DIY: Handmade Books

This past weekend I went to Emma's for a bookmaking workshop. It was really neat to learn how to make my very own book and I am happy with the result! I will probably end up using this book in the summer to record things from trips or vacations. 

Supplies:

Scrapbook Paper (2 pieces - one for the cover and one for the inside)

Book board

Ruler

Scissors or straight edge paper cutter

Acid free adhesive

Thread

Needle

Plastic knife 

Awl

The first thing we did was measure and cut the piece of scrapbook paper used for our cover. Emma had precut the book board with a box cutter ahead of time. Place the two boards  a little more than a quarter of an inch apart and leave about 1/2 an inch around all the sides.

The next step was to cut a piece to cover the middle of the inside of the book. I believe this piece was about 6 1/2 by 1 3/4 inches. You might have to adjust accordingly since I just traced my piece using a template, so my measurements might not be exact. Set this piece aside.

Once you have your book boards in place, you can glue them onto your cover paper. Flip the glued on paper over, careful not to mess up the placement of the boards and in a circular motion, smooth out the paper using the flat side of a plastic knife. 

Once you have it smoothed out, flip your paper back over. Fold the corners of the paper in, like you would when wrapping a present, and glue them down. Then fold over and glue down all the sides of the paper onto the book board. Smooth out the sides using the flat side of the knife. 

Then take that little piece that we cut earlier and place it in the middle of your boards (in the crease). Fold it in there as best you can and glue it down to each board. This will cover up that gap in the spine of the book.

Now to finally add the paper! You will need to poke three holes into the middle of your pages and the spine of your book using the awl. Poke two holes and inch from the bottom of the page and an inch from the top of the page, and then one in the very center. 

Thread your needle. Start through the outside of the center hole and push the needle through, leaving a little bit on the outside. Then bring the needle to one of the other holes and pull it back to the outside. Bring the needle all the way down the spine and push it through the final hole. Then bring the needle back up and push it back through the center hole. 

Use the little bit we originally left out the outside of the center hole and the remaining thread to tie a double knot. Trim the edges of the knot. 

The final step is to add any finishing touches that you would like to your book. I decided to keep the cover plain and simply stamp my name on the inside. 

I am very pleased with how this turned out and if I end up filling this one up, I might make more!