Paperblanks Stories

Learn the stories behind our designs and get all the latest updates from Paperblanks.

The luxurious personal prayer book known as the Spinola Hours is one of the most visually sophisticated Flemish manuscripts of the 16th century. We are honoured to feature this unparalleled example of illumination from the J. Paul Getty Museum as...
Experience an important piece of Shakespearean history with our Shakespeare’s Library series. This gold-tooled design comes from a unique binding of the First Folio attributed to Christian Samuel Kalthoeber, a German bookbinder working in London. He created the beautiful new...
Our silver and jewel-tone red Garnet design celebrates the beautiful art form of filigree. This Silver Filigree Garnet cover was originally designed in Germany in the early 1800s and was crafted for a book of religious hymns. To achieve the gilded...
Charming wildflowers and weeds are given a voice in our Wild Thistle design, featuring the work of celebrated Art Nouveau illustrator Anton Seder (1850–1916). This piece originates from Seder’s seminal 1890 publication, Die Pflanze in Kunst und Gewerbe, or The...
Every year we offer a variety of 18-month planners that are perfect for student life or simply planning far ahead. This year’s selection, featuring a variety of hardcover and softcover designs, is available this spring* in stores and online!...
This striking Art Deco design comes from the celebrated British bookbinder Sybil Pye (1879–1959), heralded as one of the top female artisans of her time. One of the youngest pre–First World War women binders, Pye was the only binder in...
A man as tormented as he was beloved, Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) overcame a life of extraordinary ups and downs to become a world-renowned playwright, author and poet. He used his experiences to form brilliant, if controversial, literary works, including The...
Our beautiful purple and gold Bijou design is a real gem in bookbinding history. Originally created in France, it was designed to hold the Pars Hiemalis section of the Parisian Breviarium. Initially crafted from morocco leather with intricate filigree and...
Described by many as a “latter-day Leonardo,” Sandy Cockerell represented a tradition of high-quality bookbinding and unique marbled paper design. He took this painstaking handicraft tradition and found a way to produce the decorative papers at high speeds and...
Our Morris Pink Honeysuckle design reproduces an original work by one of the most renowned figures in the decorative arts, William Morris. As a textile designer, he developed a unique style that charmed his contemporaries and has since become a...