The Gryphon's Feather Studio

riffing and stitching

Riff

as a noun: 

• an ostinato phrase (as in jazz) typically supporting a solo improvisation; also :  a piece based on such a phrase
• a distinct variation  

as an intransitive verb:

• to perform, deliver, or make use of a riff

First known use of riff- 1935

(from Merriam-Webster)

 

getting ready to riff

(clockwise from left: my heavily annotated copy of Exposed Spine Sewings by Keith Smith, my big binder of personal notes & stitch samplers, (the green page is fun foam- easy to sew through when working out a group of sewing ideas), wood glue for constructing stitch samplers & practice cards, piercing template, stitch sampler & practice card.)

As a bookbinder, I love learning new sewings, but I also love riffing on sewings I already know. The process is like solving a puzzle.  First, I have to examine the way the stitches from a particular sewing duck and weave to look the way it does yet maintain the tension that holds the whole book together, and then, I set to work on figuring out how to alter the original sewing and still end up with a book.  Sometimes, I combine parts from two different sewings to make a new-to-me interpretation.  I'm a pretty geeky person bookbinder.

But, for all my geekiness, I'm also a pretty irreverent bookbinder. I've read those rules in those formal books on bookbinding, and, mostly, I chuck them out. Thinking of having to be so careful, of having to "follow the rules" made me anxious, so I stopped following the rules. I wanted to see what would happen.

Would my books fall apart? Would they be grotesque? Does it really matter if I am not measuring down to 1/64"? Can't I just use Elmer's? What if all I have is a soup spoon and a thumbtack, and not a bone folder and an awl? (the answers- nope, nope, nope, yep, and yep, you can make a book just fine.)

I once entertained a class by making a book without using a ruler. With so many bookbinders worshiping the God of Precision at the Altar of Expensive Tools, how did I get to be such a heretic? 

Way back when, hmm, eighteen years ago or so, I took my first bookbinding class and fell hard for the idea I could make a book.  Given that I loved books with my whole bookwormy heart, and had serious crushes on the feel of nice paper and the smell of paste, I was destined to be hooked! I took more bookbinding classes over the next couple of years, progressively learning more complicated sewings. 

In one particular class, about fifteen years ago, I was really lost.  Somewhere in the beginning, I missed some incredibly important bit, and just couldn't figure out what was I was doing wrong. I was so lost I cried! And, I wasn't the only one reduced to tears that day. The teacher, widely admired and kinda famous, was stern, rigid, and intimidating.  My fellow students and I were paying big money to take a class where we were scolded, patronized, belittled, not allowed to talk to the people sitting next to us, not allowed to ask questions or for help, and either kept up with the pace of the instruction or failed. The instructor actually used the phrase, "sink or swim" to describe the class during the introduction.

Luckily, at lunch, some friends helped me figure out what I was doing wrong, and I made it through the class.

The class structure wasn't that uncommon; I had taken similar bookbinding classes from other instructors. This "boot camp" mentality was an accepted norm. There was, and still is, a whole faction of people teaching bookbinding this way- heavy on the rules and low on encouragement.  

After that experience, I taught myself by working through the bindings in various books. Instead of looking at some of those complex diagrams for sewing bindings and feeling my eyes glaze over (oh, all those little numbers and arrows, and aaaaaarghhhh...), I'd sit down with needle and thread, and work my way through those squirrelly diagrams, one little number at a time. Those complicated diagrams began to make a lot more sense, and I made a lot of books. I also learned a lot about the "rules."  

I learned which "rules" were actually structurally important, which "rules" were icing-on-the-cake rules (ones that improve the appearance of your finished book), which "rules" were really meant for rebinding rare texts to preserve them for all eternity, and which "rules" were just added by anal-retentive, and occasionally sadistic, instructors. (Just kidding! Well, about the sadism, not kidding about the anal-retentiveness.) I learned that I could alter the instructions for a sewing and still have a book at the end. 

Maybe more importantly, I found a way of approaching bookbinding that has continued to keep the joy and pleasure in the process of making books. The process of learning and experimenting became play. While a finished book is indeed a lovely thing, enjoying the process of making that lovely thing is good for my soul!

Leather Wrap a Purchased Journal: Another Graph Paper Journal Hack

Gryphon prefers to use graph paper (quad paper) in his sketchbooks because it works equally well for drawing and writing. He uses them to work on drawings, RPG character designs, logos, poetry, and fiction. He and his closest friends often develop creative story lines they all work on simultaneously, writing fiction and drawing characters.  Sometimes the works are collaborative and meant to fit together into one whole; other times the work is parallel, and exists in the same story arc.  

When he filled his latest sketchbook (wire bound, black covers, serviceable but dull), Gryphon asked if we might find something that would have graph paper and be "cooler."  I poked around online, not really finding anything.  I realized I probably was going to have to create something for him.  We took a field trip to Barnes & Noble so he could look at the way various writing journals were constructed. He loved the ones that had the leather flap that wrapped around and tied.  He also really liked the embossed leather designs on some of the lined journals.  Gryphon had one of them a few years prior as his special "writing notebook" for a language arts class, but lined paper just wasn't going to work.

Barnes & Noble had some refillable versions of both the wrapped and embossed types of leather-bound journals, but there weren't versions with graph paper, even as refills. Rather than drive myself insane trying to find a graph paper refill online and then try to match that refill size to a cover, I decided I could make one at least as nice as what Barnes & Noble had, and, most likely, make one nicer.  (yeah, I know- not terribly modest of me!)

I did not want to deal with having to source sheets of graph paper large enough to use for pages to bind a book from scratch, so I purchased one of the very same journals you saw here in my DIY planner hack. (except this one was black.)

Note:  Barnes & Noble sells these Miquelrius blank graph paper journals for $9.95 in their stores & online.    (You have to search Miquel Rius as two separate words. Also, I'm not a Barnes & Noble affiliate.)  Amazon carries the brand, but only seems to have the more expensive version of the same book for $15.99 - $23.99. The only real difference seems to be that the more expensive version has an elastic closure, which doesn't seem to justify the price difference. 

 

I helped Gryphon find his old writing journal, and he agreed to sacrifice the cover for his new sketchbook.(Of course, we saved the book block full of writing.)  I also snagged the ribbon bookmark from that journal. I dug through my leather stash, and found  a leather upholstery remnant in the perfect color to match the cover piece.  If I hadn't had green leather, I would have used black or navy.

I also found a zipper pocket I had cut out a thrifted leather bag that was about the right size for the project.  (I had left the fabric interior pocket attached, so I had a fully working lined pocket.) The leather pocket  was used to create a built in place for drawing/writing supplies.  

TIP #1:  Leather Sources

Your local Goodwill, Salvation Army, St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store will have leather garments and bags that provide more leather for the same, or lower, price than you can buy the same amount of pieces of leather elsewhere. You'll find variety in color, texture and thickness.  Be sure to read the label to be sure you are purchasing leather. 

Also, upholstery remnants can be purchased from various decorator fabric places/re-upholstery places that work in leather. 

TIP #2: Don't Use Leather?

Thrift stores are also a terrific source for quality faux leather materials.  You can find lovely faux leather in the form of garments, and bags.

 

How to's are fairly straightforward:

I simply cut two pieces from the leather remant- one to create the cover and the other to create the tie.  

To cut leather, and have it come out straight and smooth, I prefer to use a rotary cutter.  Of course, I use a straight edge for the straight lines, but I used a dinner plate as a guide to create the curved edge for this cover.

TIP #3: Adhesives

I glued the book into place using Beacon 527 glue.  Beacon Quick Grip would also work well. I use these glues when having a flexible, clear, waterproof bond is necessary. Both glues can be found at Wal Mart, Michael's, JoAnns, etc.   

I glued the front cover of the Miquelrius book first and weighted with several heavy books.

After allowing to dry for 24 hours, I glued the bookmark to the spine, and glued the leather across the spine of the Miquelrius book.  

Next, I glued the back of the Miquelrius book to the leather.

Before weighting it down to dry, I smoothed and tugged the leather tightly across the spine and back cover.  Before weighting it down from the top, I placed a stack of books next to the spine, and a stack right next to the fore-edge of the newly adhered Miquelrius book; then, I stacked books on top to weight it all down.  (the books on the sides prevented the Miquelrius book from sliding off the leather and helped keep the leather on the spine nice and tight.  I allowed it to dry for 24 hours. 

I glued in the leather tie, making it stronger by feeding it through the leatehr cover in a couple spots.  This takes the stress off just one point.  I glued all points of contact between the tie and the cover.  I weighted it down, also, and allowed it to dry.

Next, I glued the decorative pieces we had cut off of Gryphopn's old writing journal. Besides using the cover, I also used the spine.  I placed waxed paper on top of and under the cover, wrapped the leather around, and weighted it down.  

To attach the pocket:

I trimmed the scavenged pocket, making sure it fit and the whole thing would wrap nicely. Then, I tucked wax paper inside, and glued the leather front of the pocket to the fabric interior pocket.  I weighted it down, and allowed it to dry.

Next, I replaced the wax paper with a clean piece, and glued the back side of the scavenged pocket to the interior of the leather flap.  I weighted it down, and allowed it to dry. To create a zipper pull, I cut a bitty strip of the green leather, threaded it through the loop on the zipper, and sewed a few stitches through the green leather strip near the loop to hold the zipper pull in place.

The drying time required between each step might seem daunting as it makes the project take a few days.  However, given the sketchbook was going to be carried around in a backpack full of school books, get lost in a teenage boy's messy room, fall off any number of flat surfaces, I really wanted it to hold together.  Allowing adhesives to dry completely, and weighting down the surface are important for creating a strong bond. 

In fact, the photos you see are what the sketchbook looks like after several months of use!  I just shot these images this week.  (This morning, I found Gryphon's sketchbook open and tangled in the blankets on his bed looking just fine!)

 

The Free Flip Flap Free Journal Class

(yes, I meant to say free twice.)

 

This absolutely free

(no gimmicks, no tricks)

and very fun class

will teach you how to create a bound journal

that lies flat (to make it easy to work in)

with fold-out pages (to make it interesting)

using a supply list of inexpensive materials

(to make it affordable) 

including paper that is free!

That explains the double use of the word free in the title The Free Flip Flap Free Journal! (it is a free class and uses free paper!)

Here's a look at the type of journal we'll be making:

 




This particular example is very slim in thickness.  You will be able to make your journal as thick or thin as you like.  The number of folios (paper folded in half to form pages are called folios) and the number of signatures  (folios either singly or stacked together along the crease, form a signature) to suit your needs and preferences.  The book will lie flat for easy use regardless of thickness.
 




This project combines several techniques from my fourth book, Creative Wildfire. Examples of the book and the flaps can be see on pages 6, 30, 46, and 47.  The page painting technique can be found beginning on page 32, and the binding technique can be found beginning on page 20. 

I want to stress that YOU ABSOLUTELY DO NOT NEED THE BOOK to take class, get the most out of the class, understand the class, or enjoy the class.  I have all the techniques videotaped for you.   If you do have the book, you may find making notes in the book margins helpful for future reference.

First, let me show you the Free Paper we'll be using:



Yes, these fold-out paint brochures, free for you to take at the hardware store, will serve as the paper for our pages!

Begin here with the introductory video:

 

and then head on over to here for the rest of the class!!

 

Feel free to share this link/class with others!!!

comments are closed as this page seems to be a spam magnet!

The Big Time Book

The Big Time Book is headed to Virginia Beach!! I'll be teaching this book structure and painting style at Art & Soul 2012- Virginia Beach!

 

last night's work in this afternoon's light

journals for littles

Last night, I was writing blog posts in my head, and I reminded myself to show you the journals I made for my littles.

I made journals for all the littles at our family reunion. The inside pages are a mix of inexpensive canson cold press watercolor paper, envelopes, Lenox paper, drawing paper, and some of my hand-painted paper. The covers are doubled-over Fabriano Artistico, painted on one side before folding. They are long enough that they also have a flap.

I went out onto the porch/deck/big step thingy and made a quick video on my iPhone:

 

iPhone Photo Friday

last weekend

I saw this...

while sitting here working on this

and when it became just too warm, I headed down to the riverbank and saw this:

and smiled at this: 

and this, these two cousins made my smile crack open wide.

 

 

just some notes...

 

(Lilah puts her whole head and front torso under the water, chooses a river stone, brings it to the bank and adds it to a pile of her special stones.)

 

(two life-jacketed little girls, Maggie & Zoë, holding hands. Maggie, so careful with Zoë, who is to be five tomorrow, reminds me of how much Maggie has grown.  It hasn't been overlong since this was Gryphon holding onto Mags...  the love and the change make me weep sweet-mama-tears.)

[No Title]

Working out new book sewings
Sent from my iPhone

Rainy days and Sundays

This weekend involved a bit more resting than I had hoped for... I picked up a stomach bug from my son's best friend. (so far, Gryphon is perfectly fine- fingers crossed)

 I've not been able to shake the fatigue from the pneumonia. If you know me even a little, then you know how weird it would be to find me unintentionally asleep in the daylight hours. I am frustrated by the effect this drained feeling is having on my life. I have things to DO!!!! 

This weekend, I had planned to do SO much.... it didn't happen. I did complete one project... I used the papers I created in my artfest classes as pages for a prototype of a book binding idea I had...

 

For those of you who have been inquiring, info on new online classes coming soon!