Is My Book 'Too Far Gone'? and other Book Restoration FAQ's

In today’s post I thought I would address the most frequently asked questions I get in relation to book restoration.  People are sometimes unsure of the restoration process, whether they can retain any or all of the existing binding, or even if their book is too ‘far gone’ to restore.  I’ll endeavour to answer all of these questions plus a few more by the end of the post.

Is My Book Too Deteriorated to Restore?

Fragments of a book spine removed during restoration

Don’t assume that a book without a spine and that is mostly loose sheets is ‘too far gone’.  Obviously if there is no spine on the book at all, a new one will need to be created, but if there are even just fragments of the spine remaining, we can attempt to restore these by carefully removing the remains and putting them onto a new piece of leather.  Anything that can be retained in the restoration will be retained.  Sometimes a book needs to be completely resewn by hand or new corners need to be created and positioned under the original leather cover.  This can all be achieved.

So, the short answer to this question is ‘NO’.  Any book can be restored as long as some of the original cover remains.  If there is no cover or the customer does not wish to keep the original cover a completely new cover can be created.  This is referred to as a ‘Book Rebind’ rather than a ‘Restoration’.   When this is the preferred option all efforts are made to match the original leather, end papers and also fonts used for embossing detail on the cover.

For information on Book Care you can find further information on a previous post here.

Is My Book Worth Restoring?

Even though I am often asked this question, it is not really one that I can answer.  What the book is ‘worth’ is determined by so many factors and usually the least of them in money.  Many of the books I restore may not be worth much if they were sold on ebay, or to a book dealer, however, they are a precious treasured heirloom to those who own them, know their history and the story of how they came to be. 

 This question needs to be answered by the books owner.  It might be necessary to get a restoration quote and advice on the different options for restoration to get an idea of cost before making your decision.

Some websites you might like to visit for an approximate guide as to the value of the book are:

www.addall.com

www.abebooks.com     Abe Books also have a short video titled ‘How Much is my Book Worth?’ that you can find by clicking here

Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America

How Much of the Original Book can be Retained?

Restored Victoria and its Metropolis in Two Volumes

This question was partially answered in the first section.  Basically I like to retain as much of the original book as is possible.  Sometimes it is impossible to determine whether things like the end papers can be saved until work has commenced.  End papers and even spine pieces can often be carefully removed through a painstaking process of soaking and gently lifting them from their original position.  Again, I will give my advice and an approximate quotation regarding the time and cost of the restoration.   It's then up to the book owner to decide how far they would like to go with the restoration.   If total restoration isn’t required, I can usually give an alternative course of action to repair the book and enable it to be usable again.

Both leather and cloth books can be restored.  New sections of cloth or leather can be dyed to match the existing condition of the book (faded and weathered as it might be), or new and old sections can both be dyed to the original colour of the binding when it was new.   In some instances customers prefer not to go to this extent and instead opt for a rebind or for the new piece to remain distinguishable from the original book.

How much will Book Restoration cost?

I will answer here as I do in store.  It's almost impossible to provide a quote without seeing the book!  Just as a mechanic can not give you an exact figure without lifting the bonnet of your car, it is very difficult to give even a ‘ball park’ estimate without seeing the book for myself.  Having said that, if you are able to take some clear photos and email them to me for a price guide – that I can do!  Book restoration is a very labour intensive process, so the majority of the cost comes from labour time rather than the materials used.

Will Restoration Affect the Value of My Book?

My recommendation to people who have rare and collectable books is to seek out a book dealer, before commissioning any type of book restoration.  Someone who deals in and values books will be able to talk to you about what your book is worth in its current condition and whether a restoration will add value to your book.  There is no set rule with rare books and value is usually determined by how sought after the books are, their age and the number to be still in existence.  The closer your book is to its original state the better and in some cases the less is more approach is best to maintain the books financial value.

As mentioned in “Is My Book Worth Restoring?” there are a number of great websites that can provide a very rough approximation to the value of books.  Keep in mind that the asking price of a book is just that, sometimes a book can sell for a lot less than the asking price. 

Hope this helps to answer some of your questions.  If you have another question about book restoration you can post a comment below or contact us using our online enquiry form here.

Book Care - Part 1: New Leather

One of the most frequently asked questions I get from customers is how they should handle & care for their books.  From deluxe bindings to freshly restored family bibles, people want to make sure their precious books stand the test of time and can be handed down from generation to generation. 

There are some basic care guidelines for books that should be followed regardless of the binding material or age of the book in question.   However, there are further things to consider that are only relevant to books bound using particular materials or books of a certain age and condition.  With this in mind, I decided to split the Caring for Your Book post into 3 parts;

• Part 1: New Leather Books
• Part 2: Aged/Antique Leather Books
• Part 3: Non Leather Books

In this first part of our three part blog series we will look at care of new leather bindings.  The great thing about new leather is that there are many things you can do to help protect and preserve its pristine condition without worrying about existing problems.

The main things to consider when caring for your books are housing, environment, nourishment and handling.

Housing: Books can be kept in a variety of ways to help preserve their binding.  The most simple housing of course is on a bookshelf, this should be in an area that is not exposed to extremes of temperature ie. not in close proximity to heating or cooling vents.  Store books upright (not leaning) with spines facing out, or lying flat on the shelf. A door on the bookshelf can help to protect from dust and other air born elements that can deteriorate the binding.  For very precious bindings such as deluxe editions, archival solutions such as slip cases or clam-shell boxes made from acid free materials are ideal to keep your book protected from elements that can cause deterioration.

Environment: Keep books in a moisture free environment to avoid cockled pages, and out of direct sunlight which can cause the leather to dry out, crack or fade. As leather is a natural material it will be affected by extremes of temperature.  In short, keep your books somewhere where the temperature is kept fairly stable (room temperature or below)

Nourishment: There is fierce debate regarding the ongoing use of leather dressings. Common practise is to apply dressing to leather books to preserve the leather and retain strength and flexibility of the binding.  Without getting too detailed about the debate, the bottom line is that dressing has not been found to have a preservative effect but most agree that if done correctly it does provide an immediate improvement in the feel and look of the leather and can improve the flexibility of the spine and book hinge if the book gets regular use.   For a new binding, we recommend a light dressing applied once every 1 to 2 years only.  We use a neatsfoot oil and lanolin dressing in a mix of 60/40.  You can make this yourself or purchase something similar from Shepherds, Hewitts or other reputable bookbinding suppliers.

Handling: Handle books with clean, dry hands that are free of any oils or moisturisers that could penetrate the leather.  This is probably stating the obvious, but you should use the book in an area that is clean and dry also.  When removing books from the shelf or slipcase, grip the middle of the spine where the book is strongest (not pulling down from the top). Many slipcases and boxes have a ribbon that allows you to gently lift the book from its housing so that you can easily grip the spine to remove. Make sure you correctly place the ribbon for this purpose before putting the book back.

Following these guidelines will ensure that your precious books will remain in great condition.  Books are meant to be read and used, so if you are not planning on keeping your book untouched in its housing, over time some wear or damage can occur.  By getting any damage attended to quickly you will prevent further and sometimes irreparable damage from occurring. Visit our restoration page for details if you have a book in need of repair.

Want further information?  Please add you comments or questions below or you can submit an online form here.

Hope this answers some questions.  Stay tuned for the next two parts to this blog in the coming weeks.

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