Hand Made - Bookbindng - Art Journals

Explore creative writing and art within a beautiful personalised art  journal

Thanks for your interest in my original creative art journals. You may purchase original journals pre-prepared or the bookbinding materials from other suppliers to make your own. I put all my art tutorials, art demonstrations, and many visual images you may download for your personal journalling use, on my Patreon site.

Become a Patron!

When you claim your Patreon rewards on my site, you help support Tessa the aged care therapy dog.   Thank you.

Tessa the Therapy Dog's Update

A 100-year-old's Birthday Party Invite

Therapy dog Tessa was invited to a Dot's 100th birthday party yesterday.
John, her nearest companion kept dropping birthday cake on the floor, much to Tessa's delight.

Keep an art and craft diary to plan and express your imaginative and creative life.
An art journal is a natural way for a crafts person to transition no artist, or an artist to delve into a more imaginative way of creative mixed media expression.

Bookbinding punch cradle and Awl

Bookbinding punch cradle and awl

Cream satin ribbon

Craftsmanship diaries open ways to explore our extraordinary innovativeness and record those things that give meaning to our lives.  For some, that might be self exploration, dreams, family, travel or close experiences with nature or an area of study such as science. The art journal is a visual diary where you may work free from rules, aside of course from those of integrity if plan on sharing you visual diary with others.

---

Large Natural Linen Thread Spool- Coated in wax- 250 grams

In the eighteenth century art journals were popular. Naturalists and archeologists kept detailed visual diaries to report their movements and investigations. In Victorian times, ladies commonly kept scrapbooks to record family ancestry or extraordinary occasions and used embroidery and watercolour skills to embellish them. 

---

100% Natural Beeswax Block For Waxing Thread

Gouache is opaque watercolour. It is fabulous to work in a more oil painterly technique. Also, being opaque, the less experienced artist can use it to cover over what otherwise might have been visual errors.
Coloured pencils or watercolour pencils, similarly, being easily portable, make excellent art journaling supplies.

---

I now make all the pages first, decorate them, before I create a mixed media art journal. This is so i know what width to make the book spine and the visial diary does not end up with gator mouth, unable to close.

Bookbinding thread. Waxed Linen, assorted colours

Bookbinding tools

Learn Bookbinding - your own art journals from scratch

Some of the materials I have ordered in to create my books from watercolour papers.

Regency Romance Fabric for a book cover

Le Beau Papillion fabric for a book cover.

Regency Romance fabric for a book cover

6 Size 18 Tapestry Needles -John James

I have a few bookmaking supplies already. I own all the art materials I good to fill the pages.  I have some basic craft supplies. 
Pencil
Ruler
Scissors

Paper slicer

 If you plan to make your own art journals from scratch, as I am now doing, at the minimum, you will need a book press.
Depending on what type of binding you will do will depend on whether you will need a sewing frame.  
If you will sew on tapes or cords, then you need a sewing frame.  If you will be sewing the signatures to each other, then you don’t need the sewing frame.
You will need to punch holes in the signatures for sewing.  I sell a cradle for this or you can use a large fat phone book as a substitute.
You will need to “back” the text block once it is sewn, and this needs backing irons which need a lying press or preferably finishing press to hold.  I know of no substitute for this process.
You will need brass-edged boards to make the hinge groove once you have attached the cover, but knitting needles are a good substitute for this.
Then if you want smooth edges on your text block, you will need a plough to cut the block to size.
All this adds up to a lot of money.  I think the best thing to do (if you haven’t already) is to watch a LOT of YouTube videos on binding and see what type of binding you want to do.  There are a lot of beginner videos for simple books.  All these videos will help you understand the procedures I mention above, how to do them, and what you will need to do them.

---

Bookbinding Mull

2 chopping boards, to make book press.

Faux bookbinding headbands

Bookbinding Mull

Most of the above bookbinding supplies have been purchased on Etsy or Ebay.

Wooden Bench Hook

From the Teacher's Super Store I bought:
1    Wooden Bench Hook
1   Self Healing Cutting Mats (Double-Sided) - A4
1   Satin Ribbon - Red
1    Snap Off Cutters - Small 
1    Wooden Buttons - Pack of 50
1    Wooden Pegs (7cm) - Pack of 12
2    Zart Glue Stick - 35g

---

I still need to buy:
Corner mitering tool
24” long quilting rule
10" 30/60/90 aluminium triangle
​Hole punch
Finishing press