Miller's Bookbinding

Hobbyist bookbinders can be found in just about every city in America, but true, professional bookbinders are rare.  The biggest difference between the two is simply a matter of knowledge and skill.  Anyone can squirt some glue inside of a book and claim it's been repaired, but a professional bookbinder knows why the book came apart in the first place and what to do to prevent it from coming apart again.  A book bound by a master bookbinder will not only look more appealing than one bound by an amateur, but will be strong enough to withstand the test of time.

Not at all!  In fact, in many cases, you may actually pay more by taking your book to an amateur hobbyist!  Part of being a professional binder is knowing how to do the job not only properly, but in a quick and timely manner as well. 

We do hard cover case binding, soft cover binding (ie...bibles) and restoration work.  We do not do perfect (paperback) binding, although we often repair damaged perfect bound books.

Absolutely!  We've rebound and restored books valued at tens of thousands of dollars. 

Yes!  In fact, most books we work on hold value only to the owner.  This is especially the case with bibles and family histories.

Probably not.  Odds are if your book needs to be restored it has already lost whatever value it is going to lose.  If you want to be extra careful, however, you can wait until you have a buyer for your book and let them decide if they want it restored or left as is. 

We have no idea.  We do not price our work based on the value of your book and many of our patrons are book dealers who make a living off appraising books and reselling them.  If you want to get a rough idea of what your book might be worth you can try visiting http://www.abebooks.com.  For an exact quote, however, you should visit a professional book dealer/appraiser.

It isn't possible for us to give an exact price on any book without personally examining it, since every book is different and has its own problems.  If you want to call or e-mail us with some specific information about your book we can probably give you a ballpark estimate of what you can expect to pay.  However, even then, until we've physically handled your book the estimate we give is still not firm.  Once we've personally examined your book we will contact you with a firm price for doing your work.  If you choose not to have your book done we will ship it back to you immediately, no questions asked and at no cost to you!

We normally ask for three weeks to complete an order.  However, if you are in a bind and need your book back quickly, we can almost certainly work something out for you.  Depending on the speed with which you need it there may be an additional rush charge.  If so, we will tell you that before we begin work.

We offer a variety of cover materials, including cloth, imitation leather, buckram and genuine leather.  All of our materials are acid free!

No.  Bonded leather is reconstituted scraps of leather ground up and glued to a paper backing.  It is one of the weakest materials available for bookbinding.  As a result, we refuse to use it.

Probably not.  It is very, very rare for us to determine that a book is better left untouched.  However, we will be honest with you and tell you we advise against binding a book if we feel it should not be bound.  Do not assume that your book is beyond repair, however.  We have had numerous clients who thought there was no hope for their book end up delighted to find that we can preserve it for them.  What might look like an impossible task to you may be a very simple task for us.

If you are or will be in the Columbia, SC area you are more than welcome to stop by our shop with your book.  If not, we recommend shipping either via Fed-Ex or UPS.  Make sure you include a note with your name, phone number and a general idea of what you want done with your book.  Once we receive it we will call you with a firm price for the work requested.  If you approve the order we will get started on it right away.  If not, we will ship it back to you as quickly as possible.

Our physical/shipping address is:

      Miller's Bookbinding
      506 Jasper Street
      West Columbia, SC  29169

If you need directions there is a detailed map on the Contact Us page of this website.  Or you can just call us at (803) 739-0971 for directions!