How to Choose the Right Book Cover Material
Choosing the right book cover material for your edition binding project is very important. There are many choices and options available. Houchen Bindery Ltd. is a certified Library Bindery. As such, we often use F Grade Buckram materials for a majority of this work as well as for many genealogy related types of books. F Grade Buckram is highly laminated, durable and archivally stable. Here is a link to the 15 standard F Grade color choices Houchen Bindery Ltd stocks.
F Grade Buckram Cover for Genealogy edition
If F Grade Buckram is what you were thinking of for your book project, then look no further. It is truly the best choice for certain projects. However, if you want different colors or textures, there are many options available. You just have to make sure to consult the bindery early in your project so that sourcing of the exact materials is performed seamlessly.
Amongst the choices you can go with for an edition, you can chooose a printed, laminated cover, or a wide assortment of cloths, and imitation leathers. While true calf skin leather is sometimes used, it is usually only reserved for ultra high end (expensive) fine editions. The price of “real leather” is usually not at all practical for trade edition binding.
PhotoBook with Printed Laminated Cover
One of the first considerations to make regarding book covering, is to decide if you want a printed cover material vs. a cloth or imitation leather style. The photobook at the right uses a printed, laminated cover. How is this achieved? First we print the cover on 100 lb text gloss. Then we use a gloss film lamination to provide long lasting protection and finally we make the case from this material. Houchen Bindery Ltd. also has a few options for lamination: Gloss, Matte or Linen finish. Typical types of books that use printed, laminated covers- or what we sometimes call “graphic covers” are textbooks, childrens books and some photobooks and comic book collectors sets..
Family History Edition Bound with Advantage 9
Advantage 9 cloth choices
Advantage is an acrylic-coated paper that combines strength and moisture resistance with a kid leather embossed surface that decorates beautifully. LBS offers Advantage in two weights (9 and 7pt) and a large assortment of colors.
At Houchen Bindery Ltd. we stock the Advantage 9 choices in 6 different colors: Cranberry, Hunter, Navy, Sapphire, Chocolate, and Black. The good folks at LBS also have recently helped me with placing orders for some of the Advantage 9 in matte finishes.
Advantage 9 is a great choice for foil stamping, due to it’s smooth surface and price wise, it is economical.
Arrestox B cloth for Edition Binding
Arrestox B Cloth
Arrestox B Grade Cloths are widely used at Houchen Bindery Ltd. for short run length edition binding projects such as the book pictured above. Some of the Arrestox cloth seem to have more lamination than others. The texture and array of color choices almost always satisfies most demands of publishers producing short run edition binding projects.
In the words of LBS- Arrestox B is “strong, beautiful and eco-friendly, our B grade book cloth is 100% cotton with a water-based acrylic finish.” Editor’s Note: Arrestox B-Cloth is soon switching over to a poly cotton cloth – though we still have some cotton stock.
Verona Book Cloth
Publishers who have been used to ordering cloth for editions produced in Asia or Italy may be familiar with different brands of cloth. This is sometimes a challenge to address when it comes to producing shorter run length work here in the USA.
The good news is that LBS now stocks Verona cloths. Verona, which is a Rayon book cloth is the standard of excellence in Europe. With its paper backing, bright vibrant colors and natural fabric appearance, Verona is an excellent choice.
With some recent fluctuations in cloth pricing, it is good to consult the bindery on pricing before settling on a certain cloth choice. More recently, Verona cloth was in the same range of pricing as B grade Arrestox.
Leather Choices
The picture here of the swatch book does not do justice to the feel and textures available when it comes to leather choices. I use the word “leather” but do mean “imitation leather” or also sometimes call Bonded Leather. Materials such as Taratan II, Sturdite and the newer Kensington and Eurobond come in a nice array of various colors and textures. I can also confirm that foil stamping on these materials works very well, whereas real leather is not as consistent and can make it much more difficult to foil stamp.
While leather choices can drive the unit price of a book up, the distinctive look and feel of these materials are undeniable. We use these materials on projects such as fine editions, photo albums, limited editions and memoirs and more.
For more details on imitation leathers, check out LBS’s description here.
Pre made Hard Covers for Photo Book Industry using Luminaire cloth
At the recent Graph Expo 2011 (Sept 11-14), in Chicago, Houchen Bindery Ltd. unveiled Bindsource.com a new online service in alliance with Convertible Solutions. Customers of Mohawk Panoramic Papers now have 24/7 access to a cost-effective source for short-run photo book covers.
Pictured above here are some of the Luminaire sample covers we provided to Convertible Solutions who were making photobook samples from the Panoramic Paper right at their booth during Graph Expo.
In closing, you might have noticed the considerable mention of our first tier supplier of book cloth materials- LBS. Why do we use LBS? Is it the fact that we have a 30 year relationship with their company, or is it all of the hard working staff that we value so much? Maybe it’s the snappy turnaround time we get from them? The high quality of all materials we receive from them? The occasional special favor….(thanks Joe, and Rob!!). I have to say the answer is all of the above.
As you know, there are even more choices for book cover materials out there. We use many different brands based on the specifications given by our customers. But whenever the decision is left to me, I would recommend any of the materials I have listed from LBS above all others.
For further information on these services, please contact Martin Pugh at Houchen Bindery Ltd.
mpugh@houchenbindery.com or 1-800-869-0420.
Copyright 2011 Martin Pugh All Rights Reserved.
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Book cloth choices for hardcover binding
End Sheet Information (part 1)
Anyone new to bookbinding can get quickly mixed up regarding the terminology for End Sheets. They are sometimes also called “endpapers”. These are the pages that are glued down to the inside front and back cover of the book. Many people most likely have never even stopped to think about how these are produced and what their importance is. This article will go into some depth on the topic.
Let me preface this by saying that the choice of end sheets in a book are one of the most important considerations you can make in the whole book production process. The reason being, is that the end sheets create the bond between the cover boards and the interior text pages. Choosing the wrong type of end sheet, weight of paper, grain direction, or wrong coating can lead to problems in the construction of the book and may affect how long a book will last.
I wrote a similar article to this some years ago when I was more involved in international based book production, and am updating it now as I have had a few years in the market again with Houchen Bindery Ltd, and have seen up close many of the challenges we face with end sheet choices on short run length edition binding projects. With the advances in digital printing and short run lengths for book publishers, some of the options may be different.
As a certified library binder, Houchen Bindery Ltd. follows certain standards in it’s offering of standard end sheet materials. Their standard end sheet paper is an 80 lb white or natural (off white) Glatfelter. I initially did not like the look of these end sheets, but have come to find out that the paper is a very good choice for archival puposes because it’s acid free, which is very important for longevity.
Standard White End Sheets
With Smyth Sewing or Double Fan Adhesive Binding, the end sheet is basically a 4 page signature placed in the front and 4 page signature in the back. When I worked with book manufacturing in Asia, they were very specific about calling this “8 page ends”. To be more precise, the “endpapers” are the pages which are glued to the boards, and the first page that is not glued down is the “flysheet”. In the precise, technical language I was accustomed to, page 1 is glued to the boards, page 2 is what you see when you open the book, page 3/4 are the front flysheet. Page 5/6 are the back flysheet, page 7 is the inside back cover and page 8 is what’s glued to the board. Are you still with me?
When you get into Side Sewn binding methods, the end sheets must have a reinforcement put along the spine edge as shown in the picture below. This allows the thread to be sewn through the side of the paper, and with opening and closing of the book, the end papers and flysheet will not be easily torn by the thread. Houchen Bindery Ltd. again uses standard 80 lb Glatfelter in white and natural, with the option of what we call “Singer style” or Concealed Singer” (see photo below).
Plain White Reinforced Singer Side Sewn End Sheet
What is the difference of reinforced Singer style and concealed Singer end sheets? The difference stems from the Library Binding Industry. As reinforced children’s books got adopted by librarians who wanted to know that the binding was in fact “true library binding”, they could easily see the reinforcement drill tape on the standard Singer style end sheets. We still use these quite regularly with over approximately 70% of the children’s books we produce. The Concealed Singer” style comes into play more with customers who want the durability of reinforced side sewn library binding, but want the aesthetic choice of having it concealed underneath the end sheet paper. Both are good options, and will provide the best economy.
Now let’s say you want some options for color or printing on the end sheet. Is it possible? Yes I agree, its possible, and when it comes to edition binding- where the aesthetics play a large role in the possible success of the sales of a title, it’s good to know what the options are. But you need to choose carefully!
Black Silk Moire End Sheets
I have always said the end sheets of the book are like the curtains of a play. You can leave it plain
and simple, or you can really jazz it up. The biggest pointer I can tell you is to also try to make
a wise choice on the paper material (strive for a low ph or acid free classification), and choose a weight
of paper that is slightly heavier than the interior pages. For example, if your interior pages are on an 80 lb. gloss text, use a heavier uncoated sheet such as atleast a 100 lb uncoated or in some cases even a 65 lb cover weight stock. As you can see from most of these pictures, I believe in using UNCOATED Paper for the End Sheets of a book. Many binderies will refuse to use a coated paper stock on the end sheet, and it is for good reason. While it may not be all out impossible to work with, coated end sheet paper does not adhere to the glue well in production, can get very wavy and making it very difficult to case-in.
While we have produced some books with coated end sheets at Houchen Bindery Ltd. it is usually only because a customer is very insistent about it. We do not recommend it. As you can see some of the handsome award winning editions I have produced below, and they all use an uncoated end sheet paper.
Make sure the grain direction runs parallel to the spine edge.
This will improve the openability of the book and avoid potential “waviness” or what we call the “mousetrap” effect on the book as glue (moisture) is re-introduced during the process of binding.
There are many possibilities for end sheets. I have some pictures of some of the different styles I have
used on edition projects over the years shown below. When you want to go with something more than a standard plain white, please consult with the bindery early.
4 color printed end sheets for an Art Book on Native American Pottery. End sheets printed on 100 lb white Cougar Offset
A photography book on the Chicago skylines dramatically opens up with this 4 color printed end sheet capturing a lightning strike on the Sears Tower.
This Colorado Photography book used a treescape converted as a duotone, to provide a subtle, yet elegant opening to a full color coffee table book.
An award winning nature photography book using a 4 color printed end sheet
The 2nd side of the above book was printed in solid black, also on a 100 lb uncoated offset paper
Well that’s all for this article. Stay tuned. I have listed this article as Part 1. There is much more to discuss here on the topic of End Sheets. In the follow up to this, I will go over some of the other methods of binding we use such as PUR Case perfect, and what the ramifications for end sheet usage are with that method. I also will give some explanations on a few different end sheet styles now available called the Universal End Sheet and the Combined End Sheet, and how those types are being used in certain situations. Clicking here on the website of one of our favorite cloth and end sheet suppliers leads to some nice diagrams showing a myriad of various options when it comes to end sheets. As I always say, the more we learn, the more questions you’ll have.
Imported Handmade Fancy paper used on a limited edition poetry book
For further information on these services, please contact Martin Pugh at Houchen Bindery Ltd.
mpugh@houchenbindery.com or 1-800-869-0420.
Copyright 2011 Martin Pugh All Rights Reserved.
Houchen Bindery Ltd. on FACEBOOK!
Follow Houchen Bindery Ltd on Twitter
