Saturday 17 October, and we turned the café into a workshop.
Everybody who has ever paid extra for a special edition knows the real reason: the edges. So when Sophia from The Booklover Society offered to bring her Paint Your Own Book Edges workshop to us, we said yes before she finished the sentence.
An evening with The Booklover Society
Sophia runs these workshops around Melbourne and she brought the whole set-up to Ascot Vale: all the materials, all the equipment, and the patience to talk a room of complete beginners through a technique that looks far more intimidating than it is.
She hosted the night start to finish. We provided the space, the coffee, and the after-hours shopping.
So how do you paint book edges?
Carefully, is the short answer. You clamp the book, you mask it off, and then you work colour onto the page edges, layering or stencilling depending on how ambitious you're feeling. Done well, an ordinary paperback comes out looking like something you'd queue for.
Everything was provided and no experience was necessary. Some guests brought a book from home, others picked one off our shelves on the night.
A sold-out night
Tickets sold out ahead of the night at $35 a head, and every seat was filled. Ticket holders got 10% off in store on the evening as well, which several people used to pick up the book they were about to paint.
There is something so amazing about watching someone make their own copy of a book special. Nobody needs painted edges. That is exactly the point. It is care for its own sake, poured into an object you already love, in a room full of other people doing the same thing.
What's next
Our ACOTAR 6 midnight release party is on Monday 26 October, and there are more craft nights coming. Keep an eye on our events page and follow @trilogyofromancebookcafe so you don't miss the next release. Follow @thebookloversociety_ for everything Sophia has on around Melbourne.
If you'd rather someone else did the hard work, our special editions come with the edges already done. Otherwise shop everything online or in person at 109 Maribyrnong Rd, Ascot Vale.
Thank you to Sophia, and to everyone who trusted us with their paperbacks.