I don't really have much to share in the way of knitting, though I have finished weaving in all the ends on Mack's blanket (HALLELUJAH!!), so I'm not joining Kat & the Unravelers today… but scootch on over and see what everyone's making!
I have been mildly interested in recent months (okay… watched tutorials, obtained materials and dabbled a bit) in making a book by hand. Lucky for me, Hamilton Wood Type & Printing Museum offered a workshop a couple of weeks ago. And I wrangled Kate & Ali to come along, and we sure had fun!
There was a fair bit of advance work done for us — seven of the eight signatures had been cut & folded — because we sure didn't need to spend precious workshop time folding paper! We did make the last signature, though, and then chose leather for the cover & closure, punched holes (Ali & I both broke our awls) and sewed them up!
Though I had watched tutorials and took a stab at making a book, there really is nothing like the experience & assistance one gets at a hands-on workshop! We were sailing along in no time… haha, well, the workshop did go about a half-hour over!
We cut the covers for our books from the same piece of leather — I really liked the idea of that — but the girls chose to flip their pieces around so the suede side was out. We each used a different color of waxed linen thread for binding, and we all did something a little different for the closure.
Our lovely instructor, Stephanie, took the photo above — didn't she get a great angle? haha.
It's a lovely, lay-flat book… with some flaws, but HEY, I MADE A BOOK! We're all really looking forward to making more and experimenting with different papers and cover ideas. I don't know if we'll have an opportunity for Auntie Camp, but making a simple(r) book would definitely be among the choices offered this year!
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How cool is this? Your books – all of them – turned out lovely. What will you use yours for? I think that would be an awesome Auntie Camp activity (but of course, I would not be hosting it – hahaha). Love that picture of you and your two girls. Missing Maddie though!
This may be a stupid question, but what are you planning to do with the book? Journal? Scrapbook? Paperweight?
Sharing the making with Kate and Ali is so special! and just look at those pretty smiles (along with those lovely books)!
Each of your books is really lovely (and I can almost smell that leather)! I’ll also ask what you might use this for – it’s so special I would want to use it for something very special.
Those books are awesome and I’m glad you had fun learning something new!
This is such a cool project! I love that all three of you have books that are coordinating but not matching.
Well, this is just so amazing Vicki! I have contemplated doing something like this with watercolor paper for a bit of a ‘on the go’ journal I can paint in! Perhaps I need to find a class locally!
And YAY of the end of the Great Weaving In!
I LOVE your books! What a fun workshop for the three of you. We have the Kalamazoo Book Arts Center here, and they have all kinds of workshops for making books and paper. Before the pandemic, I took a workshop and made a concertina book. I’d like to sign up for more – now that they’re offering live workshops again. (I do have all the materials on hand . . . ) I love the covers of your books!!!
Your books are so cool! Love the way they each have a different look but are also very similar. Enjoy their beauty no matter how you use them. Each is exquisite.