After taking a manuscript book class, my appetite for fine binding was piqued. Although I’ve been exposed to bookbinding in short spurts, I realized a deep dive into the finer skills would round out my education and up my bookbinding game. I needed someone to fill in the gaps.

Enter Barbara Helander (back row, far right), an instructor with the Canadian Bookbinders and Book Artists Guild (CBBAG). I spent a satisfying six days at her studio. Bookbinding 1 Intensive is the first of six programs in the CBBAG core curriculum leading to a certificate.

The workshop started with the basics of paper grain, folding, and stitching soft cover pamphlets and worked us up to binding a German Bradel hard cover book. Along the way, I gained valuable tips about techniques—mitering corners and fine-tuning with a scalpel—as well as tools—how have I survived without a pair of Starrett dividers?

I’m practicing my newfound skills while waiting for Bookbinding 2 Intensive…