Stitched notebook

I was recently interviewed for the local newspaper about my interest in art and crafts (link), and the reporter then asked me for a simple project to share with the readers. Since I like to make my own books for art journaling, I suggested a very simple bookbinding project: a stitched notebook.

When you make your own books, you can use any paper you want for them. Pretty neat, right? Here are the instructions:

You’ll need

• paper for the pages
• material for the cover
• an awl, sharp needle or a drawing pin/thumb tack for making holes
• strong thread (e.g. waxed linen thread, buttonhole thread, beading thread or dental floss)
• a blunt tapestry needle to sew with

The pages
You can use any paper you like for the pages: e.g. copy paper, squared paper, drawing paper, watercolour paper. The thinner the paper, the more pages you will be able to fit in. Experiment to see what works. When the folded sheets are stacked inside each another, each paper will shift slightly and jut out along the outer edge. If you like, you can trim the pages after the pamphlet has been stitched, but you can also leave the edge as it is and make the cover wide enough to protect all the pages.

The cover
The cover can also be made from different materials: e.g. cardstock, fabric, felt, leather, selfmade paper-cloth. A cover made from cardstock can be strengthened by making it longer than you need and folding in flaps at either end, or by using contact paper. A fabric cover can be strengthened with another layer of fabric, fusible interfacing and a lining. Stitch and turn the cover, or simply zig zag the layers together. You could also wrap a pretty paper around the cover, or draw, paint or use stamps on it.

Method

1. Fold the papers in half and make the creases sharp.
2. Stack the pages inside each other until you have enough. This is your page block.
3. Measure your page block and make the cover a few millimetres (about 1/8”) wider than the page block on every side. Fold the cover in half.
4. Make three or five holes in the page block according to the illustration below. Measure with a ruler or eyeball it. Use paper clips if it’s difficult to keep the pages together while making the holes. Make sure the holes are exactly on the fold.
5. Place the page block inside the cover and make holes in the cover through the holes in the page block.
6. Cut a thread to measure two times the height of the book plus a little extra for tying.
7. Stitch the book according to the illustration below. Make sure you always pull in the direction of the fold when you tighten the stitches.
8. Check that the thread ends are on opposite sides of the long stitch when you return through the middle hole.
9. Knot the thread ends with a strong knot. You can also secure the knot with some glue.

3 holes vs 5 holes

Knot on the outside vs on the inside

If the thread later breaks, you can easily change it by re-stitching the book. Similarly, you can also change the pages or the cover should you want to.

I've decorated this cover with a selfmade stamp from craft foam.

This cover is made from selfmade paper-cloth.

Good luck with your book!

Custom-Made Dream Journal

Ooh, time flies. Where does it go, I wonder? It seems I have so much to do at the moment, and by evening I've only done a fraction of it. I've had a very long vacation this summer, and I feel it's about time I got back to work. It's only a few weeks now until the first two classes I'm going to teach will start (the children's classes). Well, tomorrow's Monday again. The best day to start a new life, and to pick up old routines. I do need to get back to my routines. No more staying up all night and sleeping away half of the morning. Discipline!

Right now I'm participating in another one of Melanie Testa's online workshops at the Clever Guild: Dream journal (you can still sign up!). You can find some images of what I've done so far (not much, as usual) in my Flickr photostream. This workshop explores different techniques that you can use in your sketchbook or visual journal. And since I can't find the kind of sketchbook I want in the shop, I have custom-made my own sketchbook. A page in this book is only 15 x 15 cm (6 x 6 inches), which is a nice little format to work with if you're like me and easily get performation anxiety or fear of the Huge White Page. I can choose to work on a small single page, or on the 30 cm spread. I used smooth hot press watercolour paper (300 gsm/140 lb) for the pages, and cardboard for the covers. I covered the cardboard with my own breakdown printed fabric. Fun!

The signatures are sewn together, and the covers are also sewn onto the signatures. I used a technique I haven't tried before and which I learned from Laura Kemshall in an episode of DMTV. Before this book I've tried Japanese stab-binding, small pamphlets and the thirty minute multiple-pamphlet journal taught by Gwen Diehn in her book The Decorated Journal (follow the links for a look at the books/pamphlets in question). This binding method was both fun and easy, and here's the result;

I was a bit hesitant whether this kind of structure would work for a watercolour sketchbook, but figured that I'd just try it out to see what would happen. As you can see below, there is a gap between the signatures that can be problematic with watery paint.

However, I've decided that I'm not going to be bothered about it. If I want to lay a wash over a spread with a gap, I can always tape the gap or glue a piece of paper over it. Things are only a problem if you make them a problem.

Isn't this a beautiful binding method? I love the loops that form over the spine and the exposed signatures.

Now that I have the book, it's time to start filling it. This week's assignment for Melanie's workshop is to make 10 starts, that is to do something - anything - to 10 pages somewhere - anywhere - in the journal. Sounds like fun!

Thanks for reading, and see you again soon! - Annika

Notebook covers and journals

A couple of years ago, a workmate and friend of mine did me a nice favour. He was getting rid of a lot of old law books, and as he’d heard me mention that the sturdy book covers would be great for projects, he got me a whole bagful of covers as a surprise. When I saw the bag that he’d snuck into my room, I decided that I was going to make him something from those covers as a little thank you. I soon started on a notepad cover, but faced with some construction problems, the project remained a UFO. Recently, however, I learned that he will soon undergo complicated surgery, and I decided that the time had come for me to finish what I started. Fate helped me along with this, because I had just treated myself to the latest issue of International Quilt Fest: Quilt Scene, and there I discovered an article about [drum roll] fabric-covered notepads. This article gave me a fresh perspective on my own project, and I finally finished the cover. I snuck it into his room this morning. I hope he liked it. :)

I’ve also been busy with a couple of other projects. One of them is also for a friend, but still not ‘open to the public’, and the other one is a new journal. A while ago I asked you to stay tuned for more of my bookbinding adventures, and here’s the next instalment: Gwen Diehn’s Thirty-Minute Multiple-Pamphlet Journal (from The Decorated Journal). This was a lot of fun, even though I got myself into trouble by deciding that I was going to take a slightly alternative approach to making the cover. I did pull it through, though, and I’m very pleased with the result. I made this journal for a specific purpose. My partner Jarkko and I are going on a vacation to Thailand (!) soon, and my hope is that it won’t be too hot to journal there. I’m finding it difficult to get into the habit of journaling, so I’m hoping this trip might kick-start me. There has to be loads of things worth drawing or painting there, and I should hope my usual excuse (lack of time) won’t be a problem. I‘m very excited about our new adventure, and can hardly wait for it to begin. But, oh, there’s so much to be done before that!

Fodral och skissböcker

Under helgen som gick sysselsatte jag mig med tre små projekt. Det första projektet var ett fodral till ett anteckningsblock som jag började med redan för länge sedan, men som hade blivit liggande. Det var tänkt som ett litet tack till en arbetskamrat och vän som hade gjort mig en tjänst, och när jag nyligen fick höra att han ska bli opererad och sjukskriven en längre tid, bestämde jag mig för att tiden var mogen för att avsluta projektet. Jag smög in fodralet i hans rum idag. Jag hoppas att han gillade det.  :)

Mitt andra projekt är också till en vän, men det är inte ”offentligt” ännu. Det tredje projektet blev en fortsättning på mina äventyr med bokbindning. Det blev en skissbok som jag ska ta med mig när min Jarkko och jag åker på semester till Thailand (!) inom kort. Jag hoppas det inte är för hett för att teckna och måla där. Det ska bli spännande och jag ser verkligen fram emot det!

Notepad cover with the Finnish Coat of Arms

Fodral för anteckningsblock med Finlands vapen

My journal, with 300 g/m2 watercolour paper and vellum

Min skissbok, med 300 g/m2 akvarellpapper och vellum

Bitten by the Bookbinding Bug

I signed up for a class in Japanese bookbinding last October, as some of you may remember. I really liked the idea of making my own sketchbooks, and have since become increasingly aware of the fact that a lot of artists enjoy making their own sketchbooks, or journals, for a number of reasons – aesthetic as well as practical. As a result, there have been a few additions related to simple bookbinding to my library. (I’m beginning to worry that one night I’ll wake up to a tremendous crash, as my flimsy bookcase finally surrenders to the weight of my collected wisdom. That doesn’t stop me from buying more books, though.)

As a warm-up exercise before the Real Thing, I decided to try making the little pamphlets that Gwen Diehn describes in her book The Decorated Journal. I started with the Three-Minute Pamphlet, and then moved on to the Six-Minute Double Pamphlet, in two different styles: the Pleat Book and the Dos à Dos. I used 120 g/m2 drawing paper, and my plan is to slip a pamphlet into a pocket in my personal organiser, to have it near at any time I’m stuck somewhere and feel the urge to doodle. I probably crammed too much paper into the pamphlets, as they all sprawl open, but never mind. A rubber band will fix that.

Next time I’ll go for the Thirty-Minute Multiple-Pamphlet Journal. That sounds very impressive. Stay tuned.

Biten av bokbindningsflugan

Kommer ni ihåg att jag var på japansk bokbindning i höstas? Jag gillade det där med att binda mina egna böcker och planerar nu att binda en egen skissbok så småningom. Men innan jag tar mig an ett så avancerat projekt har jag övat mig lite med enklare modeller. De här små häftena är beskrivna i Gwen Diehns bok The Decorated Journal. Jag tänker stoppa in ett litet häfte i min almanacka, så har jag det nära till hands när jag fastnar någonstans och vill fördriva tiden med lite skissande. Håll utkik efter nästa övningsprojekt, som kommer att börja likna en riktig bok!

 The Three-Minute Pamphlet

 The Six-Minute Double Pamphlet (Pleat Book)

 The Six-Minute Double Pamphlet (Dos à Dos)