Fabric Journal: Lesson 6

 Binding Your Journal

The binding style I used on my journal is quite a simple one.  While it looks like a Long Stitch binding, it is actually a series of simple 5 hole pamphlet stitches. Each spread is sewn into the cover individually, so you don't have to worry about long threads getting tangled and making a mistake close to the end of the binding.

The following video will show you how to make a template for punching your pages and cover for stitching.

Making Sewing Templates for Binding 

Punching Holes for Sewing

This video reviews the making of templates and shows how you use them to make the holes in your pages and cover.

Since you will have 5 pages to sew into your journal you will need a template with 5 columns of holes to indicate where the pages are to be sewn. You will make two of these templates. One will be taped to the inside of the spine area of the journal cover and one will be taped to the outside of the spine area.  This will help you see the holes when you are going from the inside to the outside and back again. Fabric has a way of closing up and making the punched holes difficult to see -- the paper lets you see where they are. 

Each page will be sewn in using a 5 hole pamphlet stitch.

The tails of the thread will be trimmed to a 1/4" after the thread has been knotted with a square knot and the next page will be sewn into place. 

Binding Your Journal

This video shows the actual binding of pages into the journal with the 5 hole pamphlet stitch. 

If you wish, you may put extra reinforcement in the spine area for added support. (I put an extra strip of felt along the spine) This will make sewing a little more difficult but will make the spine stiffer.  It is optional and will not affect the operation of the journal. 

Finishing Touches

Finishing Touches

When your journal has been bound, there are still some things that may need to be done.  If you have made your cover decoration separate from the cover, that will need to be attached and the closure will need to be added to the journal if you are planning to have one. The video above shows the final touches I added to my journal.

Tag for the Journal

This video gives a brief look at the tag that was made for the back pocket of my journal and quickly details the steps that were taken to make it.

Extras

The fabric accordion book doesn't need binding, it just needs to have it's covers attached to the pages.  The covers are simply fabric wrapped pieces of stiff interfacing that are slightly larger than the folded stack of accordion pages.  You don't want any of the pages showing when the covers are closes.

The Finished Accordion Book

Finished Circle Journal

Finished Shabby Chic Journal

In the after-class discussion for Lesson 6, we talked about how to measure for binding templates when the embellishments on your pages made them thicker at one end than the other.  The following video describes that process.

Creating Binding Templates for Pages of Differing Thicknesses

Sometimes the pages in our journal do not end up the same size.  That can make aligning the sewing holes so that stitching that crosses the facing pages looks the way you want when the pages are sewn into the journal, difficult to accomplish. The following video shows how to transfer the sewing station holes so that facing pages of differing sizes will align.

Aligning Facing Pages

We also discussed creating image transfers on fabric using gel medium and inkjet images. The following video provides a demonstration of the technique and the results. 

Image Transfers on Fabric

iq

Fabric Journal: Lesson 5

 Preparing the Cover

The purpose of the cover is to provide protection for the pages of the book and to provide an idea as to the contents within. To that end, you need to consider several things:

1. The materials you are going to use to make the cover
2. The dimensions of the cover
3. The closure for the cover
4. The decoration on the cover
5. The binding style you plan to use

Material

This will be your choice.  My cover was made from a thick felt but you can make your cover from fabric of your choice.  As long as you feel it is thick enough to provide some protection for your book it will be suitable.  It can be several layers of fused fabric, fabric with interfacing, a thick fabric, a quilted fabric,-- there are suggestions in your handout.

Dimensions

The following video demonstrates how to measure your pages to determine the dimensions for your cover.

Calculating Dimensions for your Cover

There are also instructions in your handout.

Measuring for My Cover

This video demonstrates the measuring required for the cover of my new fabric journal and the resulting cover piece.

Closures

Another way to protect your pages is by having a closure on your journal. This keeps your cover securely fastened around your pages. 

The following video shows different examples of book closures.

Closure Options

Decorations on the Cover

Just as you decorated your pages, you should plan on decorating your cover. When planning your decoration placement, keep it away from the area where your closure is going to be (unless your closure is part of the decoration) and from the spine area of the cover. You are going to be sewing the pages through the spine so you don't want to place anything in that area that will make sewing difficult.

The next step is binding the journal.

Extras

For my Shabby Chic fabric journal I decided to use a textured fabric and line it with a cotton canvas. My cover was going to have a flap with a strap and buckle closure.  I contemplated raw versus clean edges. The following video shows the measurements necessary to complete my cover and the finished product.

Shabby Chic Journal Cover

Fabric Journal: Lesson 4

 Working on Pages

This is the bulk of the creative work.  You may still be placing Fabric motifs during this part of the project or even adding colour through stencils. 

• This is where you finish placing your motifs 
• Add embellishments -- buttons (remember you are going to be fusing pages together - if it's possible to sew buttons on after fusing leave them to the end), bits of lace, beads, other bits of fabric
• Add pockets or tags
• Add text, quotes, poems -- personalize the journal so that it means something to you or the person you're giving it to
• Give it a light coat of wax (optional) before hand stitching
• Add decorative hand stitch to the pages

Look to the Reference Links page for videos on decorative hand stitches. 

These videos demonstrate how to add text to pages.

Adding Text to Pages

Adding White Text to Black Fabric

Working with Pages -- An Update on Progress 

This quick video will show you how my circle journal is coming along.  I've got my cutouts done, my colour (such as it is) added, my fabric motifs adhered to my pages and my quotes written down. I may add a bit more here and there but for the most part, I'm ready to begin stitching.  

Dealing With an Oops

Mistakes can happen. Sometimes you want/need to cover them up. 

Working with Pages: Adding Wax  (an optional step)

This video shows how to apply a coat of wax to your page and the importance of creating a test page of the media you plan to use (if you plan to apply wax to the surface of your pages)

Working with Pages: Stitching

A quick video explaining my rationale for my thread colour choices and showing my less is more approach to adding hand stitch to journal pages.  I demonstrate on the cover decoration sheet I plan on using for my journal.

Adding a Pocket to Your Page

In my first journal, I didn't use pockets or tags but they are very popular in journals.  In the journal I'm working on now, I decided to branch out and explore making a fabric pocket.  I've used them in paper journals many times so I decided to take the plunge and make a fabric pocket with a fabric tag to put in it. Once again, measurement and planning are essential. 

Making a Fabric Origami Envelope

Another kind of enclosure is an envelope. I've used origami envelopes in journals for small items and sometimes, if I don't secure them with a drop of glue, I use them as a way of folding a letter or surprise journal entry. I thought it would be interest to see if one could be made from a square of fabric.

Completing Pages

When you've completed all the work you want to do on the pages, you will apply Wonder Under (or your choice of fusible web) to the back of one side of your double spread and fuse front and back together.  If you have thick embellishments (like buttons) put the thick side face down onto a towel and try to fuse that way.  Make sure the edges are fused -- they will receive the most wear and tear.  They can be reinforced with machine or hand stitch. 

Finishing Raw Edges

Once your pages are fused you want to reinforce the edges against wear. The fusing usually holds but corners can take a lot of abuse in turning pages. Stitching along the raw edge provides extra security. If you have done a seamed edge, this step isn't necessary.

Keep in mind that the pages may fuse unevenly depending upon the amount and type of embellishments you've used.  That is to be expected.  I used fusing as a way of putting my front and back pages together and supplying some stiffness to my pages.  Because the additions to my pages were fairly flat I was able to use a regular iron. If you have a lot of bulky embellishments, you may need to use a small iron like the Clover to get in and around your embellishments.  

If your pages have acquired a lot of bulk and body it may not be possible or necessary to fuse the front and back together -- it may be sufficient to simply sew around the edges.  That will be an individual decision made when you are ready to complete your pages. The bottom line is -- the front and back must stay together, be able to fold in half, and can be sewn into a cover.

Fusing Pages

This video shows the application of Wonder Under to the reverse side of the fabric and the fusing of the front and back to form the double page spread.

Fusing Your Pocket

After your pages have been fused, you can finish adding your pocket by fusing it in place. You may find that additional stitching as stress points might be required.  That will be an individual decision.

Extras

With my accordion book, I decided to experiment further with tissue paper.  I did an experiment printing text on tissue paper and using Wonder Under to fuse it to fabric.  I also investigated using the clear acrylic wax as a means of preventing the inkjet ink from smearing when moisture was applied. ex. damp fingers

Tissue Text

Adding the last of the butterfly motifs to the fabric accordion book.

Finishing the Motifs

One of the last steps in working with the pages of the accordion book is to add some stiffening to the fabric so that the book will be able to stand when open for display. The next video shows that stage in the accordion book progress.

Accordion Progress

With my Shabby Chic fabric journal I experimented with some commercial photo fabric and used that to add some text to my journal.  That was successful so I tried using my inkjet printer to print text on the lightweight, unbleached cotton muslin that I had on hand.  I learned some useful things about the process. Below is a video about my experience. 

Photo Fabric Sheets

Fabric Journal: Lesson 3

Preparing Fabric Motifs

Decide on the fabric motifs you are using. I used watercolour like drawings of several different flowers from a shower curtain.  It was lightweight, wrinkled and shiny synthetic fabric . This time I have a heavier, double ply, reversible fabric with only a single motif. The first time I used only one fabric, this time I'm using two different fabrics. 

You can use what you want, how you want, to create the effect you'd like to create.  You can even draw your own motifs directly on your fabric page or on a secondary fabric and apply it to your page -- or both. 

I used Wonder Under fusible web but there are other products on the market. (Misty Fuse, Heat and Bond Lite etc.) You may use whatever product you are comfortable using. 

There are directions for use of Wonder Under on your handout and a video on the Reference links page. 

Here is my video showing how I prepared and used my Fabric Motifs in my new journal:

Preparing Fabric Motifs

Applying Fabric Motifs

Extras

I'm currently working on an eight panel accordion book made from unbleached cotton. I've been experimenting with motifs taken from ordinary tissue paper.  When backed with Wonder Under and fused to the fabric, they become strong enough to stitch through and don't tear when being applied.

Tissue Motifs

Butterfly Motifs - the next steps

Several questions were raised during today's Lesson. The following video addresses those questions.

Lesson 3 Questions

Fabric Journal: Lesson 2

 Adding Colour to Your Pages

This is the wet and messy portion of the project so prepare your workspace accordingly.  Have paper towels on hand for clean up and put plastic down to keep your area dry and clean.  Depending upon the media you use, the colour may stain your hands so gloves may be an idea. Definitely wear a coverup or apron.

Don't forget to refer to the Reference Page for links to additional videos for more colouring techniques by professionals.  They do a better job than I do and you'll definitely learn more tips from them. 

The following videos show how I have added colour to my fabric:

Adding Colour to Fabric

Adding Colour to Fabric Part ll

Finished Results of Adding Colour

More Stencil Work

When the colour is dry, remember to heat set your work.  I always place my work between pieces of parchment paper to protect both my work surface and my iron. Look at the manufacturer's directions for the heat temperature for your particular product. 

I almost forgot, in the Adding Colour Part  ll video, I mentioned Pastel Dye Sticks and Fabric Crayons.  The following video shows my experiment using them to add colour to unbleached cotton.

Pastel Dye Stick and Fabric Crayon Experiment

Sorting Your Pages

Once you've added colour to the background, you will want to make sure that you put the fronts and backs of your double page spreads together.  You might have planned this order in advance, before you added the colour or this might be something that you decide after the colour has been added.  In the case of my first journal, it was something that I decided after the colour was added.  I played around with my pages until I came up with a pleasing combination.

Not only will you need to take into account the front and back of the spread, you will also want to see what the facing pages look like.  Facing pages are the folded pages that are next to each other when a book is opened.  Fold all the double pages in half and stack them up in a pile and open them one by one, as though they are pages in a book.  What do the facing pages look like when they are side by side?  What does the back of one page look like next to the front of another?  Those are facing pages.

When you have the colours of the facing pages arranged in a way that is pleasing, you'll need to remember the order.  I used a small piece of masking tape on the wrong sides of the pages to label them 1A 1B,2A 2B, etc. so I wouldn't have to go through that process again. That way, when I was working on the fronts and backs individually and out of order, I had an easy way of getting them into the order that I wanted.  "A" was the front, "B" was the back and 1,2,3 was the page order. 

Now I could go to the next step, which was planning where to put my fabric motifs.

Extras

As promised, the questions from lesson 2 were videotaped when demonstrations were provided.  The video is below.

Lesson 2 Question/Answers

An additional question came in about designing for facing pages.  That is easier to show than it is to explain so here is the video demonstrating how to plan for designs that will cross facing pages.

Another Question Answered

I am currently working on an eight panel accordion book made from unbleached cotton.  I used the dye based watercolours to add background colour to the long strip of cotton I'm using for my background. 

Applying Accordion Book Background Colour

Fabric Journal: Lesson 1

 Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

Now that you know what the course is about and you have your materials list, it's time to make some decisions. These decisions will help you collect the materials you'll need to make the journal that you want to make -- one that is personal to you. 

This video will take you through those decisions:

Design Decisions

You have been sent the instructions for Making a Fabric Journal by email.  If you have misplaced the document, a copy can be found here.

Making a Fabric Journal

Making Your Page Spreads

It is always best to work on pre-washed fabric. This will prevent your fabric from shrinking when you tea stain, dye or in any other way add colour to it.  When you tear or cut your page spreads to the size you would like them to be, it's nice when they stay that size after colour has been applied.  Some fabrics, unbleached cotton being one of them, can shrink significantly when hot water is used when applying colour in the form of tea stain or dye. 

I usually tear my fabric into strips of the page height I want and then tear or cut into the width for the double page spread.  Since I know I am going to be working with raw edges, the torn edge is fine for me.  You can prepare your pages in whatever manner you wish.  Just remember,  if you plan on finishing your edges you will need to adjust for a seam allowance in the dimensions of your page before cutting or tearing.

Prepare enough fabric so that you have enough for a front and back for each double page spread that you want to complete.  That will give you 4 pages. You should always have an even number of pieces of material.  If you want 20 pages for example, that would be 5 double page spreads which would mean 10 fronts and 10 backs that would eventually be fused together. 

Extras

For my Shabby Chic fabric journal I decided that I was going to put my pages into signatures with 4 sheets each.  Since my unbleached cotton muslin was very fine this time and I was not planning to fuse front and backs together but work on a single piece of cloth and let the stitching show through, I decided to give more body to the fabric by coating both sides with white gesso. The coverage would be thin and it didn't have to be complete because I would be adding fabric, paper, lace and other ephemera to the page before the journal was complete. 

Below is a video of the page preparation.

Preparing Shabby Chic Fabric Journal Pages with Gesso