Iona Handcrafted Books

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construction process

Iona Handcrafted Books is a studio where old-world-style leather books are made by hand with no machinery….only hand-held tools. This is the way that I was taught in Venice, Italy back in 1993. And though I have experimented with expediting the process, the end product is always most beautiful when the leather is cut by hand one at a time…when the paper is torn to size by hand one at a time….and, when each book is stitched and trimmed and strapped by hand it looks unlike any of the other 1000’s that I have made over the years.

  • tools of the trade
  • tearing paper
  • template marking
  • cutting leather
  • poking hole in a leather with an awl
  • ...and stitching

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How to tie "the knot"

Our books come with a Monk’s Lace… but since not everyone is an actual monk, we’ve put together a short video showing our favorite way of tying the knot.

watch the video

Check out the the spread in Standard Magazine ! A behind the scenes look at where the magic happens!! What a gorgeous magazine!

And here is an interview from the earlier days!

Upcoming Shows

Our Segment on Texas Country Reporter!

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