Welcome to the wonderful world of journaling! i promise, if i can make one then you
can too. The following instructions will make a journal that is 5 3/4″ x 4 1/2″.
Materials:
3. When all the papers are folded, squeeze the signatures together at the fold. Measure
this width;
You can now cut the spine cover at this width.
4. With a book this size, you will need 4 sewing holes. Mark a vertical line 1/2″ in from
either end of the page, and then mark 1 1/2″ from those lines.
5. Punch holes through the signatures where they have been marked.
6. Now comes the sewing. This is what you should have at this point:
Write “top” on the top page to help keep your orientation of the signatures when
sewing. Thread up your needle, knot it 2″ from the end, and here we go:
go into #1, come out #2, go into #3, come out #4. go down to #5, come out #6, go UP
into #7 (also hole #3), come out #8 (also hole #2), go DOWN into #9, and out #10. at
this point tie a knot with the string end that is hanging at #1.
*the blue lines indicate which sewing lines will be visible to you
go into #11, come out #12, go UP to #13, come out #14, go DOWN to #15, and come
out #16. string the thread through the loop that was created between #4 and #5, and
carry on as before.
**remember: you are only ever working with 2 signatures at any time. Try and keep
the thread as taut as possible.
7. When you are finished sewing, you should have something like this:
8. Apply a layer of glue to the spine, wrap in wax paper, and clip in place with
paperclips/clothespins.
* try to use a medium weight fabric such as cotton, as a heavyweight fabric will be
difficult to glue down and a lightweight fabric may show glue seeping through. you
don’t need to iron the fabric (see below).
3. now glue the covers to the fabric, with the cover guide UP.
pull the fabric taut underneath to stretch out any wrinkles.
5. glue down the edges of the fabric, trying to make precise corners.
6. allow the cover to dry, pinning in place if necessary.
3. repeat steps 1&2 for the last page. push the signatures back into the spine.
6. with wax papers between covers and pages, place your book under a heavy weight
and allow to dry for at least 24 hours.