Bookmaking 101

A journal is: a service book containing the day  hours   a: record of current transactions; b: an account of day-to-day events;  c: a record of experiments, ideas, or reflections

Some journals record history and famous works of art.  The artist's sketch books become art.

And I have made lots of them.  There are various styles and each can serve different purposes.

Some are simple and are made from paper.  The kind of paper would depend on the purpose.   Leonardo da Vinci was famous for keeping journals.  The grand kiddoes and I spent a couple of lessons learning about him and then made a simple journal.  To get the vintage look we used coffee water to satin brown kraft paper with splatters and stains.  The pages were stacked and then 2 holes were punched and the booklet was tied together. Easy Peasy!

 A variation of this would be to fold pages in half and thread the cord/string through holes in the fold.  This is the same process for making signatures to put into a larger journal.

This journal spans a week that covers one side and then the other..  The pages are joined together with a sturdy tape.

Some journals are old unwanted books.  The only connection I have with my maternal grandmother is a book she pasted newspaper clippings into.  To me it is priceless and I catch a glimpse of her when I study the bits and pieces she thought worth saving.

The pages can also be glued together for a stronger substrate and/or gessoed to accept paint.  I did this to experiment with different techniques and design ideas in a book I didn't want to keep.

One can buy sketchbooks that serve specific purposes because the paper varies for use with ink, pencil sketches, markers, watercolour, mixed media etc.. 

I have tried monthly journals with a simple signature with a heavier outside cover.

I have put one signature inside an old book cover.  I luv this wee book.  A favourite dress scrap, a very cute rabbit statue which sold out too quick and an embellishment. Memories!

A class using book board resulted in a unique journal using accordion folded page bindings and pockets to slip a large tag into..

I made more pages for another which was not completed.  I could use these as covers for more journals.  I would just need to add a spine of perhaps a 1-2 inch strip to join the front and back and then slip the signatures inside and sew them to the spine.

My favourite journal is signatures with all kinds of papers bound in an old book cover or hand made cover.

  I do need to exercise some kind of control or else they don't close, especially if I want to add embellishments and pockets to the individual pages.  I anticipated a large journal so I removed the spine and added a wider one before proceeding to add the signatures.
 

But still my Paris journal took on a life of its own and hardly shuts!  I had to decorate a box to hold it and the extras!!!

Because they are personalized they can serve different purposes.  This is a personal discovery journal.

There are lots of tutorials available and classes to make them.  Here is how I do mine.This journal uses a book cover, 4 signatures with assorted papers sewn onto the book's spine.

I found an old book cover and I carefully cut away the pages.  A book with a sewn binding works best.   You can use the cover as is or make it your own with gesso, paint, fabric, and embellishments.

 I make a template for positioning the holes for sewing the signatures into the binding.

You can just see the end paper I afixedto cover and compliment the inside covers. Above is a signature being made ready by using an awl to punch hols all through the various papers.

 I choose a variety from my stash of pre-painted/stenciled/stamped papers and arrange them into various signatures. I use scrapbook paper, coloured paper, newspaper, tissue, giftwrap, magazines, fabric, envelopes, just about anything!  Of course plain surfaces are best for writing.  Pockets hold ephemera.  It is helpful to slip the signatures inside to preview if they fill the space between covers adequately.

I like to work on an old open phone book as it holds things in place and I can push the awl down without damaging anything.  Clamps help keep pages from shifting.

I use a waxed thread and a blunt needle. Pliers are helpful if the hole is tight.  Sometimes things line up wonderfully easy and sometimes there is fiddling.  This is one configuration.
 

The ends can be tied inside or on the outside if a decorative tassel is desired.  I tied this one inside and I have a small piece of paper which I will glue together to hide the knot in this particular journal.

I see on this journal I should have made sure the tops were better positioned but I am not bothered.  Handmade to my mind is perfectly imperfect!

This will record the events that began in spring and heralded the year of the Coronavirus Pandemic of 2020.   We will be making memories for sure!