
Slipcase & Clamshell Production
Slipcases and Clamshells are both made with a similar process. They start out as a stack of book board. Then the puzzle begins.
clamshell process
Building Trays
After being cut, the boards are pieced together into two sizes of trays. The smaller tray needs to fit inside of the larger tray when the clamshell closes. Also, there must be enough space between the nested trays for the width of the covering material. These are definitely tricky the first few times.
Clamshell Processing
Covering Trays
Each tray is covered with book cloth around the tray walls and the bed of the tray is lined with suede. Both are attached to a Folio, which forms the outside of the clamshell.
clamshell process
Finishing Touches
After gluing the various clamshell pieces together, we make a thorough quality check of our work.
One special feature we like to add in the construction of our clamshell cases is that of a center strip of book board. In the picture you can see Katie cleaning around it with the toothbrush. This piece actually acts as the fourth side of the box to the smaller tray on the right. When the clamshell is closed, the book becomes completely protected on all four sides. When the clamshell is opened, the fourth side drops down with the center of the clamshell and allows for easy removal of the book.
shipping
Ready to Ship
We take extra care in packaging our books to be shipped. As you've seen throughout the above pictures, each handmade book has hours of work put into it. It would be an absolute shame for it to be damaged in transit due to underwhelming packaging.
With this in mind, each of our books is very well packaged, wrapped in extra bubble wrap and packaging paper and comes double boxed.
Thank You!
As you can see, we take a lot of pride in our process. Thank you for spending time with us and if you choose to support our press, we can't wait to hear what you think of your books!
Here are a few reviews:
“I can't get over how beautiful they are -- such care in production and such sublime taste in the design. I will treasure them.” - Mark
“I mean, the books looked gorgeous in the photos you had sent but I wasn't really prepared for the kinds of art objects they would be in their own right. Just beautiful.” - Michael
“It was a real treat to unbox these! Even more so to hold the editions in my hands and feel and see the exquisite beauty and hard work up close. I cannot wait to spend some quiet time reading and enjoying them.” - Kevin
Our Domestic Footprint
In just the past year, we have already shipped or received orders from across the USA.
Nineteen states and counting! (highlighted in red)
Our International Footprint
We are also excited to see the Press gaining supporters abroad. Copies of our editions have been sent or ordered across nine countries.
Australia, Canada, France, Hong Kong (SAR), Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, the United Kingdom & the United States.