Caught myself gatekeeping bookbinding and I hate it

Was at a craft fair last Saturday, some teenager was showing her mom a cheap glued notebook she made with a cricut cover. I started thinking 'that's not real bookbinding' and then realized I sounded like the old guys on here who yell about PUR glue vs PVA. I've been binding for 6 years, done maybe 200 books, and I still use a $15 bone folder from Amazon. Who am I to judge someone who's just starting out? Her cover was straight, pages were even, and she was excited. That's more than I could say when I first tried a coptic stitch and ended up with a mess that looked like a kindergartner's art project. Anyone else catch themselves doing this and have to check their ego?

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ben82719d ago

The part about the bone folder really hit home for me. Ive been at this for a decade and I still use a wooden burnisher I got at a garage sale for two bucks. But here's the thing, you said her cover was straight and pages were even. That's more than half the people in my local binders group can do on a good day. Gatekeeping is just fear dressed up as expertise. The craft fair kid is gonna go home and watch a YouTube video and try a kettle stitch next week. That's how all of us started. And honestly, cheap glued notebooks with cricut covers are how a lot of people first learn what grain direction even means, even if they dont know the word for it yet.