a-gay-old-time

[a-gay-old-time]

I decided months back that when we eloped I wanted to give B a hand-bound book of poetry and journal entries I’d written about him from the beginning of our relationship until now, ending with my vows. @a-gay-old-time helped me make this desire a reality and executed it with so much care and attention to detail. It is perfection from the color scheme to the ocean/anchor motif. I am enraptured and I hope B loves it as much as I do.

#omg the sweetest update ever 💕

[a-gay-old-time]

so, you wanted to start bookbinding?

so @princetofbone mentioned on my post for "factory settings" about wanting to know more about the binding style that i used for it. so i thought i might make a post about it.

i was as terrible as i always am for taking in progress shots, but i can link you to the resources i used in order to make my book. i would also like to point out that "factory settings" is my 120th bind, and i have been doing bookbinding as a hobby for just over 3 years now. unfortunately this means some of the methods that i used for that bind aren't particularly beginner friendly, just in terms of the tools and methods i have used, but i would love to point you in the right direction when it comes to resources. i dont say this to sound pretentious which i fear i might come across, just so that youre fully informed. getting into this hobby is fun and rewarding, but it can definitely be intimidating.

with that caveat, heres a list of links and resources that i have used for bookbinding in general, with additional links to methods i used specifically in regards to this bind.

ASH's how to make a book document. it gives you a great introduction into typesetting fics (where you format the text of fics to look like a traditionally published books) and then turning them into a case-bound book (the style i used for "factory settings"). it is comprehensive, and explains how to use microsoft word to do your bidding. it was invaluable to me when i was just starting out! currently i use affinity publisher to typeset/format my fics for printing, but i only bought and learned how to use that after i had been binding books for a year and a half. i made some beautiful typesets with word, and some of my close friends use it still and design stuff that i never would be able to in my wildest dreams (basically anything by @no-name-publishing)

DAS Bookbinding's Square Back Bradel Binding. a great style to do your first bind in! this method requires, when making the case, to attach the cover board and the spine board to a connecting piece of paper, which makes it so much easier to match the size of the case to the size of the text block (your printed out and sewn fic). using this method is what allowed me to get much more accurately fitting cases, and made me much more confident with the construction of the books i was making. a well-made book is something that is so wonderful to hold in your hands!

DAS Bookbinding's Rounded and Backed Cased Book. This is the specific method that i used to create my bind for "factory settings"! even before i could back my books, i found that watching DAS's videos in particular helped me see how books were traditionally made, and i was able to see different tips and tricks about how to make nicer books.

Book Edge Trimming Without... i trim the edges of my text block using my finishing press and a chisel i have sharpened using a whetstone and leather strop with buffing compound on it. i follow the method for trimming shown in this video!

Made Endpapers. i follow this method for my endpapers, as i used handmade lokta endpapers, and they can be quite thin, but they look beautiful! i used "tipped on" endpapers (where you have your endpaper and then put a thin strip of glue on the edge and attach it to your text block) i used for a very long time before this, but these feel like they are much more stable, as they are sewn with your text block.

Edge Sprinkling. this is the method that i used for decorating the edges of my text block. but the principle is basically clamping your text block tight and then sprinkling the edges. i do not believe you need to trim the edges in order to do sprinkles on the edges, and that's what makes it accessible! i personally just use really cheap acrylic paint that i water down and then flick it onto the edges with my thumb and a paint brush.

Double-Core Endbands. i sew my own endbands, which i followed this tutorial for. that being said, it's kind of confusing, and this video is a bit easier to follow, but it is a slightly different type of endband.

Case decoration. i used my silhouette cameo 4 to cut out my design for "factory settings" in htv (heat transfer vinyl). i also used my cameo 4 to cut out the oval of marbled paper on the front, as i honestly didn't want to try my hand at cutting an oval lol. i also glued some 300 gsm card with an oval cut out of the centre of it onto the cover before covering it with bookcloth, to get a kind of recess on the cover. i then glued the oval of marbled paper onto the top of the recessed area once it was covered with bookcloth, so that it was protected. the images i used were sourced from a mix of rawpixel, canva and pixabay. a more accessible way to get into cover decoration is by painting on a design for your cover as described in @a-gay-old-time's tutorial just here. or even doing paper labels, which look classy imo.

physical materials. sourcing these will depend on your country. i am located in australia, and have compiled a list with some other aussie bookbinders of places to buy from. here is a great post describing beginning materials for getting started binding.

@renegadepublishing. this tumblr is great! its what got me started bookbinding, and being in the discord has been inspiring, motivating, and honestly just one of the best online experiences i have ever had. it is full of resources, and most people in there are amateur bookbinders, with a couple of professionals thrown in. the discord is 18+, and anyone can join!

i'm sorry this post got so long, but i hope that this has a lot of information for you if you would like to get started bookbinding. its one of the best hobbies ive ever had, and i genuinely believe i will have it for the rest of my life.

#great resource #fanbinding #bookbinding

[a-gay-old-time]

I was so honored to get the chance to do this! And I had so much fun with my first quarto book—I’ll definitely be doing more of these little guys in the future!

I decided months back that when we eloped I wanted to give B a hand-bound book of poetry and journal entries I’d written about him from the beginning of our relationship until now, ending with my vows. @a-gay-old-time helped me make this desire a reality and executed it with so much care and attention to detail. It is perfection from the color scheme to the ocean/anchor motif. I am enraptured and I hope B loves it as much as I do.

#book binding #thanks for coming to me with the idea #wishing you two all the best!

[a-gay-old-time]

✨🏳️‍⚧️ support rooney's top surgery 🏳️‍⚧️✨

hello friends! have you been thinking to yourself, "wow i'd love to give rooney a birthday present that also gives the middle finger to jkr"? well i have good news for you! you can contribute to rooney's top surgery fund! what better way to say "happy birthday and fuck you, terfs!" than to mobilize our hp fic community to fund gender affirming surgery for our sweetest cinnamon roll @academicdisasterfic!

visit rooney's gofundme page to donate! we're trying to raise £2500!

any donation amount is appreciated!

as a thank you for a donation of £25 you can submit a prompt for one of the following:

a microfic from @lqtraintracks

a microfic from @nv-md

a curated playlist from @lou-ifyouwant

a three card tarot reading from @saintgarbanzo

a microfic from our dearest @academicdisasterfic himself!

AND! a wonderful anonymous member of our community has already pledged to match the first £150 of donations!

this community is a safe haven where so many of us have been able to explore and affirm our queerness. rooney was able to realize and begin his gender journey through the stories we tell here and the support of this community 💙💖🤍💖💙

we thank you from the bottom of our queer little hearts for all your support! 🌈❤️🧡💛💚💙💜🌈 let's do this!

[a-gay-old-time]

I was wondering what kind of paint you use to paint the sides/edges of books because I accidentally got the side of a book dirty and I wanted to paint over it, but idk what paint to use so that the pages don't get messed up.

I googled it and it said acrylic paint but someone said that the pages will get stuck together then be ruined so idk??

I thought I'd ask someone who regularly did it.

hi! i use acrylic ink that’s mixed with quite a bit of water and then i will do multiple layers until i get the opaqueness that i want. specifically i have been using Daler-Rowney acrylic inks and they’ve worked really well for me. when it dries, the pages do stick together a little bit, but fanning through the pages is enough to separate them again and i haven’t run into any issues where it ruins the textblock. i hope this helps and best of luck with your project!

#a gay old resource

[a-gay-old-time]

a bonus video of my binding of The July Tree and Eager for the Sky by @oknowkiss to show off the dos-a-dos-ness of it all!

#bookbinding #fanbinding #ficbinding #drarry

[a-gay-old-time]

The July Tree and Eager for the Sky by @oknowkiss

Including gorgeous art from @short666bread and @upthehillart and art for the endpapers from @babooshkart

One of my New Year’s resolutions this year was to mix things up and try new things with my bindings this year. I’ve been intrigued with dos-a-dos bindings since I started making books, but I only recently felt like I had enough knowledge and experience to try it out. As soon as I finished reading The July Tree and Eager for the Sky, I knew that these two incredible works were perfect for this type of binding. Dos-a-dos means back-to-back, and I read these stories for the first time back-to-back in the span of a couple of days. They were two of my favorite reads from last year, and they complement each other brilliantly. And I was thrilled to get to make something for E, and even more thrilled to learn that this week was their fandom anniversary so the timing of this binding ended up being really special!

As always, a massive thank you to the incredible artists who were kind enough to let me include their amazing art in this binding! And the biggest shout-out to the lovely Boo who helped me out with some art for the endpapers as a quick fix-it for when I discovered that the glue had bled through and discolored them near the hinges. The art on the endpapers ended up being one of my favorite parts of the binding, and it’s always really special to get to make things together with her.

I’ll make a separate post with some WIP pics--this binding was a challenge (though in different ways than I had first imagined) but I am so proud of the final result and very happy to have tried something new. Happy fandom anniversary, E! Thanks for sharing your words with the world!

#bookbinding #ficbinding #fanbinding #drarry #E i'm so glad i got to make this for you #thanks for all your patience while i was working on this #i'm so glad it's finally in your hands

[a-gay-old-time]

Some Rambling About My Creative Process

First off, everyone please go read @epitomereally’s post about her creative process! Kate, thank you for tagging me and for you very kind words! Your books are always so thoughtfully crafted, and it was so amazing to see a little glimpse of your process! 💕 Kate tagged me to share a little bit about how I come up with my artistic vision for my bindings, so without further ado:

Sometimes when I am reading a fic, I will have a very clear idea in my mind of how I would want the binding to look like. For example, with Among Ancient Pines, I could see exactly what I wanted the cover to look like with the northern lights and I knew that I wanted the edges to be speckled to look like a starry/snowy sky. This is both a blessing and a curse--when I have a clear image, that’s when I feel the most excited about a project. However, I often feel more stressed out about bringing the idea to life because I know exactly how I want it to look in my head. 

This kind of inspiration doesn’t happen all (or even most) of the time. Usually when I pick my next project, I will spend some time thinking about any particular themes or imagery that stood out to me from the work (e.g., the porcelain pattern for what husbands are for, the celestial imagery for Loverboys, the ship and water for @the-sinking-ship‘s anthology). Once I’ve picked those out, I think about what colors I associate with the fic. If there’s art for the fic that I am including in the binding, I’ll sometimes try to pick colors that go well with the art. And once I’ve decided on that, my next step is to choose bookcloth and paper for the endpapers that tie into the colors and imagery I’ve picked. Finding the right paper and bookcloth for the binding is usually when it all starts coming together for me and when I can start to imagine what the final book will look like. I start to think about the little details for the binding--what color the bookmark ribbon will be, what the bookmark charms will look like, what colors to use for edge speckling, etc. At this point, I’ll also usually think about what I want the cover to look like and will make a little sticky note rough sketch for safe-keeping of the idea. All of this usually happens in a short period of time where I sit down and plan and cannot stop until I have thought through all of these things because I get too excited about the project and can’t turn my brain off until everything is down on paper and planned out.

Next comes typesetting! I usually don’t change too much about the body font/style from book to book. I do try to find a title font that goes with the feel of the binding, as well as section breaks that tie into the imagery I’ve chosen. And I will often try to spice up the title page with some stock art/images that go along with that imagery as well. Sometimes the lovely and generous @babooshkart will offer to draw art for the title page or chapter headings for me, and we’ll brainstorm about what we want those to look like. I do want to try to be more creative with typesetting in the future after seeing what so many other brilliant people have done with theirs (@clovenhoofbindery‘s are always such an inspiration).

Much like Kate, I get so much inspiration from other ficbinders. The show-off-book channel in @renegadepublishing’s discord is a never-ending source of amazing books to get inspired by. I often see elements in others’ books that I get excited to try to incorporate into my own bindings. @pleasantboatpress recently did a springback book and a cutout on the cover and I am planning to do both of those in future bindings (also manda’s headbands are always so gorgeous and I just need to work up the nerve to try sewing my own headbands someday soon). Kate, this binding of yours has inspired me to try dying bookcloth for one of my next books. I am really grateful to be a part of such a creative and encouraging community of people and it’s always so exciting to see what everyone is making!

#a-gay-old-resource #i don't know if this counts as a resource but oh well #there are truly so many incredibly talented people making gorgeous books out there #and i am over here making heart eyes at all of them

[a-gay-old-time]

Kept in Cages by @sweet-s0rr0w

with gorgeous art by @ihopeyoubothstaysafefromharm and art for the cover by the ever-lovely @babooshkart

This wonderful story was part of 2022′s HD Wireless fest, and it’s been one of the few times where I was able to recognize a specific author’s work while the fic was still anonymous. The world of this fic is so fully-realized and detailed--I adored Draco as a magi-zoologist and getting to learn about all of the creatures in his care. The alternating POVs worked so well in creating tension and developing both Harry and Draco and their relationship to each other--I love some good angsty pining and getting it from both of their perspectives was delicious. This fic was one of my favorites from last year and it’s been such a joy to have gotten to know Sweet through fandom over the last year as well!

And speaking of joy, you can’t talk about this fic without talking about the incredible sixteen pieces of art that Joy made for this story! They are absolutely breathtaking and evocative and bring this story to such vivid, beautiful life. This binding was inspired by a lot of the imagery found in Joy’s art--the red string of fate on the cover and the title page art are both nods to Joy’s works.

I was once again blessed with cover art from the generous and amazingly talented Boo! It’s always such a wonderful thing to get to work with her on bindings! This binding was the first time in a while that I’ve bound a fic long enough to have to round and back the textblock. I was definitely a little out of practice, though the end result turned out better than I had expected after some mishaps in trimming and backing--I always feel a little better after doing some edge speckling and cover painting. I can’t wait for this binding to join Nor All That Glisters on Sweet’s shelf!

#ficbinding #fanbinding #bookbinding #drarry #sweet thank you for all of your kind words and enthusiasm #they mean the world to me #i love getting to make things for you

[a-gay-old-time]

Mist-Robed Gate by Shreyas Sampat

A gift for a friend and my first stab at Japanese stab binding (pun intended)! They missed the limited-run print edition of this RPG and so I made them their own copy! I decided to try stab binding for this because the pdf wouldn’t allow for easy creation of signatures and stab binding doesn’t require any signatures for sewing. I watched this timelapse to get an idea for how to do a stab binding and then I found some great sewing patterns/tutorials for the spine and chose one that kind of matches the illustrations in the book. This was a really fun little project and I’m really pleased with how it turned out -- especially with how much I was winging this!

#bookbinding

[a-gay-old-time]

may i ask what you used to paint the cover of among ancient pines or how you did it? was it similar to your titling tutorial (with fabric paints?) thanks for your time! 💛

Hi! Thank you for your ask! 

I used the same kind of paints for this cover as I usually do (Jacquard acrylic fabric paints), but the technique was a little different. For this one, I didn’t transfer the images and just adapted a painting tutorial for how to paint northern lights to what I thought would work on bookcloth (mostly this involved ignoring the part of this tutorial where you mist the canvas with water because I didn’t think water + book would work out well, and instead I relied on a slightly damp brush). Essentially I laid a line of white paint down where the bottom of the northern lights would start and then took a damp fluffy brush (I actually used a blush brush) and swiped up along the line of paint in order to smear it upwards to create the northern lights effect. Once the white layer had completely dried, I dipped my brush into a tiny amount of the metallic blue/green paint I was using as the color and dragged it upwards over the white layer. 

This took a lot of practice to get right (see above), and I played around with different colors and techniques and learned a few tips. You want to make sure the white layer is totally dry before you try to go back over it with color, otherwise it lifts off the white layer as you go. You only want to use a very small amount of the colored paint, otherwise it doesn’t let you see the lines of the white through it and ruins the effect. You can also clean up the bottom edge of the northern lights with a damp paper towel while the colored paint is still wet in order to get a nicer edge. Also, I think this technique only worked for me because the bookcloth I was using had more of a plastic-y/canvas-y feel to it rather than a soft fabric-y feel to it. If it had been more absorbent, I don’t think the paint would have smeared in the way you need it to. Below is an in-progress shot of what this looked like.

Once I had made the nothern lights, I freehanded some pine trees using some black paint and then used the transfer method to paint the title text in the northern lights with navy paint to try to match the color of the sky/bookcloth,

Lastly, for the back cover with the summary I used my normal method, but for the swirly border, I first painted it in white and then went over the white with three different colors of metallic paint. I alternated them so that they blended into one another and sort of made a subtle gradient effect.

I hope this helps! 

#a gay old resource

[a-gay-old-time]

with the ordeal of trimming and hitting the book with a hammer comes the rewards of making the edges pretty

i trimmed some textblocks today and i’m being so brave about it 😩

#and now to make the cover (ordeal) #so that i can paint the cover (reward)

[a-gay-old-time]

i’m done being brave, because now i must round and back one of them

i trimmed some textblocks today and i’m being so brave about it 😩

#the prospect of speckling the edges of these books is all that’s pulling me through right now #it’s very funny how everytime i start a new book i typeset it and print and sew it within a few days #and then i get to the part where i have to trim #and it sits there for like at least a week because i am such a baby about it

[a-gay-old-time]

i trimmed some textblocks today and i’m being so brave about it 😩

#i’m not actually #one of my genie wishes would probably be to have my textblocks magically trim themselves #i need to find a better way to do this #bookbinding

[a-gay-old-time]

My 2022 in Ficbinding

This past year, I bound 16 works and and 30 books in total (when including multi-volume works and personal and author/artist copies). This actually includes most of the books I’ve ever bound, since I first started binding in November of 2021. Apparently in March I was possessed by some sort of bookbinding spirit because I managed to make 7 books that month which is something that seems impossible to me now. I’m really grateful to all of the authors and artists who allowed me to take their works and turn them into books - your incredible words and art are constant sources of inspiration. And I could never have done all of this without the resources and guidance and community from @renegadepublishing​. I can’t wait to see what 2023 holds, I’m already so excited about the WIPs I’ve started working on!

January

GallaPlacidia Anthology by Gallaplacidia

February

the call of sweet things by @softlystarstruck

Little Deaths and How to Avoid Them (or Draco’s Guide to Stop Dying and Start Living Instead) by @greaseonmymouth

March

Way Down We Go by @xiaq

Sweeten to Taste by @saintgarbanzo

you bring me home & other stories by @softlystarstruck

The Claiming of Grimmauld Place by @bixgirl1

Chasing Dragons by @the-sinking-ship

April

Heart Like Neon by @lqtraintracks

Finely Drawn Lines by @the-sinking-ship

Nor All That Glisters by @sweet-s0rr0w

May

Loverboys by @corvuscrowned

July

Tit for Tat by @mintawasalreadytaken

August

Among Ancient Pines by @graymatters

September

The_Sinking_Ship Anthology by @the-sinking-ship

October

In the Shape of Things to Come & Preserving Lemons by @academicdisasterfic and @saintgarbanzo

December

what husbands are for by @softlystarstruck

#i know this is kinda late #but also time isn't real #but the books and friends i made along the way are #thanks to everyone who made 2022 such a special year to me

[a-gay-old-time]

With the addition of what husbands are for, I’ve officially completed an unofficial goal of mine--to make @softlystarstruck one book for each color of the trans flag. Bee writes such wonderfully varied stories, but at the heart of many of them are trans joy and comfort. These stories have kept me company as I’ve been on my own gender journey, and I’ve been lucky enough to get to call Bee a friend throughout all of this as well! 

Looking back at these books, it’s also really cool to see how far my binding (pun intended) has come. The call of sweet things was one of my first ever flatback books, and I remember struggling so much with getting the hinge right. And now flatback books are like second nature for me. I’ve also started speckling edges and including bookmark charms and I’ve become a lot more confident and detailed with painting on the covers. It’s still wild to me that I only started binding books just over a year ago, and it’s always fun and weird and cool to look back at physical reminders of that journey.

Bee, thank you for sharing your writing and for giving me the inspiration and opportunity to make books out of your stories! It fills my heart with so much joy to see all of these together and to have gotten to give you something back in return for all of the comfort your words have given me.

#bookbinding #fanbinding #ficbinding #drarry

[a-gay-old-time]

what husbands are for by @softlystarstruck

with art by @clytemenestras and @ihopeyoubothstaysafefromharm 

art for the title page and chapter headings by @babooshkart

This marks the third binding I’ve done for the lovely and brilliant Bee! Bee’s stories are full of tenderness, heart, and comfort, and this work is no exception. What husbands are for is also full of some of my favorite tropes--arranged marriage, enemies-to-lovers, sick fic, vampires--along with Bee’s trademark detailed descriptions of the most Amazing Outfits Ever™ and trans joy. Bee’s writing holds such a dear place in my heart, and I’m always so thrilled to get the chance to make their stories into a beautiful book. And it’s always so lovely to get to include art from such amazing artists in the binding.   

I got to work with the incredible @babooshkart again for this book--she created the art for the chapter headings and title page inspired by the porcelain pattern on Draco’s arm in this story. The charm on the end of the bookmark is as close as I could find to matching the flowers in Boo’s design and the red ribbon for the bookmark is based on the ribbon that bound Harry and Draco’s hands during the wedding ceremony: “There’s a silky, deep red ribbon wrapped in a figure-eight pattern around their wrists, looping over and over again. A vampiric tradition, meant to represent the intangible bond between spouses.”

I worked with some new paper for the textblock for this binding, which brought with it some challenges (it curls drastically when glued, which made making the endpapers a hassle) but also some nice surprises (it’s delightfully speckled and has a really nice heavy feel to it). This was only my second time trimming all of the edges of the textblock and not just the fore edge, and it’s definitely still a work in progress learning how to get straight edges all the way through the textblock for that. I’m really happy with how the book turned out overall--I think the cover turned out really well and the speckled edges remain a favorite little touch of mine on books. It was so special to get to make another book for Bee, and to see how my books have changed and gotten better with each binding I’ve gotten to do for them!

#ficbinding #fanbinding #bookbinding #drarry #bee you are such a bright light in this space #thank you so much for sharing your lovely writing