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A story about the recent resurgence in rebinding books and the fabrics that are used to make them. 

Photo Courtesy Mylyn McColl.

Over the last few years, there has been a marked growth and reinterest in reading books. Much of this is due to the popularity of social media movements like and , and the popularity of books like A Court of Thorns and Roses, Fourth Wing, and It Ends With Us.

Fabric book covers. Photo courtesy of Mylyn McColl

And while people still read digital books, industry research shows that are choosing to read a physical book over a digital one.

Rebound book. Photo Courtesy Chanel Ly

This renewed interest in reading physical books has generated a new trend on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, as well as the handmade online marketplace Etsy, where many people are giving books new life through the ancient arts of bookbinding and book rebinding.

&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;I think it is delightful that there is an interest in reading and rebinding books especially in young people,&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221; says Mylyn McColl, a professional bookbinder and craft teacher who offers classes through her company , and an active member of the in the UK &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;Transforming a simple paperback into a stunning hard back cover is very satisfying, to be able to express your interpretation of the book through the cover and binding brings a wonderful sense of creative personalization of your favorite book.&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221;

Photo courtesy Victoria Engling

&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;People can be expressive—they can find a book they like and put their own spin on it, and it makes it even more special,&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221; says Cindy Hollander, co-owner of bookbinding supplies seller in Ypsilanti, MI, USA. &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;We just like to see people using their artistic creativity, and people can just do so many things with the materials that we offer. Book art has been out there for a while, and this is just another extension of that. We hope it keeps going with all those artists out there.&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221;

Today&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s book rebinding artisans are using a wide variety of fabrics to create the new cover and spine. Let’s take a closer look at the current book rebinding trend and the textiles involved.

Cover to Cover 

Photo by Victoria Engling

During the book rebinding process, the original cover is removed, leaving behind all the pages of the book, known as the book block. This gives the bookbinding artist a clean canvas to be as creative as they want with the new cover and spine they wish to create.

Sample bookcloth&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8211;Shizen, Indian Silkscreen, and Batik. Photo courtesy Victoria Engling

One of the most commonly used fabrics to create a new cover for a rebound book is book cloth, which comes in a variety of different materials and is coated or backed with paper to give is the structure it needs to be used as a cover.

&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;The big concern with using fabric in binding a book is in most cases, the fabric needs to be able to accept a wet adhesive without changing its shape so it can&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;t stretch,&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221; explained Jennifer Büchi, a bookbinder and book artist, program coordinator for the , and secretary of the . &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;When you&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;re making cloth cover books, you have to use wet glue in order to get the cover to stick to the book. So, the &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8230;  manufacturers that make book cloth provide book cloth that&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s either been sized heavily so that it can accept a wet treatment, or more often it&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s backed with some kind of paper—usually I think it&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s a Japanese paper—so that you can apply the glue to the paper.&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221;

Bookbinding supplies seller Hollander&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s offers book cloths made from a variety of different fibers. For example, the Allure book cloth is a polycotton blend with an acrylic coating and the Silk Moire book cloth is a satin taffeta with paper backing.

Photo courtesy Mylyn McColl

Hollander&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s also offers imitation suede and leather, as well as Japanese book cloth. &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;It&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s got a rayon base to it and it sort of feels like silk,&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221; says co-owner Tom Hollander. &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;And then it&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s backed with paper so that it&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s easy to glue.&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221;

Making Your Own Book Cloth 

While book cloth can be purchased through a variety of suppliers, the book artists AATCC spoke with have seen a trend in book rebinders creating their own book cloth.

Rolls of bookcloth. Photo courtesy of Mylyn McColl

&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;There&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s a big interest in making your own book cloth,&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221; Büchi says. &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;People buy their own cloth from Joann&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s or from whatever fabric store is available &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8230; and those instructions are readily available online. (They) then use paste or you can use hot melt tissue if the cloth can&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;t get wet. Then people are able to back them with Japanese paper and then use that as a book binding cloth.&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221;

Photo by Victoria Engling

Sarah Matthews, bookmaker and printmaker, president of , who also teaches book rebinding and printmaking through her company, , says she&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s even seen book artisans using fabrics with a sentimental value —like a grandmother&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s shawl or scarf—that can be turned into book cloth using HeatnBond iron-on adhesive tape.

&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;What you do is you iron on that HeatnBond, and then you get Japanese (paper) like Kozo paper or mulberry paper and then you iron that,&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221; she details. &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;So, the fabric gets ironed to the HeadnBond, the HeatnBond gets ironed to the Japanese paper, and then voila—that is book cloth.&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221;

Bookcloth samples and imitation leathers. Photo by Victoria Engling

&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;If you just use fabric on its own and try to glue it onto board, the glue is going to seep through the fabric fibers,&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221; Matthews adds. &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;So, by having that paper and then the HeatnBond, having that barrier, will make it work as book cloth.&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221;

Photo by Victoria Engling

And you rebind a book with a fabric that reflects the content inside, like McColl did by rebinding a Mediterranean cookbook with an oiled cloth designed for use as kitchen tablecloths. &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;This felt fitting to use on a cookbook, as it gave the idea of a Mediterranean kitchen and also had the practicality of being wipe clean!&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221; she adds.

Eco-Friendly Book Rebinding

Book rebinding in itself is an environmentally friendly process as many times it’s giving new life to a used or old book. However, there are other eco-friendly practices related to the textile industry to be found in the art of bookbinding.

Bookcloth rebinding. Photo courtesy of Chanel Ly.

For example, McColl says that book cloth manufacturers are moving away from using phthalates for coatings and replacing them with more eco-friendly safe plasticizers to give materials, like buckram, the necessary durability. &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;There is also a development in leather alternatives such as pineapple and mushroom leather as people become more conscious of using animal products,&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221; she adds.

In addition to using fabrics that have meaning to them, Matthews says she encourages her book rebinding students to upcycle and use recycled materials whenever possible. &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;I had one student who basically used a piece of the rug and used that as the cover of her book, because it was supposed to be like an entrance, like a spotlight on what her life is like at this moment,&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221; she recalls. &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;And so, the cover was the rug, and then she incorporated different things from her apartment within the book.&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221;

Photo courtesy of Mylyn McColl

And some of the end papers—which are used to keep the book&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s pages in place—are also becoming more eco-friendly, using materials like banana bark, lokta bark, mango leaves, and papyrus, as well as an end paper made in India by Shizen that uses 100% recycled cotton. &/aatccnews_2025_07a/8220;That&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8217;s from the garment industry in India, so the cotton rags that are left over that paper is made from,&/aatccnews_2025_07a/8221; explains Cindy Hollander.

While people may not think of fabrics when they look at a rebound book, there are a lot of textiles and ties to the textile industry involved in this timeless art. And with more artisans learning how they can put their own personal stamp on a book, there’s sure to be even more innovation in the fabrics used in the future.

ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥ the Author

 is a journalist, editor, and freelance writer with more than 26-years’ experience. A former associate editor for Nonwovens Industry, her byline can be found in a variety of consumer and trade publications, with past and current clients including Medical News Today, IAAPA’s Funworld Magazine, Rinksider Magazine, International Bowling Industry magazine, and HomeTalk.com, as well as ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥Review and ÐãÉ«Ö±²¥News.