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Can I make a mini watercolour book?

 
r ransom
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Seeking ideas to make a mini watercolour book for painting on the go.

It's probably going to be 2inch or 3inch square.  Hard cover.  Some sort of fabric on the outside perhaps.  

Most important, it opens flat and won't fall apart with water.

This tutorial comes close and makes it look easy, albeit tedious.



Also, the comments suggested, it's not a good glue to use.  Any permies suggestions?

Maybe there is a better way.  Any ideas?

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r ransom
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A quick look on amazon.ca for
. Cotton
. Under 4 inch
. Square
. More than 40 pages
. No, you stupid-head search engine, I said 100% cotton!

Gives me a mid grade paper, 3.9 inch square, 44 page (aka, one side of the paper), for $21, on sale.  That's the price to beat!  Seems easy as it doesn't look like it would take up a lot of supplies and most can be found around the house.  Most of the cost looks like time.

So, 44 pages, minus fromt and back page, makes it...12 folios? Bits of paper folded to make 4 pages.   Does that math sound right?


Next, got to find a good pattern. That looks like the hardest part.

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r ransom
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Maybe this one?


Her example opens flat and she has more than one paper per fold.

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Carla Burke
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I'll give these a watch, after dinner...

"The only thing...more expensive than education is ignorance."~Ben Franklin. "We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light." ~ Plato

 
r ransom
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I thought we had another thread on this when nicole made a book.   Anyway, I found these two

https://permies.com/t/49251/art/bind-book-hand

https://permies.com/wiki/149690/pep-textiles/Leather-notebook-PEP-BB-textile

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I use water color blocks, sounds like you want to be able t flip the pages. I did see these: https://www.amazon.com/Chiisong-Watercolor-Sketchbook-Portable-Chrysanthemum/dp/B0DFPR52LB/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1FDR6FYFDRSQB&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.GCl09wZrGUm9-vP-ZPJ1Q5BMrL5ajGbNv9E8t5yVg9B3GUTXoEkSHQ5RMzq6zqjiF7sCbdLdnimviCHNQSavDxfhz_j2HWWmuy-ykDK_FcWNRhFF3atzQ2XaYBD1TSBVkDXeeSF_IdIt2C1Qzf2flgzaTsxzrBG6eOoNFQ3141ayikMdoZJpUJG8WYZ68i-uqKuQVKZK6AXSN809uKIA-zd7wpXoSe_5NZLYhiz7gMw.ejgDPxzmPhEwcpYLoPg_rNwEh0fOaLhhMwf66M3uOHw&dib_tag=se&keywords=MOLESKINE+MINI+WATERCOLOR+BOOK&qid=1747953861&sprefix=moleskine+mini+watercolor+book%2Caps%2C214&sr=8-1

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Those two videos were both interesting. The only 2 things I liked better about the 2nd one were the ribbons and the method she used to make it lay flat. The pockets on the inside front & back also mean the pages of the book can be removed, and replaced, if you want.

But, I like the stitching method & thread on the first one MUCH better. I think the hidden interiors of the covers on the first one are far neater, and would not be lumpy to sketch & paint over.

The individual pages vs the 3-layer pages: I *think* the individual pages would hold up better, because all the pages are stitched and glued, while with the 3-layered pages,  only the outermost page is glued at the fold.

The glue: I personally would use a homemade or other, more eco- friendly glue rather than the one these ladies both used.

Thanks, r. You have this habit of reminding me about so many projects that I've long forgotten, and freshening that urge to do them! 🤣

"The only thing...more expensive than education is ignorance."~Ben Franklin. "We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light." ~ Plato

 
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Note, she's using shorter thread and shows how to join a new one on.

I haven't watched the rest of the video, but I figured this would be a likely problem.

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Carla Burke
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I like her methods, too. Something I'm looking at, in this is how I can use their binding method to rebind some of my old, broken books, and make some of these for gifts.

"The only thing...more expensive than education is ignorance."~Ben Franklin. "We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light." ~ Plato

 
r ransom
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I think I'm getting really confused.

what I know so far.
I want to have two papers per folded over bit. I'll rip the outside edge so it looks rustic.

I want it to be about three inches square when finished, with a fair amount of pages.

Perfect bounding is right out.  stitching looks easy enough.  

a stiff cover.

Opening flat is preference

I keep seeing "coptic" or something like that which looks amazing, but the books all seem very large.  Not tiny like I'm making.  

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This book, Non-Adhesive Bindings:Books without paste or glue, Vol 1. by Keith A. Smith (https://hollanders.com/products/non-adhesive-bindings-vol-1-keith-smith)
has lots of ideas that might work for your book.

It's been in print for a long time and is still the standard for book artists.

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r ransom
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Oh, pretty!



Mini accordion folding sketchbook

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Carla Burke
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That's a much easier method than the previous ones, too, I think!

"The only thing...more expensive than education is ignorance."~Ben Franklin. "We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light." ~ Plato

 
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I haven't watched the video's but as a former professional handbookbinder , which ever binding structure you choose (coptic opens FLAT, the others stay a bit ...springy) pay attention to the grain direction of the paper you're using.

When paper is made, the fibers tend to group more in one direction than another. You'll feel the grain direction when you loosely fold a sheet of paper on itself - in the grain direction it closes naturally much more, against the grain it's springing back, giving more resistance.
You want the grain direction of the paper to go with the spine of the book, not against it for ease of handling and overall 'relaxation' of the book.
So grain direction of the paper = spine direction of the book.

Ask me anything and I'll do my best to explain

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r ransom
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Oooohhhh, grain sounds nifty and useful.

I was thinking of using paper from a roll.  Does that influence grain?

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Yes, all machine made paper has grain.
From a roll I expect the grain to run with the length of the paper, but test it by folding it on itself. More give=with the grain, more resistance = against the grain.
Also, if you run an edge of the paper between your index finger and the nail of your thumb, it will get all wavy against the grain and not wavy along the grain

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When I was in school many years ago we made a wooden book cover something like this:

https://www.instructables.com/Custom-Wooden-Cover-Notebook/

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r ranson wrote:Oh, pretty!  

Mini accordion folding sketchbook



We drew names for a Secret Santa gift exchange, for my fiver group, and I'm very excited about drawing my particular recipient! She's a sober/weaver/crocheter/livestock raiser/soap maker... and watercolor painter, who loves painting tiny! So I'm going to make one of these for her, (& one for me!) I'll paint a sunflower and a bee on the cover, because she loves them both. I'm SO GLAD you posted this! We have a $20(USD) limit, if we buy the gift, but can do whatever we want, if we make it. So, I'm also getting her a pack of 100 artists trading cards, and I think I'll build her a tiny portable palette, in a mint tin (& paint it to match the cover of the book) & some mini pans, to go with the other painting supplies, too. The only thing I'll be buying is the pack of trading cards. Also, thinking of crocheting her a mug cozy, with a sunflower on it, because who doesn't want their tea, while they paint?

"The only thing...more expensive than education is ignorance."~Ben Franklin. "We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light." ~ Plato

 
Carla Burke
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r ranson wrote:Oh, pretty!



Mini accordion folding sketchbook



I made one! It's going to be my Secret Santa gift for one of my dear friends, in my local fiber arts group (made up of folks with a very eclectic range of talents!). She also makes beautiful soaps, lotions, etc, and loves to paint & trade watercolor trading cards (2"×3"), so I know tiny will be perfect for her. She loves sunflowers & bees, and her favorite color is purple. So, those are the details on the cover, but I also made a matching tiny watercolor tin/ palette for her. The trading cards are 100% cotton, and so is the watercolor paper interior of the book. (my paints are about 15yrs old, my brushes are cheapo-crappy ones, and it's been about 29yrs since I've painted anything, and never anything so tiny, so please forgive the crudeness of my art)
20251202_162525.jpg
Tin at the top, front cover (left) back cover (right)
Tin at the top, front cover 2.25"×3.25" (left) back cover (right)
20251202_165412.jpg
In the tin
In the tin
20251202_183048.jpg
Coming together...
Coming together...
20251202_183058.jpg
Back is on (little bee is inspecting my signature)
Back is on (little bee is inspecting my signature)
20251202_183233.jpg
Full set, including extra paint pans & a fresh pack of trading cards for her to paint.
Full set, including extra paint pans & a fresh pack of trading cards for her to paint.

"The only thing...more expensive than education is ignorance."~Ben Franklin. "We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light." ~ Plato

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