Fig. 100 (reduced)
In designing tools, it must be borne in mind that they may appear on the book many times repeated, and so must be simple in outline and much conventionalised. A more or less naturalistic drawing of a flower, showing the natural irregularities, may look charming, but if a tool is cut from it, any marked irregularity becomes extremely annoying when repeated several times on a cover. So with leaves, unless they are perfectly symmetrical, there should be three of each shape cut, two curving in different directions, and the third quite straight (see [fig. 101]). To have only one leaf, and to have that curved, produces very restless patterns. The essence of gold-tool design, is that patterns are made up of repeats of impressions of tools, and that being so, the tools must be so designed that they will repeat pleasantly, and in practice it will be found that any but simple forms will become aggressive in repetition.
Fig. 101.
Designs for tools should be made out with Indian ink on white paper, and they may be larger than the size of the required tool. The tool-cutter will reduce any drawing to any desired size, and will, from one drawing, cut any number of tools of different sizes. Thus, if a set of five leaves of the same shape is wanted, it will only be necessary to draw one, and to indicate the sizes the others are to be in some such way as shown at [fig. 102].
It is not suggested that special tools should be cut for each pattern, but the need of new tools will naturally arise from time to time, and so the stock be gradually increased. It is better to begin with a very few, and add a tool or two as occasion arises, than to try to design a complete set when starting.
