Services

Cloth and Leather Bindings, Paper Preservation and Custom Boxes

services Cloth

WashingtonStateBookRestoration.com handles a wide range of Cloth Bindings, Hard Cover Bindings or Soft Cover Bindings. No matter if you have an expensive collectible or a priceless Family Bible, your book will be cared for with expertise and experience. Our services include complete restoration of cloth bindings; custom bindings in cloth and conservation repair.

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A book that is sitting on the ground.
Brüder Grimm Hausmärchen, before treatment
A book is sitting on the table
Brüder Grimm Hausmärchen, after treatment
A book with an old hungarian coat of arms on it.
Detached spine cover
A book with the hungarian coat of arms on it.
Hungary, original spine over new cloth spine
A book with some paper on it
H.W. Longfellow Poems as received
A person holding an old book in their hand.
H.W. Longfellow worn corners
A book is next to a piece of paper.
H.W. Longfellow Poems original spine fragment over new spine
A book with the cover of a book on it.
H.W. Longfellow Poems after treatment
A piece of wood that has been broken in half.
War Record damaged spine
A book is sitting on top of the table.
War Record original spine fragment over new cloth spine
A close up of the corner of a room
The Good Housekeeping Cookbook, Damaged spine
A book with a plaid cover on it.
The Good Housekeeping Cookbook, spine damage repaired with Japanese paper
A book sitting on top of a table.
The Good Housekeeping Cookbook after treatment
A book opened to the inside of it.
The American Women's Cookbook spine repair and custom box
A book with some writing on it
Jessica Conrad Handbook of Cookery for a Small Household 1923, As Received
A person holding onto the corner of an old book.
Jessica Conrad Handbook of Cookery for a Small Household 1923 New Cloth Spine and Spine Label
A book and pencil are next to each other.
American Folklore before treatment
A book with pictures of people and animals.
American Folklore after treatment original paper spine over new cloth spine
A book with an old picture of a goose and a man.
Father Goose Frank L Baum First Edition 1899 before treatment
A bunch of cardboard boxes are stacked on top of each other
Father Goose Frank L Baum First Edition 1899 text block before treatment
A close up of the bottom edge of a book
Father Goose Frank L Baum First Edition 1899 text block mended guarded resewn
A book opened to the title page of father goose.
Father Goose Frank L Baum First Edition 1899 after treatment title page
A book with an old picture of a goose and a man.
Father Goose Frank L Baum First Edition 1899 after treatment
A red box with a green bag next to it
Uncle Wiggily's Happy Days, previous scotch tape repair
A book is sitting on top of a block.
Uncle Wiggily's Happy Days, damaged corners
A book with a red cover and white pages
Uncle Wiggily's Happy Days, repaired corners detail
A red book with an image of a cowboy on it.
Uncle Wiggily's Happy Days, original spine over new cloth spine
A book that is on the wall next to a ruler.
Grandmother's Cooky Jar Helen Fuller Orion, before treatment
A book with an old picture of two people.
Grandmother's Cooky Jar Helen Fuller Orion, before treatment
A close up of an old book
Grandmother's Cooky Jar Helen Fuller Orion, pages mended and guarded
A book is sitting on the floor and has been folded.
Grandmother's Cooky Jar Helen Fuller Orion, text block mended and sewn
A book cover with an old picture of trees.
Grandmother's Cooky Jar Helen Fuller Orion, after treatment

services Leather

My services include rebinding and repair of leather Hard Cover and Soft Cover books and Bibles. Whether you have an expensive collectible or a priceless Family Bible, your book will be cared for with expertise and experience. Below you will find different styles of book and Bible restorations among others a complete restoration of a leather bound volume 1573. Board attachment with Joint Tackets is one way to re-attach boards, when the original spine cover could not be saved otherwise.

A nice story is associated with the creation of a Custom Binding and Box, a gift to the couple from their parents. The couple is German and lives in Berlin, Germany. Their first name initials happen to be “A“ for Ani and “J” for Janusch. This may be written as “JA” which is German for “YES” and needless to say essential during wedding vows.

The design for the initials was emailed to me and I had a die made here in the US.

My client asked for a post screw style album with blank pages, to be bound in leather. Before the wedding, some of the blank pages were given to friends to decorate. Box and album, including the decorated pages, were handed to the couple at the wedding.

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A close up of the corner of a room
detached front board outside
A close up of the corner of a room
detached front board inside
A close up of the cover of an old book
back board with previous electric tape repair
A tall pole with some type of metal structure
back endpaper before treatment
A close up of the corner of a room
back endpaper after treatment
A book with some gold and black pages
front board reattached to spine
A book with gold and black pages is shown.
original spine cover reattached
A book with an ornate cover on the wall.
final step joint covered with Japanese paper
A close up of the corner of an old book
after treatment detail
A book is being cut in half with scissors.
leather bound volume and torn spine cover
leather bound volume and Japanese paper reback
A red book with the words shakespeare 's complete works written on it.
leather bound volume and Japanese paper reback
A book is sitting on the table next to some papers.
volume published 1573 cover as received
An old book with a blank page on it.
endsheet before treatment
A tray with some type of paper in it
washing pages first of three baths
A wooden rack with some papers hanging on it
mended text block and prepared sewing frame
A close up of some papers hanging on a wire
sewing over raised cords
A wooden table with some red thread on it
sewn silk endbands
A table with a red and white bench on top of it
before covering in leather
A brown book sitting on top of a table.
new calf binding front, after treatment with SC600
A book is shown with the cover removed.
new binding spine after treatment with SC6000
A book opened to the pages of an old book.
original end sheets washed deacidified and mended
A stack of books on top of a table.
10 issues sewn to be bound into one volume
A close up of the back end of an accordion
10 issues bound into one volume
A red book with gold lettering on the cover.
leather spine boards covered with marbeled paper
A close up of the cover of an open book
corner reinforced with leather
A book is shown with the cover missing.
cloth bound book to be rebound in leather
A book is sitting on the table in front of a wall.
cloth bound book rebound in leather
A book is opened on the table
cloth bound book rebound in leather with custom box
A brown box with the letter a on it.
clam shell drop spine box housing wedding album
A box with the initials of a person in gold.
wedding album in box die, with initials of couple gold stamped onto cover
A close up of the corner of a wooden cabinet.
post screw binding covered spine
A green book with yellow dots on it.
concealed post screws
A green board with holes in it and brown paper
opened to reveal post screws
A book with green cover and yellow pages.
opened album
A book is open on the table and it's pages are folded.
spine detail
A book with some paper and a ruler
Detached front board outside, before treatment
A pair of books and a knife on the table.
Detach front board inside, before treatment
A box of papers and some rulers on the floor
Spine before treatment
A book with some brown paper on it
Spine detail before treatment
A person is holding the string to the end of a book.
Joint tackets thread is first pulled through shoulder then laced into board
A piece of pink paper with string on it.
Front board inside, joint tackets laced into board
A person is cutting paper with scissors.
Front board inside, joint tackets tied off
A book sitting on top of a table.
Front board outside, joint trackets after tie off
A wall with some kind of metal bar on it
Joint tackets inner hinge, before covering with colored Japanese paper
A book with some writing on it
Inner hinge, after treatment covered with colored Japanese paper
A book with some writing on the end of it
Front board after treatment
A close up of the cover of an old book
Spine after treatment

services Paper Preservation

I preserve and restore paper based objects including prints, drawings, maps and a variety of documents. Documents include Trauscheine (marriage licenses), Build Sheets, U.S. Army discharge papers, land grants and more. Treatment may range from simple mending to washing, deacidification, pulp infill and encapsulation of fragile documents.

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A piece of paper with some writing on it
Map of Woydts front before treatment
A close up of some paper bags on the floor
back of map before treatment showing numerous paper repair patches
A floor with yellow stains and a white tile pattern.
paper tape removal after immersion in water
A person wearing gloves and holding onto some papers
scotch tape removal
A piece of paper with an old family tree on it.
after treatment and lined with Japanese paper
A wooden box on the wall above a chalkboard.
wall map case box closed, Pickering Communinity Club Shelton WA
A wooden box with a boat on it
wall map case box opened
A table with many pieces of paper on it
all maps removed from wall map case box
A close up of the map on the wall
Hemisphere, front before treatment
A close up of the map with a pen on it
Hemisphere, after treatment
A piece of paper with gold tape on it
Sanborn maps before treatment yellowed scotch tape
A person is peeling paper off of the floor.
tape removal with acetone
A brush is on the floor next to some paper
corner repair with Japanese paper
A book is sitting on the floor next to a wall.
volume published 1573, as received
An old book with a recipe for a meal.
text pages before treatment
A page of an old book with the words
text pages before treatment close up
An old book with a blank page on it.
endsheet before removal and treatment
A book with some writing on it
dry cleaning with eraser crumbs
A book with an old picture of trees and buildings.
title page before treatment
A book with an old picture of a man holding a sword.
title page after treatment, pulp infill along fore-edge Japanese paper repair along spine edge
A tray with some old papers in it
washing first of three baths
A table with a white cloth on top of it.
air drying of washed pages between Hollytex
A page of an old book with the words
washed deacidified and dried
A stack of papers on top of two red boards.
view of repaired textblock ready to be sewn
A book opened to the pages of an old book.
completed binding with washed original endsheet endsheet after teratment
An open book with a page of words written in it.
text pages treated and bound
A piece of paper with the letter c written on it.
BUILD SHEET
CAMARO 1969 as received
A piece of paper with the letter c written on it.
BUILD SHEET
CAMARO 1969 after treatment and backed with Japanese paper
A piece of metal that is cut to look like a castle.
BUILD SHEET
CAMARO 1969 as received
A wall with holes in it and some of the walls are peeling.
BUILD SHEET
CAMARO 1969 waterbath
A book with some pictures of a castle
BUILD SHEET
CAMARO 1969 fragments aligned and backed with Japanese paper
A painting of a baby with a candle in its mouth.
Pastel drawing before treatment with disfiguring stains
A portrait of a baby in a gray shirt.
Pastel drawing after treatment and stain reduction
A plane that is flying through the air.
Trauschein, Marriage Certificate before treatment
A picture of an old book on the table.
Trauschein, Marriage Certificate humidified flattened dried
A picture of an old time painting on the wall.
Trauschein, Marriage Certificate lined with Japanese paper
A newspaper with an image of a man on it.
Lincoln Death, Newspaper Reprint before treatment
A close up of the front page of an old newspaper
Lincoln Death, Newspaper Reprint detail before treatment
A newspaper with an image of abraham lincoln on it.
Lincoln Death, Newspaper Reprint after treatment

services Custom Boxes

Boxes are an important accessory for your collection. A custom box can make a big difference in the long-term protection of a valuable collectible. A box creates a micro environment which protects your book from light, changes in temperature and humidity, insects, smoke, etc. It can be an economical option if a full conservation treatment is not feasible.

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A box with the letter a on it.
clam shell drop spine box housing wedding album
A box that has some writing on it
custom box housing wedding album, die with initials of couple gold stamped on to cover
A book is shown with the cover missing.
cloth bound book to be rebound in leather
A book is sitting on the floor in front of a wall.
cloth bound book rebound in leather
A book is opened on the table
custom box housing volume rebound in leather
A book opened to the front of it.
custom box housing repaired cook book
A book is sitting on the table next to some wood
custom box with rounded spine covered with leather over false raised bands
A close up of the corner of a chair
custom box with rounded spine detail
A close up of the corner of a box
custom box with rounded spine detail
A book is opened to reveal the inside of it.
custom box with display tray
A box with some papers inside of it
custom box with display tray, close-up

services CLASSES

Occasionally I offer classes for small groups in Archival Mending Techniques, Book Making in a variety of styles and Paste (Decorated) Paper Making. Feel free to email if you are interested.

PASTE PAPERS were one of the earliest forms of decorative papers. They were prepared and used by German Bookbinders for both cover papers and end sheet papers from the 16th through the 18th centuries. The people best known for their paste paper were the Moravians from Herrnhut, East Saxony, in Germany.

In this process designs are worked into a special preparation of paste and dye that has been spread on paper. Most beautiful and decorative designs can be created by just using your fingers. You may use combs, crumpled paper, lace…anything that will leave an impression.

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A group of people sitting around a table with papers.
Book Making Class

Aging Gracefully

We do Not attempt to hide evidence of use and time passed.
We attempt to show care.