Mini Book Photo Tutorial

Hi everyone! I'm new to the blog, my name is Ruth Bleakley and I have been bookbinding since 2002 (has it been that long already?). I love brightly colored designs and work with Japanese paper to make a lot of yuzen and/or chiyogami journals - you may have also seen my illustrated miniature books on Etsy. I also make nautical wedding invitations and stationery under the name Concertina Press.

But enough about me - here's a tutorial I made about miniature accordion books that I thought you might enjoy, republished from my bookbinding blog.

 

I figure that many of you, since this is a bookbinding blog, will be able to follow along, but if you'd like written directions, you can visit my original minibook tutorial post.

Some notes: the boards I used were scraps from the back of a notepad - I tested them with my PH pen to see if they were neutral, and then went ahead. the paper is 8.5x11 (regular US letter size) cut into strips in the short direction, I believe they are 1.5"x8.5", grain short (so the accordion folds more easily) but it's been a while. The glue I used is PVA.

Ruth is also on Pinterest, Twitter and Flickr.

Fall Swap: MakingMyRent

This mini coptic-stitched journal goes along with my fairy tale themed series and features scenes from "Cinderella" on each outside cover. On the inside, are black Graham Owen's handmade black paper endpages and 180 pages of Strathmore sketching paper. I used waxed brown linen to sew it up and the final journal measures approximately 3 1/8 inches tall, 2 1/2 inches wide, and 1 inch thick. --Amber of MakingMyRent

 MakingMyRent's handmade journals always made with love are in her shop here. 

Fall Swap: roundtheworldin80pgs

This address book is covered in a red paper with gold coins on it, from Nepal. It is a one of a kind book, as are all my books. It was bound using a traditional French stitch, and headbands were added to each end of the spine. There is enough room for 260 entries in this book, with space for name, address, phone number, email address with a clear division between each entry. --Beth of roundtheworldin80pages

Beth's one of a kind items with papers from around the globe can be found in her shop here: roundtheworldin80pages. 

Fall Swap: CamilleRiner

I am happy to share one of my newest books with Cindy entitled, "Sky of Blue; Sea of Green." The image in this book is of a person joyfully swimming with a large school of silver fish. I wanted to communicate awe, peace and the idea of belonging to something larger than yourself. The relief print was carved and hand printed on my press, scanned and then digitally collaged with images of the sea. The poem reads: "We meet without words, in the deep green memories of the sea. Between the waves we rise in currents of silver reflections. We are at peace, a fallen tear returned home, pressed under the bright blue forgiveness of the sky." This nested accordion book has a blue and green cross dyed book cloth cover and a digital print collage slipcase and measures 4" high and approximately 9" wide when opened. I used metallic threads through the accordion folds to suggest the flicker and glint of a moving school of fish. Each book is signed.  --Camille Riner

 Camille's handmade books and notecards are in her shop here. 

Fall Swap: UsefulBooks

I sent Lisa one of my soft-cover books made from painted layers of kraft paper and Tyvek.  The cover is embellished with a crow cut from a star chart out of an old book and a scrap of marbled paper left from a larger project.  The crow has a little key charm dangling from his beak.  He's clearly up to no good.

The front cover wraps around the the text block so it won't get ruffled if you throw it in your bag.  The pages are heavily stained with strong tea so that each one provides a slightly unique surface for writing or art.  It's all stitched together with a criss-cross long stitch which provides a little interest on the spine.  The closure is make from an African trade bead and waxed Irish linen thread.  --Cindy of UsefulBooks

 

Cindy's eco-friendly and cruelty-free handmade books and journals can be found in her shop here. 

Fall Swap: BlueRoofDesigns

Title: Slinky

Description: The spark that got me going with this book was that I wanted to make something that was both small and large. I decided to try a book with small covers and lots of pages.

The covers measure 2.125" x 2.25". The book is 4" thick, has 61 signatures, and a total of  488 pages - this set the record for the most signatures I've ever bound into a book. It took about 3.5 hours to sew it. The two papers used for the pages are manufactured by one of my favorite vendors, the French Paper Company - Glo-Tone Shocking Green and Pop-Tone Black Licorice.

When choosing a cover paper, I was immediately drawn to a textured black and lime green python print - I love its vibrancy. The pattern on the paper inspired the binding, a variation of the double needle Coptic stitch.

When you hold one of the covers in each hand, the pages move back and forth, much like a Slinky - this inspired the name. It seemed appropriate for both its movement and its snakelike appearance. --Elissa of BlueRoofDesigns

BlueRoofDesign's handmade journals, photo albums and guestbooks can be seen here. 

Fall Swap: MRsCHADT

My swap book is titled "Grateful."  This little journal is the perfect size to carry around and keep note of all those things we're grateful for. When times seem bleak, this journal is a best friend with cherished thoughts and memories waiting to chase the ungrateful bleak thoughts of a bad day away. 

It's my first attempt at a paperback coptic stitch journal. I wanted to keep it simple, so I stamped the cover design and added a tab. The inside pages stick out 1/4" beyond the cover, I made it that way on purpose, because every once in a while we find ourselves a little short and need reminding that nothing is truly ever perfect. We just need to be grateful for who we are. :)  --Suzy of MRsCHADT

 

MRsCHADT's albums, guestbooks, journals and more can be purchased in her shop. 

Fall Swap: Veterok

This was my first time participating in the book swap. Since it's October, I decided to make a classic hardcover sketchbook with a bit of seasonal creepy twist. The book is sized 15.5 x 11 cm (approximately postcard size), with pages of cream coloured Canson Mi-Teintes drawing paper. The headbands are sewn with black and ivory white buttonhole silk on a leather core. For the cover, I used two vintage portraits that I was gifted with a couple of years ago. The portraits are glued and then sewn on the bookcloth which I have dyed in shades of rusty orange and turned upside down to reveal the crumpled texture of the backing paper. I couldn't resist doing some additional smudging with ink.

This design is much like the ones that I sell in my Etsy shop, and I hope PrairiePeasant will find it useful, either as a sketchbook or as a journal for daily activities and observations. --Elina of Veterok

 Veterok's handbound books and journals from one artist to others are in her shop here. 

Fall Swap: CinderLisaDesign

This journal is one of my softcover, fabric journals. The cover is made of felt and covered with two fabrics pieced together: a fine cotton batik in a blue, floral print with shades of pink, green and purple, and a bright yellow cotton with a layered print of leaves and tree branches. The inside is lined in a soft green Moda print. I like to think of this as a "night and day" journal.

This journal is long-stitched and with the stitches puckered, and features a crocheted wraparound closure with an oblong button secured by a loop. The pages are a recycled cardstock and there are 48 sheets. -- Lisa of CinderLisaDesigns

CinderLisaDesigns' shop full of paper and string and magical things can be found here. 

Fall Swap: PrairiePeasant

   

I was inspired by the beautiful colours of fall for this book swap. My book is a fabric softcover book made from cotton quilting fabric interfaced for stiffness. The inside is filled with lovely handmade paper with grass trimmings in it, made by a local Winnipeg paper company called Botanical Paperworks. This book is bound with cotton embroidery floss in a longstitch binding and fastened with a wooden button. -- Laura of PrairiePeasant 

Laura's ecofriendly journals, cards and envelopes are in her shop.

Fall Swap Preview