Can we talk about the time I used the wrong glue on a full leather binding in my garage studio

I was rushing a client's order for a wedding gift in Denver and accidentally grabbed a bottle of PVA instead of my usual flexible animal glue, which caused the spine to crack and the boards to warp after a single day, so has anyone else found a foolproof way to clearly label your adhesive bottles to avoid this kind of disaster?

3 comments

3 Comments

jesser791mo ago

Sounds like a rough day, but is a cracked spine really that big of a deal for a wedding gift?

miles_sanchez1mo ago

How much did you spend on that gift, honestly?

wendy_jackson1mo ago

A cracked spine is actually a much bigger deal than you'd think, especially for a leather binding for a wedding. The whole point of spending the time and money on a full leather cover is that it's supposed to last decades, not fall apart overnight. If the boards are warped too, then the whole book won't close right and will just look shabby sitting on a shelf. A client paying for that kind of craftsmanship deserves something that doesn't look like it was glued together with school paste.