Notebook 27

I have been doing some dressmaking this last week. For most of my adult life I have made my own clothes, recently I have bought things. Mainly because it's not so easy to find fabric and the cost is greater than all the imports we have for everyday clothes. I found this beautiful fabric on Friday.

This afternoon I have been making a skirt with eight panels. It's been interesting as my machine with it's walking foot is being serviced and the shop very kindly loaned me one. But no walking foot, so back to sewing on tissue paper, which I have not done for a very long time.

Notebook 27 is a hard backed one. In my sorting out of clothes I decide my turquoise linen trousers that must be 15 years old were not going to be worn again. I have dismembered them washed the fabric and started to use it. I used to go and stay with a friend in Yorkshire and found a great place for fabric near Saltaire. This linen came from there, I had/have trousers, jacket, shift dress and a skirt the whole piece of fabric cost me £10. I have always been pleased with that purchase. I printed out my seed head using the thermofax screen. I meant to say where I got it from last time, the company is called Thermofax Screens.

The back has just a single image.

I thought I would share my process, which is one that I have come up with, having talked to a bookbinder, seen You Tube videos and then reading my new books.

Printed fabric, which is glued onto a piece of brown paper using watered down PVA. This stabilizes the fabric.

The signatures have been made up from torn water colored paper.

These are then stitched together with strong thread that has been waxed. The strips of fabric are to help hold it all in place.

The boards are glued onto the brown paper, the gaps between the front, spine and back boards allow the book to fold shut. At each gluing stage it is important to place the piece of work under something very heavy.

The fabric/paper are cut so that the edges are neater. Then using Golden Gel Medium I glued the edges onto the boards having first of all cut across the corners.

Glue end papers to the book stack down the edge near the spine. Once all parts are dry and have been pressed it is time to put glue on the end paper that will be inside front and or back cover, place this onto the board and make sure it is straight and smooth out. Weight the whole closed book down and allow to dry.

It is now Sunday evening. I started to write this yesterday afternoon, but Blogger was not happy. My brain is too addled to write anymore. Hope that you have all had a good weekend. I went to visit Healing with Herbs at Barnsley this afternoon, will tell you more about that another time.