Making Bookcloth

Between family visitors and lots of gardening this weekend, I made a big batch of beautiful Japanese bookcloth for the class I am teaching at the end of this week. We've made bookcloth in some of the classes I teach, and during the summer sessions at the studio we make it throughout the week, along with paste paper or tie-dyed paper, for projects and to take home. 

I start with fat quarters of 100%, good quality quilting fabric. Iron the fabrics with plenty of steam. If you have a project size in mind, cut the fabric about 2 inches larger than you need on each dimension. Otherwise, just cut the fat quarter into 2 or 3 pieces.

You'll need Yes paste, stiff brush (a large stencil brush is shown here), large acrylic brayer, large piece of acrylic for a work surface, artist's tape, and backing paper. I like to use ArtKraft white paper, on a 24" wide roll. Cut the paper a few inches larger than the fabric on each dimension.

Thin the Yes paste before using. Scoop out half the (8 oz.) jar and transfer to another container. Add 1/4 cup water to the paste and stir until it is the consistency of fresh honey. If more water is needed, add it one tablespoon at a time. This will cover about 50, 9" x 12" pieces.

Tape the paper to the acrylic sheet with artist tape. Apply a thin but even layer of paste. Gently lower the fabric down onto the glued surface, and smooth out the air bubbles, first with your fingers, then with the acrylic brayer.

Untape the paper sheet and move it to another surface to dry. This will take a minimum 45 minutes. I let my sheets dry for several hours. Check after 10 minutes for any air bubbles; remove if needed.

When completely dry, cut the cloth to the project size and iron it again. Quilting tools work great for cutting!

Viola! Beautiful bookcloth made by you! 

Stab, Cover, Button & Bind

Next weekend, I'll be teaching the above workshop and projects at Benedictine College in Lisle, Illinois for the Chicago Calligraphy Collective. We'll be making a collection of 3 Japanese stab bound books along with a custom slipcase, as well as the Buttonhole Book, a lovely case bound book with cut-out openings across the spine, bound with the buttonhole stitch. There are also a few surprises in store which I won't go into here; if you like working with paper, you'll love the bonus!

In preparation for the slipcase, I'm busy in the studio today making book cloth from a fabulous stash of Japanese fabrics that I acquired at the quilt show last month in Chicago. I am taking photos as I work and will post a little "how-to" on making your own book cloth in a future blog entry. 

This is the only class I am teaching this summer during my sabbatical, and I understand there are still a few spots left. If interested, you can view the details at the CCC website (see link at right). You don't have to be a member to take the workshop, and you don't have to be a calligrapher, although some of this might rub off on you when you hang out with these talented folks.  Book virgins (never made a book before) are also welcome; you'll be amazed at what you make your first time out. Hope to see some of you there!

Signs of Summer

I have missed posting here for the past week, and also missed hearing from you in response. Alas, work and life sometimes get in the way. It has finally begun--the steady stream of summer houseguests arriving here to enjoy nearby Chicago. This past weekend we had family visitors for several days, and managed to pack in a ton of activities including a walking tour of Little Italy, a visit to the newly opened modern wing of the Art Institute, dinner in Greek Town, a tour of Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House, and a visit to Powell's Bookstore in Hyde Park. (No Obama sightings to report.) Along the way, we passed the site where Mrs. O'Leary's cow started the great Chicago fire, now the site of the Chicago Fire Museum.

Objects related to books seemed to be everywhere. In Little Italy, at the Jane Addams - Hull House, there was a wonderful display of a bookbinder's bench, a cast iron nipping press, a small standing press, a hot stamping tool, and a leather parer, along with a sample of a handbound book with marble paper and leather on the spine. Bookbinding was taught to the immigrants along with several other crafts as a way to help integrate new arrivals into the community. 

Powell's Bookstore has a fabulous, full bookcase of older books on bookbinding and related book arts; I often visit there when I am looking for something that is out of print or hard to find. This time I came away with two treasures: a book on decorated paper designs from the 1800's, and a small book of John DePol's wood engravings. When visiting Hollander's last week, I had purchased a couple of the DePol reproduction papers, mostly because I liked the way they looked. Now I have some background reading to do on the artist. And where did I put my eraser carving tools?

Another treasure I saw at Powell's, but could not justify the expense, was a copy of Bernard Middleton's Restoration of Leather Bindings, with hand marbled paper and leather spine, a real beauty. At $225, it was not in my budget, but I did get to hold it and turn the pages, savoring the smell and the feel of this exquisitely bound book, a limited edition. When my soft-bound, mass market copy arrives from Amazon next week, I'll have the same content but, alas, not the joy of holding the original. 

The first weekend of June brings more fun guests and the Printer's Row Book Fair, my all-time favorite summer activity in Chicago. I'll be posting more about this event in the weeks to come; if you're a real "bookie" and have been thinking about visiting Chicago, this would definitely be the weekend to come!

Catch of the Day

I spent most of today in the fabulous Hollander's paper store in Ann Arbor, Michigan. My husband periodically has business in Detroit, and since Ann Arbor is on the way, he drops me off for the day. Today was make-up for the same trip we tried to take back in mid-February, right after a terrible ice storm the night before. We got on the highway, and after going only 6 miles in 2 hours, had to turn around and go home -- no business AND no paper that day!

Hollander's is one of those mecca stores -- you decide to go, anticipate the trip, make a wish list, and when you finally, at long last, arrive, you feel overwhelmed when you walk in the door. So much beauty, so little time! Will you ever be able to experience it all? Well, been there, and done that. My eyes no longer glaze over and I can get right down to business. This leaves time to go upstairs later to the wonderful Found store for a few vintage baubles.

Mostly I bought paper and boards, and a small bottle of thick PVA to try, especially recommended for box building. Also purchased a spool of waxed linen thread in lime green. I buy one every time I go, whether I'm running low or not, because no one else seems to have this funky color, and I have an innate fear that one day I will go and it will all be gone forever. 

Today also had bonus: the artisans' market that adjoins Hollander's building was open for business, and what a treat to walk through, looking at the flowers and fruits and veggies, as well as the breads and other homemade treats, interspersed with beautiful leather handbags and funky jewelry. If you live anywhere near Ann Arbor, this weekend is their Antiquarian Book Fair, a great place to find all sorts of wonderful stuff related to books.

So, here for your virtual enjoyment are my "swatch books" of papers from today --Japanese screen prints, Indian screen prints and marbles, french marbles, a few DePol prints, and some novelty choices. The larder is now bursting with papers, so it's time to make more books!

Gone Papering!

I'm off to Hollander's in Ann Arbor today and tomorrow for a paper frenzy! Wish you all could come with me. I'll be posting a full report when I return.

Weighty Matters

This is easily one of the most efficient, effective pieces of equipment I have in my studio -- a book cloth covered brick. Bigger than an ashtray, smaller than a book press, the simple brick does as much to make finished work look professional as careful cutting and measuring. Your paper and board projects, especially those that have been glued, can be placed under one or more bricks for several hours and will emerge nicely flattened every time. This is the antidote to those papers that wrinkle terribly when you first apply glue; a little weight, properly applied early on, can do wonders for final appearance.

I have a cart of these in my studio, about 25 in all, so that I always have plenty for myself and for visiting students. The bricks come from the home improvement store; usually under a buck each, or maybe you already have a stack in your garage. Be sure to use only the smooth, solid ones, not the ones with holes in the center or grooves cut into the outer edge. I cover the bricks with unlined book cloth (no paper on the back) but you could also use the lined version. Book cloth is preferable to paper, as you'll be placing the bricks on damp surfaces which may damage a paper covering. You'll need a hefty portion of PVA for the job, along with a wide (1 1/2") inexpensive paintbrush and a pair of scissors.

Treat the brick as if it is a package you are wrapping, and cut the book cloth accordingly. Apply a lavish amount of PVA to the cloth as you wrap--the brick absorbs an incredible amount of moisture, and will soak up more glue than you might expect.  Instead of folding and overlapping the two short ends of the "package," cut from the edge of the cloth to the brick at each of the four corners, then glue on the resulting four flaps one layer at a time. Your brick will be prettier if you arrange for the cut edges of cloth to end at an edge of the brick.

Allow your newly covered bricks to dry overnight before using them to press projects. You can turn them to expose another surface every hour or so to speed up the drying process.

Be sure to wrap any project you place under brick weights in a waxed sheet before you apply the weight. If your project is larger than one brick, just put another one (or more) side by side to cover the full surface. For thicker projects, you can stack bricks two layers high. On slow days, when nothing needs to be pressed, place one weight in each hand and repeat: lift left, lift right, lift both -- get those endorphins flowing so your creative juices will return!

I have a field trip tomorrow! 

Book Stimulus Package

The government may not have any money left to fund your art projects, but Fiji Island Mermaid Press has stepped up to the plate and is offering 8 free mini books by book artists for you to download. The files are provided in pdf format, then you print them out and assemble them. How cool is that?

Most of the books are bound using the french fold. If you're not familiar with this simple binding, you'll find directions on how to do it included with several of the downloads. While you're visiting Fiji Island's website, click around and enjoy some of the many visual treats they offer throughout their site. BTW, if  you want a bonus free book, check out the 2008 artist book listings and download Body Language. 

You can claim your stimulus package at Fiji Island Mermaid Press. No pesky forms to fill out, no empty promises to stop making sub-prime books, it's free and it's fun!  Perhaps you'll make a little box or slipcase on your own to house this collection, or better yet, you may be inspired to create your own artist book. Enjoy!