#a study in scarlette

[justheblueberry]

handbinding of A Study in Scarlette by kittebasu

There are people who want to live forever, and then there is Shinichi, who just wants to live a little longer than this.

this bind has been in my head since i first read the fic like, three years ago. i dreamed up so many ideas for it, for so long, and now it's finally done! the typeset was actually done in early 2022, back when i was still using google docs, but it went through a few iterations because i was just. so. fiddly. with every aspect of this book. it needed to be perfect (as close to perfect as i, an amateur bookbinder out of my depth, can get) and it had to be absolutely over the top, to reflect the insane amount of love and care that the author put into the fic itself.

the first time i read this fic, i barely knew what detective conan was, much less all of the intricate plot details; i was just along for the ride, but by the end i was completely invested. i went back and watched through the anime as well as a few movies (it took me six months) and then read the fic again. and then a few more times. kaishin and the world of dcmk has utterly gripped me. it's 100% this fic's fault and i love it so, so, much.

i went through a few iterations of visual designs and i'm really happy with the little details i managed to squeeze in.

the entire color scheme is based around red, because 1) it's a murder mystery, 2) for scarlette shinamoto (and the title of the fic as well as the original holmes novel it references), and 3) the irony of "lady red" actually being red. the secret fourth reason is that i think red/gold is a super sexy color combo.

i sewed the textblock with red thread to reference holmes' "scarlet thread of murder".

another detail i love is the five yen coin bookmark, it was one of my first ideas and it turned out even better than i thought.

i wanted the endpapers to evoke a sense of the white marbled floor of the ballroom, with the glow-in-the-dark kaitou kid caricature being the luminol on the floor, and the little pops of red looks like blood that's been mixed in. i lucked out in that the other side of the endpaper was like a lavender-purpley color, i like to think of it as a little wink wink nudge to the color of the actual Lady Red.

the chapter pages got a few reworkings, but i'm happy with the illustrations i ended up doing for each of them. the chapter titles are one of my favorite things about the fic, each one has so much meaning packed into it and flows so beautifully, and i wanted to put as much care into making them pop as possible.

the cover was a linocut carving i designed and carved, which i then printed onto the bookcloth, and ironed on htv on top.

i also threw in a couple of my drawings of my favorite scenes.

this is getting way too long, so i'll end it here. i'll have a separate post detailing the process every step of the way, if anyone wants to take a closer look. this fic is kind of directly responsible for getting me into fanbinding, so it's safe to say it altered the course of my life. i now spend way too much time (and money) looking at book stuff.

kittebasu, if, somehow, you see this and would like an author copy, i would be honored to make one and ship it to you; i would be overjoyed to gift you with any art i have the ability to make, because the fics you wrote have irreversibly altered my brain chemistry, and being able to give back in any capacity would be a dream. (thank you.)

a few postscripts:

i am not selling any copies of this fic. partially because i believe in the gift economy of fandom as well as firmly keeping fanbinding a hobby that will stay unmonetized, but also because it took me months (years, if we are counting when i first finished the typeset) to finish this and i do not have the strength.

however, if you are also a fan of this fic and would like a copy, i honestly, fervently, encourage you to give fanbinding a try! renegade publishing and its discord server are an absolutely wonderful and free resource. i knew nothing about bookbinding and had zero materials when i first started, but i've learned so much thanks to the lovely people there. if you're still apprehensive about getting started, i'd be willing to share my typeset of this fic as well as answer any questions about the making of this book if you DM me.

[quotablefanfiction]

“It might be related to ‘Lady Red’.” “What’s that? A pet? A strip club?” KID cranes his head down to look at Shinichi more carefully. “Should little kids even know about strip clubs? Don’t glare at me like that, Tantei-kun, it’s a valid question.”

Conan and Kid discussing a case (chp. 1)

a study in scarlette by kittebasu (AO3) Case Closed (Meitantei Conan) – Mature – Kudou Shinichi/Kuroba Kaito #Alternate Universe #Canon Divergence #Major Illness #Needles #Violence #Blood and Gore #Not Really Character Death #Friends to Lovers #Murder Mystery #Mild Sexual Content #Gunshot Wounds #Crossdressing #Canon Pseudo-Science

There are people who want to live forever, and then there is Shinichi, who just wants to live a little longer than this.

Note: This is a restricted story and requires an AO3 account in order to read

[detectivemiku]

I've never read a fanfic before (somehow) so I dipped my toes in yesterday and read A Study in Scarlette and oh my GOSH it has consumed my soul if you're a conan fan (especially kaishin) it is a MUST READ

[gingeralejasminetea]

aka: the main reason why i struggle with reading published fiction now

reblog if you’ve read fanfictions that are more professional, better written than some actual novels. I’m trying to see something

[elizaisdunn]

autistic man (sherlock) said he likes thomas the tank engine and I said oh i’m sure

[scraggscribbs]

I love the banter when you fight this line up

[seraphm001]

Mai

Came up with this character in history class and thought if I draw her I might as well do a study-ish thing

She is the secretary of the student council at the academy

[kutsante]

Miss Scarlett - Clue 1985

[killertoons]

DOODLE DUMP 1-27-2025

[justheblueberry]

the process of binding a study in scarlette:

SO. i had a Vision for this fic, right from the start. so many new things i wanted to do and almost no idea how to do it. but let's start from the beginning, shall we?

i usually don't do anywhere NEAR this amount of brainstorming and designing but the fic has so many motifs and details that i knew i wanted to fit in, so i had to draw it all out and piece everything together.

here are a few of my behind-the-scenes brainstorming notes:

this was the very first brainstorm i did, it was basically me flinging a bunch of cool book stuff i saw other people doing at the wall and seeing what stuck in my brain.

this was an idea for a cover which incorporated symbols for each of the chapters inside the branches, but i just wasn't fond of the execution of the draft. so i scrapped it, eventually settling on the silhouette cover for the final.

i had big dreams! and not much experience to back it up with ! so after finishing the typeset, i put it aside for a bit and did a couple other binds first.

this was my second brainstorm, i started to figure out the direction i wanted the illustrations to go in, no longer aimlessly tossing vibes around!

i did a lot of waffling about different versions of the back cover design. here's a couple that i scrapped!

over the summer, i decided to finally stop procrastinating and printed out the typeset (after making a few revisions to it). it's a Chonk. i pressed it some, which helped, but it definitely still had a lot of swell.

sewing with red thread.

endpapers cut, glued, and a glow in the dark paint test.

built a press...up til this point i'd just been stacking a bunch of thick books on top of my binds, but for this one i needed a lying press to sand my edges, so i finally caved. who needs tools? my edge painted book needs tools :(

sanding edges with power sander

so. this was my first time doing anything with edges, so i did a little test on a book i already had; it was a bit of a process trying to work out how much i should dilute it, and it took a bit of trial and error. doing the bottom edge first was the right call ^^;; it's the flakiest out of all the edges on the final bind. i'm really happy with the fore edge though, i got a really even and nice coat on it.

rounding, gluing and (an attempt at) backing

so. it was the day before i was moving. i had run out of time to procrastinate any more. the rounding was quite rushed and i barely backed it at all. there was also the fact that i don't have backing boards and was winging it with absolute unfounded confidence. it still turned out okay though so i got away with it!

dug out a 5 yen coin from who knows where for the bookmark. didn't have pliers with me yet so i had to close the crimp with a metal water bottle and arm strength. who needs tools right

endbands. i love sewing endbands, but man, for chonk fics it gets Long. i think they each took like 2-4 hours to do. i briefly considered learning double core endbands for this bind but decided against it as i barely just got a handle on regular ones. discovery: my ambitions have limits!

this was my finalized cover design. i had planned to do it all with htv, but last minute decided to do the silhouette as a linocut instead. i'd never done one before but i had the materials and the fearlessness that only a beginner (who does not know the limits of fear) can have; i think it turned out good :>

the final stretch!!!! it was at this point, when i realized that the size i'd carved the linocut at would be too wide for the half binding case i had planned. improvisation time. i decided to switch from a regular case binding to a three piece bradel. i have only done case bindings and stab bindings at this point...and with only mild panic and stubborn hubris to fuel me, i went for it. i had already attached an oxford hollow and cut my boards, but it probably wouldn't make too much of a difference! fuck around and find out!

cutting the cloth and adhering the htv. the summary on the back was HELL to weed, and some of the letters ended up crooked. i should've just printed it letterpress, but i was running out of patience.

i followed DAS bookbinding's tutorial on youtube of his in-boards three piece bradel and the part where i had to tuck in the spine cloth in between the hollow was definitely the trickiest, but it went okay in the end!

after attaching the boards and gluing down the endpapers i was finally done!!!! after months and months of the unfinished textblock guilting me from the corner of my room, it's finally finished! fancy pics coming soon!

i learned SO MUCH from this bind, sanding edges, painting edges, linocuts, multiple colors of htv, oxford hollows, and a whole new style of binding....yeah. it was a ride! thanks for reading to the end!

[quotablefanfiction]

“Later, there’s something else I need to talk to you about.” “Something else? What?” He turns his whole body towards her, looking intently at her face. “Is it important?” Haibara is still gripping his jacket. “Didn’t I say later, Meitantei?” Shinichi acquiesces, slumping back into his seat. “Why’d you even mention it, then?” “To torment you.” “Sadly, I believe you.”

Ai and Conan (chp. 2)

a study in scarlette by kittebasu (chanyeol) (AO3) Case Closed (Meitantei Conan) – Mature – Kudou Shinichi/Kuroba Kaito #Alternate Universe #Canon Divergence #Major Illness #Needles #Violence #Blood and Gore #Not Really Character Death #Friends to Lovers #Murder Mystery #Mild Sexual Content #Gunshot Wounds #Crossdressing #Canon Pseudo-Science

There are people who want to live forever, and then there is Shinichi, who just wants to live a little longer than this.

[aria0fgold]

ALSO!!! Insane to me that in that fic, "Kuroba Kaito" ends up as another "mask." It's so insane to me, I'm so ill bout that fic. That feeling when your true self becomes the lie and the lie of your other self becomes your true self instead. KID only getting to show his true self whenever he dons his phantom thief outfit and meet with his rival (Shinichi). "Kuroba Kaito" got swallowed by the lies and the only one left is Kaitou KID and the only one to keep him afloat is Shinichi, who is sinking in the same way he had already sunk.

[acids-and-basses]

I finally did the color wheel art thing Red: Scarlett Orange: Jacklen hide Yellow: Novi Green: Blossom Blue: Bunny Model (I still don't have a name for them) Indigo: Chops Purple: Restless Black: Nox White: Selene

[sushiisiu]

Any fic recs for aa and dcmk?

these 3 kaishin fics have permanently altered my brain chemistry

a study in scarlette

the suffering of fools

win some, lose some

also this djs i am obsessed w it rn -> https://shukumeinorivals.wordpress.com/2023/04/01/mata-aou-tte-itte-kure/

-

klapollo fics

hot for justice (my most reread fic ever)

the justice anything agency

a new chapter of guilty love (gavinnerstwt is amazing)

just off the top of my head for now

[dynamic-k]

i did this again-

[h4vke]

It was a value study i made a long time ago. Honestly, i don't remember why I didn't post it, but here we go!