val554•1mo ago

Just read that 19th century binders used actual human hair in thread

I was flipping through an old trade journal from the library and saw a note about using hair from a brush or a comb for sewing signatures. It said they'd wash it, twist it, and use it like linen thread because it was strong and cheap. Has anyone here ever tried that or seen it in an old book they were fixing?

3 comments

3 Comments

karenp111mo ago

Makes me wonder how many everyday things from the past were made from what we'd now call weird materials. I saw a museum piece once, a picture frame decorated with hair from the whole family. It was just what they had on hand, so they used it. That old bookbinding trick feels like the same kind of practical, make-do thinking.

vera_lewis1mo ago

Yeah, @jesse_craig26, at least the book won't talk back at Thanksgiving dinner.

jesse_craig261mo ago

Wait, hair from the whole family? That's wild, @karenp11. Can't imagine making that today.