Fireworks!

It’s my last blog post of the year and the last day of 2020. How cool is that! Such a “grand conjunction” calls for fireworks – an explosion of light and colour across the winter-dark sky. Or, at the very least, an explosion book! 

Earlier this month I followed a tutorial by Emily Harvey of The Curious Printmaker and made my first explosion book. The structure looks dramatic and complicated but is actually straight-forward to make. (That is largely due to Emily’s excellent instruction.)

(If you have trouble opening -- or even seeing -- the video, click the title in this post – that should open up the post in your browser.) 

I had a page from an old botanical calendar and loved the purples and greens in the charming antique painting. To keep things simple I cut up the image and augmented with bits and pieces of hand-printed paper in the same colour range. I used mat board and more printed paper for the covers.

Over Christmas I had the idea an explosion book might be a great way to keep the cards we’d received – like creating a small memory album. At first I had planned to use only the fronts of the cards but it’s the hand-written notes inside that mean the most. I enjoyed combining both the images and the handwriting, and then working in a few of the postage stamps (which, to me, are tiny works of art). For the covers, it seemed appropriate to use a bit of salvaged gift wrap.

If you're looking for inspiration it's worth browsing through The Curious Printmaker. There's instruction for taking your printmaking to the next level as well as fun and imaginative projects suitable for children and grandchildren using stuff from around the house (like crinkly potato chip bags, string, craft foam or even an old yoga mat!).

Making something is the best way I know to celebrate and I think we’re all ready for a fresh start and a bright 2021. May it begin with optimism and generosity and even a little fireworks! Wishing everyone a Happy New Year!

Christmas Past and Present

I struggle coming up with ideas for festive winter designs. I should get a start in the summer but I never do. Then, when I finally start thinking about a Christmas card, time is short. Last year I lucked out and found this stuffed toy bear in my sketch book.

The close-up of his head turned out more like a mouse but everyone appreciates a Christmas Rodent card, right?

Here's the little guy carved into a block of soft-cut rubber.

And here's a row drying on the line. Nothing I love more than looking at multiples of the same image -- almost identical but always with a subtle variation.

This year I was still buzzed with the ink and eye dropper drawings and a pine bough from our forest made a ideal subject.

I stamped a tiny Red Gate "chop" on the front and one of my hand-carved pine tree stamps on the back. And, for good measure, I added the same stamp to the envelopes.

As I type, these cards are winging their way to family and friends. And not a moment too soon! Might be an idea to jump in this January while it's snowy and wintery and get a head-start on cards for 2021 -- but why break with tradition? Likely I'll be scrambling again next December!

Before I sign off, I want to take a moment to send a round of applause to all the postal and delivery workers who've kept us supplied with mail and provisions -- they've shouldered an extraordinary workload this year. And while this hasn't been the Christmas season we were expecting it hasn't been a year without joy. Or resilience. Or innovation. Or kindness.

Sending warmest wishes for peace and contentment to you and yours. Merry Christmas!

The Elegant Pamplet Stitch

Once there was a poet who sold his work as he rode the ferry. If you were lucky to be on the same crossing, he’d assemble the pages while you waited and, with a deft bit of stitching, turn them into a wee book of poetry. Magic! 

Many years later, interested in making my own books, I discovered the technique he used. The elegant pamphlet stitch is the most simple and basic of binding methods, yet takes minutes to learn and even less time to transform loose papers into a charming book. 

When I realized this method didn’t necessarily require uniform pages but that all types and sizes of papers could be bound into a single book, I was off and running with the idea of whittling some of my enormous stash of paper. I set myself the goal of making 30 artist books in 30 days. But I had so much fun I made all 30 in three days.

Heavier papers were great for covers and I pretty much used them as is. What ever size they were when folded in half -- that determined the size of the book. You can see the variety of papers -- wonderfully thick handmade paper, gorgeous commercial stock and a goodly amount of my own prints.

I did minimal cutting for the pages inside trying, instead, to go with the bits and pieces at hand.

Here's one where I had some cover stock already cut on an angle and I went with the shape.

I had the idea I would eventually write or sketch in these books and incorporated a number of blank papers. Below, though, are a quartet of books I made to celebrate the seasons. These were planned to be collections of "stuff" I'd made or experimented with over the years. Again, a bit of stash-busting!

Now let's give the pamphlet stitch a go. Believe me, it will take much longer to describe (or read about) the method than it will take to actually bind a little book for yourself. Pick something for a cover. I had this rust cardstock printed with a texture plate rolled up with white ink and a handful of papers for the inside pages. They included yellow ledger paper (that just happened to have ruled lines in rust!), an old envelope, security envelopes and two Japanese papers.

Here you can see the texture plate I used -- just some dollar store disks glued to a piece of panel board. But they made such a wonderful impression when printed I decided to use the cardstock plain side out.

I cut the rust cover in half (to 8.5 x 5.5 inches) and then squared up the papers a bit. I'm thinking it might have been more interesting to go with the crazy irregular shapes -- but too late now! A few more pages are layered in there as well -- you just can't see them. Now for the stitching. This is the most basic version -- the three-hole pamphlet stitch. Think of it as a figure eight.

We'll be poking three holes into the spine of the book. I'll demo on a piece of card to make it easier to see the progression. Thread up a needle with some cord. Again, it's an opportunity to use up what you have. I'm using embroidery thread. You start in the middle hole (number 2), bring your needle up through hole number 1, then over and down through hole number 3.

Now you bring the needle back through the middle hole (number 2). The only thing that is even the tiniest bit tricky is that you want to come up on the opposite side of the thread stretched between hole 1 and hole 2. This is to make tying the knot tidier.

Here you can see the thread has been snugged up. Do this gently -- it's easy to cut through the papers. Tie your knot and trim the thread.

If you start stitching from the inside of the book the tiny tails will end up inside. If you want the tails to show on the outside, then start stitching from the outside. 

Now on with the rust book. I wasn't really taken with the stark contrast of the white circles and I found two drawings I had done on some Asian novel pages to use as end papers to mute the busy-ness. I made a half-inch fold in each, just enough to bind them into the book.

I re-assembled the pages and decided not to use the gold patterned paper.

At this point you can simply eyeball and poke three holes in the fold of the spine. If you want to be more precise, take a piece of scrap paper the same length as the spine. Fold it half lengthways. Then fold it, the short way, in half, and then half again. Open it out and poke holes where the lines intersect. Like this:

Line up the guide with the spine and poke the needle through the three holes.

I'm just marking holes here. Since I want the tails on the outside of the book when I start stitching I'll begin on the outside of the book. And it will end up like this:

There are also five and seven hole pamphlet stitches, providing a more secure binding for taller books. To start, give the three-hole one a try -- it's so much easier than this lengthy explanation makes it out to be!

Here's a little flip-through with much appreciation for following along:

Making Covers for a Concertina

 

A concertina does not have to have covers. You might just want to display the book, like in the photo below.

Or you might choose to use the outer first page as a cover, as in this collaged concertina I called ‘Moon Tulips’. I had the concertina folded already (this is handy when you find yourself with an hour or two, you want to make something, but you’re too tired or too uninspired to start a project from scratch). 

Making covers, though, is fun! For one thing, it’s a good use for the interesting papers – both commercial and hand-printed -- that you may have stockpiled not quite knowing what to do with them. Below are examples of covers made with gelatin and relief prints, paper decorated with dots of acrylic ink (an exercise from book-maker Rachel Hazell), hand-marbled paper (not by me!) and Japanese origami papers.

You can make your books any size you like, although 5x7-inches is the biggest I make. It's easy to go smaller -- the dark blue book on the left is 2.5x2.5-inches -- and one way to make use of tiny, but precious, bits of paper.

I had only samples of these Japanese metallic papers, just enough to make a single tiny cover from each piece. Paired up, they'll make a little concertina I'm calling Night and Day.

Bridget Morris, whose Skillshare class I mentioned in the previous post, uses proper book board for her covers. Book board is dense and strong, but it's not always easy to come by and it takes muscle or specialized equipment to cut down to size. I use mat board instead. An artist friend, who is also a picture framer, passes on her off-cuts. Large covers made with mat board would likely warp (sturdy book board eliminates that problem) but for my small covers it's a good weight, readily available and easily cut with a heavy-duty paper cutter.

Okay, let's make a few covers. Please note, this is the method I've come up with that works for me. I'm sure an experienced book binder would have tips to improve both the process and the end result. But, as with everything, practice is the trick.

Choose your decorative paper. I'm using calligraphy paper (lightweight but tough and it takes printing ink well) relief printed with a botanical pattern from a rubber block I carved. A tip -- when you're making papers you might use for covers, create enough for the two covers, something I often neglect to do.

Here we've got two sheets of printed paper, mat board cut to 5.5x5.5-inches (you want the covers to be a quarter-inch larger all the way around than the 5-inch concertina pages), glue (I'm using thinned Yes! paste), an inexpensive brush with stiff-ish bristles (a 3/4 or 1-inch flat works well) and a bone folder (or blunt table knife).

Cut the decorative paper  with a good margin for folding over -- here about 7x7-inches. If you're using mat board one side may be coloured -- mine was pale green -- but the back side is usually white. To make sure the mat colour doesn't show through the white of the decorative paper, I put the glue on the white side of the mat. Spread the glue evenly, paying attention to the corners.

Center the glued mat board over the wrong side of the decorative paper and lay it down -- this way you can see exactly where you're placing it. Press into place, then turn the cover over and smooth out any air bubbles with the bone folder, working from the middle to the outside edges. Check the corners are well-adhered and then run the bone folder along the edges of the mat board.

Flip over the glued cover and trim off the four corners, but not too closely! Leave at least the thickness of the mat board -- here about 1/8-inch.

Working on some waste paper (old flyers and magazines are good), spread glue on two opposite sides of the decorative paper. Fold snugly over the mat board and press firmly.

Brush glue on the other two sides and then, using a finger nail, poke in that little bit of excess paper you left when trimming the corners. It's almost like making a hospital corner on a bed sheet. Then fold down the decorative paper and press firmly. 

Here you can see I cut this corner a little short and a tiny bit of mat board is showing. I checked and once the concertina is glued in place, my mishap will be hidden. If it did show, I could cut a sliver of the decorative paper, trying to match up the pattern as best I could, and glue it into place. This fix works easier with thin paper -- thicker paper is more challenging. 

Ta-da! Two finished covers. Choose which will be the front and the back. 

If you plan to have a ribbon tie to hold the book closed, now is the time to glue it in place. Run a line of glue in the middle of the back cover, pressing the ribbon in place.

I decided not to use ribbon and went straight to attaching the covers. Lay the folded concertina on the back cover to remind yourself you don't want to spread glue over the entire cover. Here you can see that 1/4-inch margin you want to leave free of glue. Spread glue evenly on the back cover (putting some on the ribbon as well if using) and then press the concertina in place. Lay a piece of waxed paper over that back page and, using the bone folder, press firmly in place, paying attention to the corners. If any glue does squeeze out, wipe with a slightly damp cloth. Before moving onto gluing the front cover, lay in a fresh sheet of waxed paper. You don't want to inadvertently glue the book shut! 

Brush glue on the back side of the front cover, leaving the 1/4-inch clean border. Place the folded concertina, attached to the back cover, facing up. Standing directly over, lower the front cover down into the first page of the concertina, lining it up with the back cover. Feel with the tips of your fingers that you've got it in place. Carefully open up the front cover, lay down a piece of wax paper, and press. When everything is well-secured, tuck in a clean piece of wax paper, sandwich the whole book between two more clean pieces of wax paper and place under a stack of books or magazines for a few hours to dry.

There we go -- a blank concertina waiting to be filled! If you made it to the end of this lengthy post, thanks so much for following along. And for those who are thinking -- "This method is way too fiddly, there's too much measuring, I don't have any long papers and I hate glue!" -- have I got a treat for you. See you in the next post!