Butterfly Napkin Coptic Stitch Journal

Ok, this is the last handbound book I'll post for awhile (at least a few day, anyway), promise. ;) But, I saved my favorite for last.

This journal is bound exactly the same way as my Blue Paisley Journal. The differences in this one are in the materials used. I used a paper napkin for the front cover, gluing just the single, thin, patterned layer to a piece of white 65# cardstock. Because the napkin wasn't quite big enough for the project, and because the butterfly pattern wasn't exactly continuous when the napkin was unfolded, I didn't glue it flat, but instead tore it into large pieces first, then placed them randomly, letting them overlap and wrinkle for lots of texture. I pressed the prepared napkin between two sheets of wax paper, under heavy weights (large books and divers lead shot weights) until it was dry. This assured that it would dry perfectly flat. Napkins have a nice soft feel to them, but they are extremely fragile, so, once it was completely dry, to protect it, I coated it with a layer of Mod Podge. If you attempt this, let me warn you, as soon as the napkin gets wet from the Mod Podge, it will try to pull apart from the cardstock and tear. Be gentle and take your time! The back cover was covered in a piece of fern patterned paper that paired nicely with the ferns on the napkin. I used a deep yellow 18/3 Irish Linen Thread for the Coptic Stitching.

Here's a look at the inside cover. I love paper with any kind of text on it. I used it on the inside front and back covers. The patterned paper on the right is just one of 10 different patterns I used to wrap each of the 10 signatures.

The fern patterned paper was perfect for the back cover, don't you think?

A major difference in this book and my previous books is the paper I used inside. As you can see from this photo, the pages are brown. They are made of 70# textweight, recycled, acid-free brown bag text paper. And, yes, they feel exactly like a paper bag from the grocery store. Do they even have paper bags in stores anymore? They were always so handy to have around for crafting, and, of course, a necessity at the beginning of every school year when we had to cover all our school books. ;~D  Because this paper is much thicker than 24# paper, I used fewer sheets per signature, giving this book 160 pages. It measures 4-1/8" x 5-1/2" x 1-1/4". I love the rough texture and rich brown color of the writing pages, and while they might seem unusual for a journal, they are a perfect match for the nature-inspired covers.

I hope you have enjoyed my latest bookbinding projects. I'm studying Keith A. Smith's Non-Adhesive Binding Book Series right now, so I hope to be able to share several other bindings with you soon!

~Hugs,

Thanks for visiting my blog!

To have Ink Up delivered to your inbox,

subscribe in the box at the top right of the page.

Limp Book Binding with a Napkin

I'm back for one more quick post. ;) In my previous post, there is a small handbound book that is part of a class that I've been teaching. It had been awhile since I bound a book, but working on the class book has me interesting in bookbinding again. I'm completely self-taught, using books and on-line resources, so forgive me if I use any incorrect terminology. :)

This binding on this book is called Limp Binding, simply because the cover is soft. I'd never made a book like this, but I was messing around with napkins and liked the way one of them looked, so I made a cover with it by gluing it onto a sheet of cardstock. A lot of the napkin was in one piece, but it wasn't large enough to cover then entire sheet of paper, so I tore up another napkin and pieced it in. I covered it with ModPodge to help protect it from tearing, so it looks a bit leathery, but before the ModPodge it had such a nice fabric feel. I thought about adding something to the cover, but this has such a nice feel in your hands, I couldn't bear to. 

The binding incorporates three strips of ribbon into the spine.

I used alternating colors of green and blue in the signatures, and left the edges of the paper fairly rough.

 Fanned out pages.

I bound the book using a beautiful magenta thread, which is mostly covered up in the spine area, but you can see it in each of the signatures.

If you are interested in making a similar book, I used the Book Art Studio Handbook as a reference. This book measures 4.25" x 5.5".

Thanks for stopping by!

~Hugs,

Thanks for visiting my blog!

To have Ink Up delivered to your inbox,

subscribe in the box at the top right of the page.

Timeless Tuesday #225: Scallops--One More Card!

Hello again! I had to make just one more card for this week's Flourishes Timeless Tuesday Challenge. :)

Since I already posted one card today, I'll be brief. You can see my earlier Timeless Tuesday post here. And, you can find all the details for the challenge here.

For this card, I started with a paper napkin. After pulling all the layers apart, I glued the bird image to a piece of white cs with ModPodge, then after it dried, I coated the image with Sparkle ModPodge. Once that was dry, I treated it just like I would any designer paper. The sentiment I used is from the Life Lines stamp set, and is one of my favorites. The font is beautiful, and the sentiment is appropriate for just about any occasion. I sponged Distress Inks (Peeled Paint, Shabby Shutters, and Broken China) on a banner die cut, then heat embossed the sentiment, and added 2 Swarovski  crystals as an accent. After framing the napkin image with a square die cut, I layered it with the scallop die cuts, added more crystals, and walked away! If you've been around my blog very long, you probably noticed that I love distressed cards, so leaving this one so pure, was a little bit difficult, but I'm glad I did. ;)

In this angled photo, you can see that I curved the banner slightly. There is a foam dot behind the curve to keep it from getting squished.

And, I just had to show you all the sparkle. The napkin area is covered with glitter, and look at those Swarovski crystals shine!

Okay, I'm done for today. If you haven't already checked out this week's Flourishes Timeless Tuesday Challenge, you should. It's fun, and who knows, you could win a prize!

Thanks for stopping by...again, and enjoy the week!

~Hugs,

Supplies Used:

Thanks for visiting my blog!

To have Ink Up delivered to your inbox,

subscribe in the box at the top right of the page.