I thought this title was apropos for this blog, considering the next book I made was a Alice in Wonderland themed book.
I have decided that these books have the grand purpose of being Thank you gifts to my TA's. Except the last one. That one will be for me and will have poems from my students written in it.
This book was a lot easier to put together, because at this point I have a much better understanding of what I am doing. I up'ed the ante by using a more complex stitch, which took more time and concentration, so I wasn't able to take as many pictures as I did last time. But, I did capture the beginning and the end and a few of the more important steps.
I also used a smaller threading material. This week I used a grey nylon twine rather than satin ribbon. This allowed me to pass through each hole without resorting to a painful and sightly humiliating form of calisthenics, which was so helpful for this week's stitching method, the Hempleaf (also called the Y stitch), because you pass through some holes five times, instead of three times with the box stitch. I used about 42 inches of twine for this project. Last week I used 25 inches.
2. Are there enough online blogs and tutorials to cover my lack of knowledge? - Amphian Photography was useful this week.
3. Are there different kinds/styles of book binding? (see ... lack of knowledge) - Yes, yes there is. Read Blog #1 to learn about some, go to my Pinterest board to learn more. Blog #2 I use the Box Stitch, Blog #3 I use the Hempleaf stitch.
4. Is there a potential to hurt myself? - Yes, I am using a needle and a small shank. This is a possibility. Keep band aids handy. Blog #2 I burned my hand with the ribbon and Blog #3 I poked my hand about three times with the needle.
5. How quickly does book binding happen? - Blog #2 (the Box stitch and first attempt) took me about and two and half hours to make. This one took me about one and a half hours, because measuring and cutting paper takes time.
6. Is there a "master" local book binder I can learn from? - I think I am going to stick with my online masters. If I happen to come across someone who knows more about book binding and can talk to me about I will defiantly have a LONG conversation with them, but I'm not going to go seek anyone out.
7. What am I going to create, a journal, a binding of my students work, a collection of poems that inspire me? - I am defiantly creating journals, and the first two are going to be Thank you gifts for my TA's and the last one will be a collection of poems from my students (who do inspire me).
8. Is this more difficult the bigger the book gets? - The actual stitching does not get more difficult, but it does take more material. One thing I am noticing that becomes more difficult is keeping the stitching tight.
Answers to last weeks New Questions:
8. How can I make larger holes, can I continue to use the binding awl, or will I need to use another tool? I needed to use the power drill to make the holes for this book, I am sure I will need it to make hole for my last book.
9. How will I get a hole through a hard cover? - I'm not doing the hard cover until Blog #5, and I am 99% sure I will be using the drill.
10. Can I, should I, use a smaller gauge needle? - I did not need to change the gauge of my needle because I made larger holes and used smaller treading material.
New Questions:
11. How do I make a fold seam on a hard cover book?
12. What is the best material to use when making my own paper?