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Leatherbound bookbinding is quite different from anything I’ve done before, and I still have much to learn and many new tools to acquire, but I’m quite proud of this end result.

The first change was the use of twine while binding. I used the French link stitching method as is typical for a covered spine, but instead of making it flat, I looped my thread around lengths of twine to make the raised decorative ridges. The cover itself is made with book board for the front and back, and I added some cardstock to the top and bottom of the spine (above and below the top and bottom ridges, respectively) for added support.

Once it was stitched and glued I rounded the edge with a mallet and applied glue once more to attach the spine leather directly to the pages. With it standing upright in the press, I then wrapped twine across the ridges, jerry-rigging a makeshift tying-up press (a piece of equipment I have yet to acquire). It worked quite well.

This book is 480 pages of lined cream Strathmore paper with semi-transparent flower imprints at the top and bottom corners of the spread. It’s the thickest book I’ve made to date, as my notebooks are usually 280 pages.

Though I do not have many of the tools needed to make a more fanciful leatherbound book—ie. stamps, gold foil, etc.—I tend to like this plain look. I especially like the contrast of the simple outside to the deep red interior paper. (And the smoothness of the leather feels incredible under the fingers!)