Appreciation post: That one stubborn headband that took me a whole weekend

I was putting a headband on a new leather binding and the glue just would not set right. It kept peeling up at the corners no matter how much I pressed it. I tried three different types of paste over two days, thinking it was the adhesive. Turns out, the leather piece I cut was just a millimeter too short, so it was under constant tension. I had to recut it perfectly and it went on smooth in ten minutes. Has anyone else had a tiny measurement error cause a massive headache?

2 comments

2 Comments

bethjackson6d ago

My first bookbinding project had that same exact problem. I spent hours trying to clamp a headband that kept springing up. The leather looked fine until I held a scrap piece next to it and saw the tiny gap. Now I always cut my headband material a good two millimeters longer than my measurement calls for. That little bit of extra length gives you some play to press it down without any pull. It saves so much frustration.

nathan_moore125d ago

That extra length trick makes so much sense now.