Finally hit 100 hand-bound books and it shook me

I've been binding books in my garage in Austin for about 4 years now, mostly as a side thing. Last week I finished my 100th book, a rebind of an old copy of Moby Dick with a leather spine. It hit me because I always thought I'd get bored after 50, but instead I'm already planning the next 100. Anyone else have a number that made them stop and rethink their whole approach?

2 comments

2 Comments

andrew_sanchez946d ago

Have you ever noticed how the spine on a finished book can look totally different in direct sunlight versus lamplight? I swear, my garage has terrible lighting for this stuff, I once spent two hours on a leather spine only to realize the next morning it was basically brown, not the dark burgundy I thought I'd nailed. It is wild how small details like that can make you rethink everything about your setup, not just the numbers.

rubybarnes5d agoMost Upvoted

Oh man, I've been there. Nothing like the sunrise reveal to make you question every life choice you've ever made. My "midnight black" spine turned out to be a weird eggplant purple in the morning light. I guess the lesson is either invest in a proper daylight lamp or just embrace the chaos and never look at your work again after dark. But honestly, half the fun is realizing you accidentally created something totally different than what you planned, right?