One of the truths of hand bookbinding is that things rarely go perfectly the first time.
Or the second.
Or the third.
Fourth.
Fifth.
You get the idea.
I originally set out to make a matching set of all six of Jane Austen’s main novels, housed together in a slipcase - the kind of set that looks like it belongs proudly on a shelf. Big trophy energy.
Bright, joyful, and a little unexpected, I chose a tropical colour palette and built a theme around butterflies and beetles: something a little botanical, a little curio cabinet, and far more colourful than the traditional muted Austen aesthetic. We all love a ditsy floral, but they don’t all need to look like that.
The plan was simple: bind all six, create a beautiful slipcase, and present them as a complete handbound Jane Austen collection.
The reality… not so simple.
The Handmade Learning Curve
Three of the books didn’t make the cut.
They’re perfectly readable, structurally sound, and currently living a very comfortable life on my dad’s office bookshelves. But when you’re creating handbound books to sell, my bar is a little higher than “technically fine.”
I had the excellent idea of adding parallel horizontal lines to the spines to tie the six books together.
Using my hot foiling pen, there I was - heart full of hope and naivety - sticking my ruler (admittedly a little haphazardly) across the spines to add the golden details.
Said details were patchy and wobbly. Yet I kept going across three books anyway. Then I tried to fix it by sanding it off.
Honestly, at this point I don’t know what I was thinking.
This ripped the bookcloth, so naturally I attempted to glue it back down and cover the damage with a gold paint pen. It was only after this sequence of decisions that I finally admitted defeat and accepted that I had, in fact, ruined them.
So the original matching set of six became… a matching set of three.
That’s the thing about handmade craftsmanship, though: every project teaches you something. Sometimes the lesson just arrives halfway through the process.
The Tropical Austen Trio
The three finished books now available are:
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Pride and Prejudice
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Sense and Sensibility
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Northanger Abbey
Each one is a handbound edition with bright tropical tones, layered patterns, and butterflies and beetles running through the typesets inside.
The effect is slightly whimsical - less drawing room restraint, more Victorian naturalist’s cabinet with good lighting. They’re deliberately a little unexpected for classic literature bindings.
Because while Jane Austen wrote about manners and social structures, her stories are also full of wit, curiosity, and sharp observation. The bright palette felt like the right tribute.
The Empty Slipcase (and the Future)
The best part of all of this is that I still have the empty slipcase.
It was made for the full six-book collection, and right now it’s sitting patiently on my shelf, waiting for me to remake the set to live inside it.
One of the nicest things about hand bookbinding is that nothing is truly wasted. Books that don’t quite meet the shop standard still get read, displayed, and appreciated somewhere else.
(My dad tells me people sometimes ask about them when they visit his office, so that’s something.)
The process is slow, iterative, and occasionally humbling - which is part of the charm of handmade books.
Why Handmade Books Are Always a Journey
When you buy a handbound classic novel, you’re not just buying the finished object. You’re buying the hours of folding signatures, sewing spines, and adjusting techniques along the way.
You’re also buying the invisible trial and error behind it.
Every binder has a shelf somewhere of “almost right” books - the ones that taught you something important.
Mine happens to be located in my dad’s office. He just has more space than me.
For Fellow Binders and Book Lovers
If you’re part of the bookbinding community, you probably already know this feeling: the mix of frustration and satisfaction that comes with learning a craft slowly.
And if you’re simply someone who loves handbound classic novels, then I hope these editions show the care and attention that goes into creating something by hand.
Three books are ready now. The matching six will follow eventually.
I think I’m maybe still grieving.
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