DIY Network

Hand-Stitched, Handmade Albums From "Scrapbooking" episode SCB-412

	alternate design

Project by Anna Griffin.

It's easy to make your own album with beautiful papers and luxurious ribbon using traditional Japanese stab binding. Use decorative papers to cover ordinary chipboard and to make an elegant cover for your album. Drill through the covers and pages to prepare the book for binding. Stitch ribbon in a simple yet classic pattern to create a sturdy book, perfect for a special album. Finish the book with a decorative brass frame embellishment for the title. This technique can be used to make many different sized albums, with and without ribbon.

Materials:

Anna Griffin decorative papers
Anna Griffin for All Night Media brass embellishment
chipboard
PVA glue
watercolor paper with a deckle edge
bulldog clips
paper drill, drill press, awl or hole punch
about 2 yards narrow ribbon
wide-eyed blunt needle
scissors or craft knife
ruler

advertisement

	Figure A
	PDF PDF Pattern - Chipboard Pieces
	Figure B
	Figure C
	Figure D
	Figure E
	Figure F
	Figure G
	Figure H
	Figure I
	another design option

1. Cut chipboard to have two 6-1/2-inch square pieces and two 6-1/2" x 3/4" pieces (figure A). For cutting patterns, click on the PDF Pattern file at the right.

2. Cut two 7-1/2" x 10" papers for outside covers. Apply glue to the back of the paper using a brush to apply a thin even coat.

3. Lay one square of the chipboard onto the paper, about a half-inch in from the top and bottom edges, so that one edge of the square is aligned with the green stripe in the paper. Lay a smaller chipboard piece on the paper, with the top and bottom edges of the chipboard aligned with the square piece’s edges and with the long edge on the other side of the paper’s green stripe (figure B).

Tip: Leaving a 1/4-inch gap will make the album open easily.

4. Cut the corners of the extra paper on a diagonal to remove (see again figure B). Apply more glue to the edges and fold up and over the edges of the chipboard (figure C).

Note: Be sure to tuck the folded paper into the gap between the pieces of chipboard. This makes a stronger album. Repeat this process with the other pieces of chipboard and paper.

5. Cut two 6-inch square pieces of green decorative paper. Apply glue to the back of these papers and adhere them to the inside of the covers, covering the chipboard (figure D).

6. Cut inside pages to size. The pages should be 6" x 7", with the deckled edge of the paper along the shorter side.

7. Stack the pages together with the covers in place. Use large bulldog clips to hold the pieces together.

8. Mark placement of holes in spine edge at 1 inch, 2-1/2 inches, 4 inches and 5-1/2 inches, measuring from the top edge of the album (figure E).

9. Use a paper drill, drill, or awl to make holes in the cover and through the pages (figure F). If a hole punch is used, work through the cover and then through several pages at a time.

Note: It’s easier to keep the pages together when the holes are made to ensure even holes through the whole album. Leave the clamps on the album for the stitching process.

10. To determine the amount of ribbon needed for binding, wrap ribbon around the album with pages four to five times. The amount varies depending on the paper used and the number of pages, so it’s easiest to measure this way before binding.

11. Thread ribbon through needle, leaving a short tail (figure G). From the back of the book, thread the ribbon up through the hole to the second hole from the top, leaving a 10-inch piece at the end. Bring the ribbon around the spine and up through that hole again.

Note: As you take each stitch, carefully smooth the ribbon to make it lay flat. Also, be careful not to pierce the ribbon as you stitch.

12. Go up through the hole at the top of the book, then down around the spine and back up through that hole again. Wrap the ribbon around the top edge of the book and then come up through that same end hole again. Go up in the hole to the right.

13. Repeat this stitching pattern through the remaining holes. This stitching creates a pattern which leaves the front and the back of the book identically stitched (figure H). Ending in the third hole down, tie the remaining ribbon into a knot, then a bow, to ornament the cover. Remove clamps.

14. Create a title for the album by writing or printing onto card stock. Mount the title to the brass embellishment, then attach to the cover of the album (figure I).

See below for more examples of Anna's beautiful handmade books.

RESOURCES :

decorative paper and embellishments - Anna Griffin
Anna Griffin Inc.
Website: www.annagriffin.com

patterned paper and ribbon
Anna Griffin Inc.
Website: www.annagriffin.com

GUESTS :

Anna Griffin
Anna Griffin Inc.
Website: www.annagriffin.com