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  1. Best of 2017

    December 31, 2017 by Erin Fletcher

    As 2017 comes to an end, I want to reflect on a few of Herringbone Bindery’s success. I’m particularly proud to have another binding sell to a private collector and have my work shown in three exhibitions (one domestic and two international shows). I’ve continue to work with some really wonderful clients this year, including artist Laura Davidson and 21st Editions. Next year, I look forward to more of these collaborations, creating work for upcoming exhibitions and traveling more to teach.

    Here are a list of my favorite posts from 2017:

    1. My Time at Penland
    I am very thankful to have had the opportunity to spend a week at Penland School of Crafts. My week spent at this retreat gave me the chance to unwind and focus my creative energy on fiber arts. Exploring further options with embroidery.
    2. My Hand // Feed Sacks
    This was one of a few personal binding projects I was able to work on this year. I mainly played around with embroidery through tissue on this binding.
    3. Artist: Leigh Suggs
    I got the chance to see her work in person at the gallery at Penland.

    4. Catching up with Lori Sauer
    Check out this updated interview with binder Lori Sauer. Over the course of one month, I’ve highlighted five of her most recent bindings. Lori and I discuss her design concepts and her choices for structure and materials.
    5. Studying in London with Mark and Tracey
    Although this trip occurred in 2016, my post wasn’t live until early in the year. It’s a great review of the techniques that I learned from these drastically different, yet utterly talented binders.
    6. Swell Things No. 39 // Zürich Edition
    My trip to Zürich was surprisingly filled with amazing art, decorative papers and beautifully crafted tools.
    7. Catching up with Hannah Brown
    In the first of my updated interview series, I reached out to Hannah Brown. She has created a wide range of work since our last interview, but I chose to focus on just five of her most recent bindings that I absolutely adore.

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  2. Best of 2016

    December 31, 2016 by Erin Fletcher

    At the end of the year, I like to reflect on Herringbone Bindery’s accomplishments and challenges. To name a few successes that I’m particularly proud of include getting my work into two prominent private collections, creating work for 21st Editions and traveling overseas to study with two talented binders. With all of the work coming into the studio this year, plus the time spent outside of the studio teaching and learning, the blog has been engaged with less than desired. But I am very excited about the new year: bringing new energy, interviews, posts on book and much more!

    Here are a list of my favorite posts from 2016:

    1. May // Book Artist of the Month: Amy Borezo
    I had the pleasure of visiting Amy at her studio in Orange, Massachusetts earlier in the year, which led to a rather interesting interview about her work in artist books. This opened up a discussion about painting, printing and working as an edition binder. Her work is perfectly crafted and full of inspiration.
    2. Swell Things No. 29 // Jason Fletcher
    Jason was the first of several guest bloggers to add their own twist to the Swell Things column, sharing links on mummified animals and stunning animated shorts.
    3. My Hand // Into This World

    4. My Hand // The Nightingale and the Rose
    5. North Bennet Street School // Student & Alumni Exhibit 2016 – The Set Book
    Every year I interview the graduating students in North Bennet Street School’s bookbinding department about their design binding that goes on display during the annual Student and Alumni Exhibit.
    6. Workshop // Manipulating Stone Veneer with Coleen Curry

  3. Best of 2015

    December 31, 2015 by Erin Fletcher

    Wow, this has been a busy, busy year and I can’t believe that 2015 is coming to end. I want to extend my gratitude to the people who have helped contribute to the blog this year:

    Interviews:
    – Kathy Abbott
    – Ben Elbel
    – Tini Miura
    – Tracey Rowledge
    – Natalie Stopka
    Conservation Conversations Contributors:
    – Marianna Brotherton
    – Henry Hébert
    – Becky Koch
    – Athena Moore
    – Jacqueline Scott

    I also want to thank everyone who reads the blog, subscribes to the blog and newsletter and to those who’ve left comments. It has really warmed my heart to see the growth of interest and recognition that the blog has receive over the course of the year.

    At this time I like to reflect on my year. Herringbone Bindery saw a nice shift in workflow this year. As I removed conservation and repair services, I saw more edition work come my way. A few of these projects will be finishing up early in the new year and I plan to write up a post about them. I had another successful year teaching at North Bennet Street School with roughly 85% of my offered workshops running. I also began my second year as a Middle School Book Arts instructor. It’s been so delightful to see the creativity flow from the kids, stay tuned for a new feature on the blog.

    What to expect in the New Year:
    – an updated website: My husband and webmaster has been working on a beautiful new and easy to navigate website. We hope to have it up and running before the end of March.
    – I’ll be working on a fair amount of design bindings in 2016 and will be posting about them along the way
    – another round of interviews

    As I do every year, here is my list of favorite posts from 2015.

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    1. December // Bookbinder of the Month: Kathy Abbott
    I am really delighted by this interview with Kathy Abbott. She is very methodical about her approach to design binding from selecting the perfect goatskin to applying her decorative techniques. Kathy’s discipline is inspiring and so are her simplistic designs.
    2. Artist: Rachel Foullon
    3. Client Work // Ye Sette of Odd Volumes

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    4. Makin’ Care of Business Interview
    In July, I was interviewed by Rachel Binx at Makin’ Care of Business. It was a great way to reflect on my successes and how I’ve overcome challenges throughout the years I’ve been in business. I was honored to be apart of this collection of interviews with other talented craftsman and artisans working successfully as entrepreneurs.
    5. Artist: Nicholas Schutzenhofer
    6. North Bennet Street School // Student and Alumni Exhibit 2015 – Part One & Part Two
    I love writing this post every year. It’s a joy to speak with the students about their design bindings; detailing their concepts and techniques, what worked and what didn’t. This year’s exhibit also included a lovely selection of bindings from alumni, which you can read about in Part Two.

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    7. Conservation Conversations // Making an Old Book Whole Again by Jacqueline Scott
    Jacqueline Scott had a slew of internships this past summer, which offered great material for the Conservation Conversations column on the blog. I particularly enjoyed this treatment of a binding in the collection at the Newberry Library in Chicago.
    8. March // Bookbinder of the Month: Tracey Rowledge
    I am so awed by the art work and bindings from Tracey Rowledge. Her responses to my interview questions were so thoughtful and inspiring. There is no mistake that she is a talented craftsperson with an impeccable ability to meld her artistic capabilities into her bindings.
    9. Artist: Tomma Abts

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    10. Seventh Triennial Helen Warren DeGolyer Exhibition and Bookbinding Competition 2015
    As a first time participant in the DeGolyer Exhibit and Competition, I found the experience to be quite rewarding (despite the fact that I didn’t actually win anything). It forced me to execute an idea for a design binding in a new and more extensive way. This post goes into detail about my own proposal and the proposal from winner, Priscilla Spitler.
    11. Artist: David Quinn
    12. July // Bookbinder of the Month: Ben Elbel
    An innovator in the field, Ben Elbel has continuously churned out variations on structures and has developed several new styles of binding. I am always looking forward to his next project; to read about the challenges posed by the binding and the elegant solutions he comes up with.

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    13. My Hand // Dune
    This year I finished my design binding for Dune, that was then accepted into the Guild of Book Workers Traveling Exhibit: Vessel. I am very pleased with the outcome of this binding, particularly with the edge decoration and the successfully gilt concentric circles. No easy task.
    14. Artist: Lily Stockman
    15. Conservation Conversations // The Continuum by Henry Hébert
    Henry Hébert has been writing for the Conservation Conversations post for 2 years now and has continuously delivered interesting and sometime hilarious content. The outcome of Henry’s treatment shared in this post is stunning. The new binding is well executed and is treated with respect to the binding’s historical content.

    Happy New Year!

  4. Best of 2014

    December 31, 2014 by Erin Fletcher

    As the year 2014 comes to a close, I want to send out another thank you to the nine bookbinders and book artists who took time away from their busy schedules to participate in my interviews. Another thank you goes to those who read and subscribe to my blog and I especially appreciate the kind comments I’ve received either in person or via email.

    Now to reflect on my year: Herringbone Bindery was busy yet again this year. I had the opportunity to work on some really great projects, amongst them were commissions from the Old State House in Boston, artist Laura Davidson and the Veatchs booksellers. An unusual amount of traveling this year took me to Rare Book School for the first time, up to Maine for a mini-conference and across the country to Vegas for the Guild of Book Workers conference.

    Things to expect in the New Year:
    – an updated website with all the projects I completed in 2014 (including some beautiful design bindings)
    – a Herringbone Bindery newsletter
    – more posts on my own projects (expect to see more on Dune as I will be covering right after the holidays)
    – another round of interviews

    As we ring in the new year, I just wanted to share my favorites posts from 2014.

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    1. February // Bookbinder of the Month: Haein Song
    Haein Song was recommend to me by Hannah Brown and I was so thankful for her suggestion. Haein’s work is so clean and skillfully crafted. Her headcaps are so impeccable that I gape in awe.
    2. Artist: Marcela Cárdenas
    3. May // Bookbinder of the Month: Monique Lallier
    I greatly admire the work of Monique Lallier and was just ecstatic that she agreed to be interviewed for the blog. She has become such an influence in our field and openly shares her support and wisdom.

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    4. My Hand: A Desert Inspired Edge for Dune
    5. August // Bookbinder of the Month: Mark Cockram
    The interview with Mark Cockram captures the boisterous and enthusiastic charms of both his personality and love of the craft. Each post examines the intensity of his designs and complexity of his techniques.
    6. Conservation Conversations Column
    Beginning this year, I invited six of my colleagues working in conservation to post about a field that encapsulates their professional lives. Topics range from using the appropriate adhesive and what to consider when building a conservation lab to various conservation considerations and philosophies.

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    7. My Hand: Boxes for Laura Davidson
    My first project with Laura Davidson after interviewing her on my blog.
    8. Artist: Lydia Hardwick
    9. Photographer: Andrea Galvani
    10. January // Book Artist of the Month: Mary Uthuppuru
    I’m so charmed both Mary Uthuppuru and her work. She really engages the craft by exploring and experimenting with bookbinding and printmaking techniques. Mary is quite inspiring.

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    11. November // Bookbinder of the Month: Sol Rébora
    It was a pleasure to interview Sol Rébora. Her insights to bookbinding in Argentina were refreshing, as are her imaginative and unique design bindings.
    12. February // Book Artist of the Month: Diane Jacobs
    Diane Jacobs employs important topics like feminism, body issues and societal issues against women in book arts and other art forms. I am very engaged and compelled by these issues and enjoyed dissecting her work in the interview.
    13. My Hand: Leather Embroidery Samplers
    14. Artist: Jennifer Davis

    Happy New Year!

  5. Best of 2013

    December 27, 2013 by Erin Fletcher

    The year of 2013 has been surprisingly busy, both in my business and my personal life. Over the course of the year I established my own business, bound my first leather embroidered binding, became an Aunt for the second time, started an impressive board game collection, interviewed with Susan Mills for Bookbinding Now and moved into a spacious new apartment with my husband, Jason.

    I’ve also been busy posting on my blog and creating more bookbinding-related content. This year I started an interview series that I will continuing into the new year. Thanks again to all of those who agreed to be interviewed for my blog. The content from the interviews has really allowed my blog to blossom. Below is a small collection of some of my favorite posts from the year. Enjoy!

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    1. Artist: Matias Santa Mari
    2. Moving Images: Whale Fall
    3. February // Bookbinder of the Month: Hannah Brown
    This was my first interview. Thanks to Hannah for being my guinea pig. Her work continues to inspire me and I am always looking forward to her next binding.

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    4. June // Bookbinder of the Month: Sonya Sheats
    Sonya’s interview was so inspiring from her unique training in French fine binding to her use of nontraditional binding materials. I’m in awe of each binding Sonya creates.
    5. Tutorial: Top Secret Belgian Binding
    My goal for this upcoming year is to offer more tutorials on my blog. The Secret Belgian was my first and a blast to work on.
    6. August // Bookbinder of the Month: Annette Friedrich
    I could not pass up featuring Annette’s bold and distinctive style. I admire her ambitions to bind all of Virginia Woolf’s novels.

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    7. September // Book Artist of the Month: Michelle Ray
    Michelle’s work is so flawlessly executed as she beautifully combines letterpress and book arts with her fascination of the sea and water.
    8. Photographer: Alma Haser
    9. Artist: Christian Maychack

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    10. Artist: Mark Warren Jacques
    11. Daily Glimpse Project
    This 365 project began in 2012 and ended in July of 2013. The image above is the final image sent between my friend, Anna, and I. Over the course of the project, I collaborated with 11 people as we sent images to one another daily. Capturing the same single moment of our days.
    12. December // Bookbinder of the Month: Karen Hanmer
    This interview was my most ambition to date. On top of the initial interview, I asked Karen a single question about each piece to be featured throughout the month. This format will carry over into the new year. Karen also had one of the highest viewed interviews, no doubt due to her popularity and thoughtful responses. 

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    13. My Hand: Field Book of Western Wild Flowers
    As I mentioned above, I completed my first leather embroidered binding this year. Inspired by the historical embroidered bindings I attempted by first embroidered binding on cloth and then stumbled upon the work of Hannah Brown. In this 3-part post I write about my process behind such an ambitious fine binding.

    Happy New Year!

  6. Best of 2012

    December 31, 2012 by Erin Fletcher

    Thanks for stopping by Flash of the Hand and joining me during my first year of blogging!! These are some of my most favorite posts during the past year. Join me in 2013 for more bookbinders and book artists, plus tons of art and a weekly dose of cats!

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    1. September // Bookbinder of the Month: Sybil Pye
    2. Artist: Jane Rovers
    3. Artist: Rachell Sumpter

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    4. October // Bookbinder of the Month: Rose Adler
    5. Stereo Skifcha
    6. Artist: Julien Pacaud

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    7. Photographer: Brice Bischoff
    8. Artist: Ariana Page Russell
    9. My Hand…Little Birds

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    10. Artist: Matt Wisniewski
    11. Artist: Rune Guneriussen
    12. My Hand…Fantastic Mr. Fox

  • My name is Erin Fletcher, owner and bookbinder of Herringbone Bindery in Boston. Flash of the Hand is a space where I share my process and inspirations.
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