Book Binding

For my one year wedding anniversary gift for my husband I wanted to do something in the vein of the traditional first gift: paper. So, I called in the big guns. One of my good friends got her masters in book binding and she was kind enough to teach me how to make a book.

We started by cutting thick pieces of cardboard for

the front and back covers and the spine.

Next, I cut a pieces of paper to wrap around all three pieces.

I cut off the corners so that the whole thing would have fewer creases.

Using her glue, mixed with water, and a brush,

I glued the paper around each of the cardboard pieces.

Then I picked out a large sheet of marbled

paper to add a second layer to the book.

I cut a strip of thick white paper to give the spine some strength,

then added a brown sheet of paper over the top of that.

This is how the covers and spine look before the paper is added to the inside.

I ripped four sets of signatures of paper for the inside.

Each signature is made up of four pieces of paper

cut to the same size and folded over.

I tore the paper, using a ruler, to give the edges a rougher look.

Using an awl I puntured the spine with four holes in a row in three different spots.

Then I stitched each of the signatures into the book,

looping through the spine twice for each one.

The finished spine had a crisp look. The finished book (shown at the top) turned out beautifully. This is a very simple outline of a complicated process and there's no way mine would have turned out well without my friend's help.

When it was complete I filled the first few pages with some of my favorite memories from our first year of marriage. I'm planning to add to it each year.

Photos by moi.