The first day we will meet in 6451 Humanities to review the course. The remainder of the four weeks we will meet in Room 1009 of the Art Lofts, the location of the new paper lab. See you soon.

The two suppliers that I use most often for binding thread are Colophon Book Arts Supply and Talas. However, many many vendors sell thread for bookbinding. I have used silk button thread for a small book, since it was the only thread that I could find in the color that I wanted. The photo above shows types of thread most commonly used to sew books. The photo illustrates that binding thread is sold in different sizes. The second number 3, 5 and so on, indicates the number of strands that are wound together to form the thread. The first number indicates the thickness. Therefore thread that is labeled 25/3 is thinner than 18/3. Most often I use 16/3 or 18/3. But every project varies and I seldom ever say one size fits all. It is best to have a variety of size and colors on hand.  I am not real sure how vendors determine the first number. My best guestimation is that it relates to the length of thread need to equal a set amount of weight. I am not sure where along the way I heard this. Perhaps you can let me know the best answer.

Over a year ago, students in my Art 356 Print Production class designed layouts for a tutorial hand-out on Pressure Printing, also known as Stratography.

Tracy Honn provided the text from a hand-out that she used at a conference. I took photos of Carol Parker’s book that she created when she was in graduate school along with the original plates. Tracy Honn and Sarah Noreen printed a demo for photographs at the Silver Buckle Press. Two solutions are available for download. Alyssa Grabski’s solution is here. A link to Meg Neuville’s is here. Let me know if you have any questions.