2.18.2009

Binding of another kind

My night classes have required that I design and assemble several books, which has allowed me to dabble in the world of book binding. So far I have only tried a few soft cover methods.

The first is the star-fold. This is a very simple method and I was shown this by a couple of instructors. I have tried to illustrate it in the crude (sorry) drawing below.

Star Fold Diagram
The pages are printed in spreads (two pages per sheet of paper). Then each spread is folded in half. The backside of pg 2 is glued to the backside of pg 3 and so on.
When all the pages are glued together the backside of the front cover is glued to the backside of pg 1. Then the cover is wrapped around the spine and the back cover is glued to the backside of the last pg.

The pages are all printed in numerical order (odd numbers on the left and even on the right). However the covers MUST be reversed (back cover printed on the left and front cover on the right). This is because the spread with the covers folds in the opposite direction as the spreads with the pages.

The second type of binding I've used is my own made up sewn binding :) I tried this before I knew much of anything about binding. And I just sewed the pages together as I saw fit. The actual stitches were pretty messy, but I was able to cover them with a strip of cardstock. It wasn't not very sturdy, but whatev.

After using these first two methods I got curious. So I bought Bookcraft by Heather Weston:


Bookcraft by Heather WestonBookcraft: Techniques for Binding, Folding, and Decorating to Create Books and More
by Heather Weston
Published by Quarry Books
ISBN 9781592534555


So far I have found this to be a really great resource. It has not only filled my head with dreams of creating masterfully bound books but also gives detailed descriptions of materials and instructions.

After perusing Weston's book I decided to try out the Japanese stab binding. Which up until I started writing this post I thought it was Japanese sLab binding. Don't ask my why, my mind just processed it as such. Here's the result:
Cowichan with Japanese Stab BindingSo far the best book I've made!

Japanese Stab Binding close upThe JSB is characterized by the decorative sewing along the spine and the spine caps (those little peices of green cardstock protecting the corners of the spine).


Cowichan History
Cowichan Symbols
So those pictures don't have anything to do with the binding, I just like those pages OK?

Notice the subject of my book was Cowichan Sweaters :)


I plan to try a hardcover binding method in the next couple of weeks. The instructions are a lot more complicated that anyting I've tried so far. Hopefully it won't be a total disaster.

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