16/02/2023
It had been a while since a clean run of books had been possible, so I decided to film one of the processes.
Filming one's own work is always awkward - I seem to forget actions I've done a hundred times before. In this particular video, I was more concerned about the integrity of the process itself. This is the first part of building up a stiff end-paper - it is simply tipping on the end-paper with Ph neutral PVA. After working with wheat paste for several months, it felt like this process should require more careful positioning. But this is how I used to tip on card with PVA and it was never an issue. And that trust proved right. By the time the books were weighted for an hour I could see that each end paper had sealed up far better than I thought possible. That said, it helps to have a few things like the heavy blocks in the workshop. These ones were made especially from spotted gum by MS Wood.
