Found a weird trick for fixing dog-eared corners on old hardcovers

I had this 1920s edition of Treasure Island with some gnarly bent corners that wouldn't lay flat no matter what I pressed them under, so I tried lightly dampening a paper towel and running it over the crease before clamping it between two boards for 48 hours. It actually flattened out almost perfectly, has anyone else messed around with moisture to fix bent pages or is this a bad habit for old books?

3 comments

3 Comments

pat_roberts5517d ago

Moisture is a risky game with old paper, you might be playing with fire. Those 1920s books have brittle paper that can warp or get mildew real quick if you're not careful. I've seen people try that and end up with ripples or stains that never come out. A better bet for stubborn corners is a bone folder or even the back of a spoon - just press it down the crease firmly before clamping it dry. Your trick might work once, but do it a few times and you're asking for trouble. Old books need the gentlest touch, not a damp paper towel.

charles72017d ago

Playing with fire" is right, honestly I've seen people turn a book into a soggy mess doing that. @pat_roberts55 the spoon trick is solid advice and way less scary than tempting mildew. Ngl though I'd probably still try the damp paper towel on a beat up paperback I don't care about just to see what happens.

barbara_jenkins6617d ago

Get a spray bottle and mist the paper towel first, don't soak it. Ive been collecting old cookbooks for thirty years and had to learn this the hard way. If you wet the towel too much you'll get ripples or even tear the paper. Also keep a hair dryer nearby on low heat to dry it slow and even. Clamp it between two boards after you shape the corner so it dries flat. The bone folder trick works best for most creases, but damp paper can fix a really bad fold if you control the moisture right. Just go easy and test on a damaged page first before you touch anything important.