Just realized my paper grain mistake after a year on the shelf.

I bound a journal last year and noticed it started to curl badly. Turns out I ignored the grain direction when folding the signatures. The paper expanded unevenly with humidity, warping the whole book. Now I always check grain before I start any project.

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wesley9666mo ago

Does grain direction matter for the cover too, not just the pages?

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margaret3776mo ago

For the cover grain, yeah it's super important too. I learned the hard way when a cover I made buckled after a rainy week (the grain was going the wrong way). Now I always match the grain on the cover board to run head to tail, same as the pages. That keeps everything stable when the humidity changes.

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seana145mo ago

My first three books all warped like a bad banana, Margaret. I was so focused on the text block I forgot the cover boards completely, so @wesley966 is right to ask. Now I check grain direction on everything, even the darn endpapers.

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