I finally stopped using PVA glue for everything after a book fell apart in my hands

For years I thought PVA was the only glue you needed for bookbinding. I used it for spines, endpapers, everything. Then a custom journal I made for a friend came back after six months, the spine completely cracked and pages falling out. She lives in a really dry climate, and the PVA had gotten brittle and failed. I looked it up and found out that for flexible spines, especially in changing humidity, you need a different mix or a different glue entirely. Now I use a mix of wheat paste and PVA for certain projects, and it holds up way better. Has anyone else had a glue fail because of the weather where the book ended up?

2 comments

2 Comments

sanchez.blair6d ago

Ever had a glue disaster like that?

emma_young6d ago

Remember when glue was just for paper and not fixing everything? Honestly @sanchez.blair, calling it a disaster feels like a stretch. Most glue messes wash off with some soap and water, so what's the big deal? It's just part of trying to make or fix something cool. People act like a little sticky situation is the end of the world, but it's usually not that bad. A small mess is a fair trade for getting something done.