At Praxis Bookbindery, hands, experienced by years of training, provide the necessary care to books and documents in need of restoration or conservation. Books and documents, received at Praxis are carefully inspected, the condition described and the options for restoration or conservation are thoroughly discussed with the client. A course of treatment can then be chosen and implemented. A typical treatment at Praxis Bookbindery might include disbinding the book, dry cleaning the paper with erasure material and washing the paper. During washing, the paper may be buffered with a solution of calcium hydroxide.
Washing can remove most of the dirt and byproducts of past degradation.
The calcium will chemically bond with the paper fibers to create an alkaline reserve as a buffer. This retards future degradation of the paper fibers. If the paper is not a good candidate for washing, it can still be buffered with one of several non-aqueous sprays. Once the paper has been dried, any tears or losses can be mended using rice starch and a variety of Japanese and Western papers. After mending, the pages are lightly pressed and the book is resewn using linen thread and cords or tapes of linen or ramie.