PSA: The tough call on a family Bible's bad past repair

A client brought me their family Bible that was coming apart at the seams. A grandparent had fixed it years ago with regular craft glue. That glue was now turning brittle and staining the pages, making things worse. I had to decide if I should take off all the old work to do a proper rebind or try to save some of it for the family's sake. I sat down with the client and laid out the options, explaining that a full fix might lose the grandparent's touch. We went with a mix, keeping the original spine piece but replacing the damaged covers. This job stuck with me because it wasn't just about the book, it was about people's memories. How do you deal when a repair job has more heart than skill?

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4 Comments

xenas166mo ago

The grandparent's craft glue is actively harming the book with stains and brittleness. Preserving any of it risks the same damage recurring in a few years. A complete repair honors the memory better by saving the actual pages for the family.

3

grant3806mo ago

Full repair is the way to go.

5

blake_bailey6mo ago

Sometimes the original glue can be saved with the right repair technique.

3

williamhenderson5mo ago

Hold on now... xenas16 is missing the point. That old glue is part of the book's story, and a careful fix can stop the damage without wiping away its history. A full replacement just makes it a new copy of an old thing.

4