Small Edition of Hand Bound Books

Short Run Of Books Printed and Bound in Portland, Oregon

We love working with clients to build fine, custom hand-bound books. We specialize in exposed spine stitching, and can add debossing, screenprinting, and letterpress artwork to book covers. (Please contact us for further details if you have a project. See our FAQ page for general pricing and turnaround time.)

The project below was for the 100th anniversary of the local electrician's union. They asked us to build 20 books that included the history of their organization. We used black thread in a long stitch style to bind the pages, which were printed by local shop Bridgetown Printing. Within a recess on the cover is a plaque letterpress printed by KeeganMeegan & Co.

See Other Binding Styles • View Other Custom Work • See Logos on Book Covers

There's nothing before there's something

A visitor came into our studio today and we showed them our work. "Does this come smaller?" Yes, we said, we can make that smaller. "Does this come with more pages?" Yes, we can put in as many pages as you like. It occurred to me that they didn't realize that we make everything from scratch. As Molly often says, "There is nothing before there's something." So I thought I'd take a moment to share our raw materials and our process. (To see more of our process, and photos of us riding a bicycle built for one, visit our friend Lauren's blog.)

Book board comes in large sheets and is stored on the very bottom shelf (a.k.a. the floor.)

We source parent sheets of paper and then cut them to the page size requested (these start as 22" x 30")

Hinging tape and thread hold things together.

Boxes and book covers are fully constructed before they're covered (this is a slipcase with a recessed plaque area.)

Bookcloth (or paper or leather) can be used to cover the books and boxes.

Holes are drilled in covers, and cut pages are sewn in by hand.

A completed album and slipcase (with space for the client to tip in their own plaque.)

Questions? Email us, visit our Facebook Page, or check out people we've worked with to learn more.

Custom Handmade Wedding Albums

Photographers are some of our favorite clients here at HSS. Some wedding photographers have us create a line of custom products especially for their clients. Below are some of our favorites: Albums in slipcase, and tri-fold albums for Aisha Harley Photography:

Ribbon-Bound Trifold Albums for Lauren Brooks Photography:

Album with Bamboo Cover and Leather Spine for Leah Verwey:

DVD Folios and Photo Boxes, also for Lauren Brooks:

We love working with new photographers to create something unique

to their aesthetic. Feel free to call or email to find out more.