Curious Lore Book Conservatory

Information may not be reliable

Welcome to Curious Lore Book Conservatory, your Florida d bookbinder, dedicated to preserving the health and shelf presence of well-used books.
I use only archival materials to restore your volume to as mechanically sound and beautiful a condition possible. Should a rebind become necessary, I use the finest bookbinding leathers, papers, and reinforcing materials. I love my work and have developed my craft over the years through caring for my own small private library.
My aim is to remain approachable and easily affordable, as your repeat business is essential to the pursuit of my craft. Please delve deeper into my site in order to become familiar with the various services I provide. My labor rate remains constant; the differences in level of service stem only from the amount of time spent on a given project.

Here is my method of operation, similar to what one might expect when taking ones vehicle to a trusted mechanic: The price range for each type of service requested (Wholesale Repair, Rare Book Conservation, and Rebind) is listed at the top of the page for each category. These represent the typical amount of time spent for each type of restoration.
Without getting involved in too much detail, you the customer (with subject book in hand) can easily determine where said book falls on a scale that spans from 'doesn't need much' to 'requires a lot of care'. In each case a maximum level of expense, or 'cost cap', indicates the most one might expect to pay. The actual cost is calculated by the amount of time actually spent on the restoration. You would be surprised at how much can be accomplished in one hour. A simple rule of thumb is: 15 minutes (or $5.00) for each defect repaired. If one can find 4 repairs in the book at hand, it will probably cost $20.00. If 12 or more repairs can be found, then it will probably cost $60.00. Obviously, it doesn't take 15 minutes to repair one paper tear or remove one pencil mark, so these may generally be grouped as a single defect (i.e. all paper tears = one defect, all pencil marks = 1 defect.) I never exceed the cost cap without first consulting with the customer.
To begin the process, the customer submits a Request for Services by listing the titles and type of service for each on the order form. Use the 'Comments' field for any specific instructions (if necessary). Good two-way communication is essential. Once the order form is completed and submitted, simply pack up your volumes and mail them (using book rate of course) to the conservatory. Return postage will be identical. Insurance is optional but recommended (for tracking purposes).
After the work has been performed, the cost per book is entered on the order form and the total submitted to the sender for payment. Once payment is confirmed the order is returned to the customer in the original packing materials (if possible).
When the return order is received, the happy and satisfied customer then immediately begins preparing another order, as well as telling all their friends about the wonderful and inexpensive service provided by Curious Lore Book Conservatory.

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