richard_young80•6d agoProlific Poster

Old bookbinder in Portland told me to stop using PVA glue for everything back in 2019

So I was at this shop in Portland about 5 years ago, chatting with this guy who'd been binding since the 70s. He told me I was ruining my spines by using PVA on every single thing. Said I needed wheat paste for certain sections or the books would crack over time. I kinda shrugged it off because PVA is just so easy and dries fast. Fast forward to last month, I pulled out a journal I made in 2021 and sure enough the spine had this hairline crack right where the hinge meets the cover. Opened it up and the PVA had gotten brittle. Dude was right. I'm finally mixing up wheat paste for my next project. Has anyone else had an old timer give them advice that took years to prove true?

2 comments

2 Comments

phoenix_brown856d ago

Dude was right" is my new catchphrase for every bad decision I've ever made that took five years to slap me in the face. I'm just waiting for someone to tell me hand sanitizer is actually ruining my soul or something.

olivia6706d ago

You know, I've been using that same hand sanitizer since 2020 and my hands feel like sandpaper now. The 70% alcohol stuff really dries them out bad, especially in winter. But I keep using it anyway because the alternative is worse. It's funny how we get attached to these things we know aren't great for us, just because they became a habit over time.