top out, v. - to finish the top of a structure
Hooo, it’s been a busy month, but we’ve finally topped out the workshed. Our contractor Anne told us about the ceremony of topping out, called richtfest in Germany, a traditional event that occurs when the framing of a building is complete. Western Folklore has a long article that explores the various permutations of the ceremony through cultures and building traditions.
“Topping out” is the term used by ironworkers to indicate that the final piece of steel is being hoisted into place on a building, bridge, or other large structure. The project is not completed, but it has reached its maximum height. To commemorate this first milestone the final piece of iron is usually hoisted into place with a small evergreen tree (called a Christmas tree in the trade) and an American flag attached. The piece is usually painted white and signed by the ironworkers and visiting dignitaries.
We didn’t hoist an evergreen bough or flag, as is traditional, but we have instinctually been enscribing our names and little drawings of protective spirits along the way, which is one of the less common practices of topping out.
Below you’ll find links to photos of various stages over the course of the last month.
adroit, adj. - possessing address or readiness of resource, either bodily or mental.
I’ve written about the National Library of China in Beijing before, but a coworker pointed me at this nice short video of Du Weisheng performing some paper mends in his workshop and talking about the dire need for more conservators to preserve the ancient resources of their country.
A recent article also features the Rare Book Restoration Center.
tête-à-tête, n. - a private conversation or interview between two persons
While my hands may be busy binding books all day, my mind is left to its own devices. Luckily, the web is sick with fascinating podcasts. One series that I’ve been addicted to are the great interview podcasts conducted by the folks at the University of Alabama book arts program. It’s been very inspiring for me to listen to each artist’s path through their bookbinding career.
Here’s a few more (print and video) interviews to keep the ball rolling:
Paul Tronson, interview
Dave Allen, interview with AbeBooks
Peter Goodwin, video interview (a small ad for his DVD series)
J. Hewit & Sons Ltd., interview conducted by TJ Bookarts (bonus, biannual newsletter: Skin Deep)
Robert Minsky, founder of Center for Bookarts in NY, interview
Lili Hall, interview
Any podcasts or interviews that you can add or recommend?
sea-change, n. - a gradual transformation in which the form is retained but the substance is replaced
This weekend the roof came off. We found 3 layers of shingles. On the north facing side, the middle layer was painted white (for what reason, we cannot guess). Pulling away some of the boards revealed groups of dead yellowjackets, crammed together to try to avoid their inevitable demise from Montana winters. Other removed boards uncovered tons of old paper nests; that’s why I call it the Vespiary!
Today was turning point: we’ve moved from tear down mode to rebuild mode. We’ll finally be able to start getting some of the hoarded material out of our tiny garage.
Check out all the photos of the tear off session here.
sugarloaf, n. - a high conical hill
Wool is in the house! Well, at least on the property, now. This past Saturday, I went to Sugar Loaf Mill in Hall, MT to pick up the wool insulation for the shed remodel. When we arrived, they were having a Spin-in, so not only did we get a chance to watch the carding machine in action, we were able to watch the processed wool get turned into yarn. One gal even had a skein of beautiful black yarn that she had made from her labrador retriever. Sue and Ed were lovely hosts, and if you live in Missoula, they’ll be staffing a booth at the Clark Fork Saturday Market. Check out all the photos from the trip on my flickr page.
The carding machine itself is like a Rube Goldberg contraption. Watch this video I took.
The basic principle of carding is to align all the fibers in the same direction and clean out all the debris (and trust me, if you’ve hung around sheep, they have a remarkable ability to trap debris in their wool). Just like bookbinding equipment, carding machinery has changed little over the years. After looking at pictures of the different kinds of machines, it seems the only differences are in the number of drums and their alignment with each other.
It was a true Montana road trip - we got stuck in a cattle herd, saw cowboys on horses with cattle dogs, lots of raptors, deer, and even a weasel. Lunch was across from a ranch supply store. A big sky day, to boot. Oh yeah, we asked where the sheep were at Sugar Loaf, but apparently they can’t keep them because wolves come down from the mountains and are too much trouble. That’s when I knew I was in Montana.
Our concrete pad got poured yesterday, so we’re ready to roll on the actual structure now. I’m getting antsy about moving all my equipment in and getting settled in the new space.
flipperty-flopperty, adj. - loose, dangling.
The work on the shed is going along swimmingly. At this point, all four legs of the treated lumber foundation/frame are down and in place. Next project is to level out the floor and get to work on the roof. Our contractor was so enamored with the wabi-sabi-ness of the outside eastern wall, that she decided we should detach it (it was only hanging by a few nails, anyway) and flip it. This way, I’ll have a nice weathered exposed wall and three regular drywall walls. I love that we had this opportunity to get a great cross-section photo of the shed structure.
The dirt floor continues to produce weird detritus (which I’ll post up later), but the flipped wall itself had some kind of combination lock code. I’m now convinced there is a safe buried somewhere on the premises bursting with dubloons.
bassalian, adj. - pertaining to the deep sea
Sue M. (aka itatemyswaeter) mashed up a WWII era poster recently to amusing effect.
Hmmm, I think I’d love a shirt with this on it…
occult, adj. - hidden from sight; concealed.
I love finding waste paper spine liners. This one from a Japanese book that crossed my desk.
humus, n. - dark-brown substance which serves as a basis to the vegetable kingdom.
If you’ve been following my Twitter feed, you’ll know that I’m in the process of converting my old shed, previously used for pottery, into the new home of The Vespiary workshop. We gathered all kinds of materials this past week: shingles, flooring, replacement studs, etc. We’ll hopefully soon be bringing in some locally grown insulation (wool!), and siding.
Yesterday, thanks to the help of a bunch of folks, got most of the old thing excavated. As promised, here are some photos of the process. I’ve been puzzling over how this 100+ year old structure has been able to stand with no foundation. The pictures will show the ol’ river stone method. Get stones, put em in a line, build a house on top of it. In fact, I think when I was house hunting on the north side, I almost bought one with the same style foundation.
The hidden gold is the ancient pile o’ tilthy dirt the shed has been sheltering. I’ve been throwing the whole mess onto my garden and expect tomatoes the size of watermelons this summer. Any ideas what I should do with the Missoula Lake river rocks I’ve been pulling out of the dirt? Put your thoughts in the comments!
The Ninth Art, n. - telling stories graphically, aka bandes dessinées, comic books
I’ll admit it - I love comics. My interests in the genre have shifted over the years, but I still treasure the ritual of slipping each slim story into an archival mylar sleeve. Collectors can be rather obsessive about the condition of their graphic gems, and the slightest rumple can be cause to demote a comic from mint to fine. In fact, maybe my early interest in keeping my comics in tip top condition primed me for my conservation career.
Just like other books, comics can sometimes be in need of a little TLC, and it turns out there are specialists in this sub-set of conservation. Mark Zaid from Esquire Comics has recorded a series of informative videos describing the differences between comic conservation and restoration as well as the effect of these procedures on the value of the item. (The link above leads to the same video below, I’ve just been having trouble with some of the videos I’ve been posting not showing up in feed readers - if you don’t see the embedded video below, please drop me a line) I love the over-dramatic voice over questions:
Classics Incorporated is one of the first companies I found that provide these kinds of specialized services. Susan of Restoration Lab has some great before and after photos of her work.
Lately, my comic reading has been more web-constrained, but there are some fabulous artists making their work available digitally as well as in print. Let me share them with you:
Hark, a Vagrant (my new personal favorite)
Tom Gauld - check his flickr page, too; lots of sketchbook shots and selections from The Guardian.
