The Art of Slow (part 2)

Bookbinding continued….

I have two kinds of binding in progress at the moment. My square lie-flat notebooks/sketchbooks are bound in coptic stitch to allow them to open fully. With these, I don’t include the cover in the stitching (this is my choice) and therefore I can get on sewing the internal pages of the book while the covers are being pressed.

This doesn’t actually make the process any quicker, as I then have to press the sewn internal pages. More waiting about and doing other things….

But these are usually worth the wait, as after they’ve been pressed and carefully glued together, and the pages trimmed (I’m still working on this bit - it’s tricky and some of them end up with what I can only call an “intentional rustic” look - which adds to their individuality!) the whole book then ends up in the press yet again for a final time!

My second kind of binding at present is for my a5 notebooks.

These are different, in that the cover is one whole picture which goes round the entire notebook, and the pages and cover are all stitched together.

This still involves similar gluing and pressing, and is actually a bit more long and drawn out, as I can’t create the internal pages while the covers are being pressed, it all has to be done at the same time

Two different methods of binding, (and I’m experimenting with other kinds too) which have forced me to be a bit more slow and methodical: Not a bad thing for the hot days of summer! If you’d like to have a look at the Slow Handmade Notebooks I have for sale, click the button below.