PIANO HINGE BOOK

To make this book, you will need card, wooden barbeque skewers and thin cord or waxy flax. This tutorial uses waxy flax.

First of all, decide what size book you want to make and how many pages you want. This one is 6 x 6 which is easy to do, using 12 x 12 card. You can make the book any size you want though.

Step 1. Cut your card to the height you want and double the width. If using 12 x 12 card, just cut each sheet in half. Fold your card in half and using a bone folder, make a nice crease.


Step 2. Score your card ¼ inch each side of your main crease and fold along these score lines, again using your bone folder to crease them.


Step 3. With each page folded in half along the centre crease, measure along in ½ inch increments and then cut down on each mark to the ¼ inch crease.


Step 4. Now, holding your card, push every alternate section inwards. You are making valley and mountain tabs.




Step 5. When you have done all your pages, put them all together and then turn every other page so that your tabs alternate down the spine. i.e. valley, mountain, valley, mountain. Lay your pages in a pile as you want them to appear in your finished book.




Step 6. OK, so far so good. Now, take the first 2 pages and hold them firmly together. Take one of your skewers and thread it through the mountain tabs, doing one tab from each page alternately to the end of the page. Repeat with each pair of pages and then check again that your pages are in the correct order.




Step 7. You’re going to bind your pages now. Take your waxy flax and leaving a bit of an end, weave in and out and around the skewers, pushing each ‘row’ into place as you go. Weave a minimum of 4 rows, but 6 or 7 is better. You can see that a thinner cord is better for this. Finish weaving at the same skewer that you started with.


Step 8. When you have finished weaving, tie your ends into a tight knot (I use a double reef knot). You may want to cover the knot and/or the weaving with a clear glue to make sure it’s secure. Cut and trim your skewers to leave approximately ¾ to 1 inch at each end. If you’re absolutely sure of your finished size of book and weaving, you may cut your skewers to size before you start.


Step 9. Now you can decorate your book in any way you please. You can hang beads or charms from the cord if you want, or trim close to the knot and leave the ends undecorated.

POCKET PAGE BOOK

Instructions for making this little book. No fancy pics this time, just basic diagrams but there is a picture of a finished book at the end of the tute.
You will decorate as you go but it's up to you how you do this.

Take a piece of A4 card and leaving the length, cut a strip 4 inches wide. Measure in 4 inches from one end and 2 1/8 inches from the other end and score down these lines.


Fold over so the longer side overlaps the shorter.


Cut 4 pieces of paper (more if you like) 7 inches by 5 1/8 inches. Score 1 6/8 from one side and 2 1/8 inches from the other side. Cut a semi circle from the centre piece. Also, cut 2 pieces of CARD 4 inches by 1/2 inch.


Fold these papers over so the longer side overlaps the shorter side and stick down. These are your pockets.


Now, take the bottoms of the pockets (tuther end to semi circle cut out) and making sure they're centred, attach them (glue or DST) in between the two long bits of card.


Now attach the stiffening spine into the book along the crease of the larger front.


Attach a fastener of your choice to the book and make tags to go in the pockets.


I made this one by separating the edges at the folds, using some card as a stiffer cover and fastening each side with a bind-it-all, but the basic instructions are just the same. The fastener was a small magnet.




After I'd made this book, I started looking at it in different ways. I liked the way the cover folded over, but wanted something different. I altered the way the cover was made by cutting at the folds and adding spines which made the book wider and then I made a notebook to attach inside and a pocket on the right hand side. It was a gift for a racing friend of mine and had a years racing calendar printed out and put in the pockets and the notepad was for his betting notes.

TRIANGULAR PAGE BOOK

A bit different this one, but quite nice.
Take two pieces of mountboard or heavy cardstock sized 6 1/8th x 3 inches. Cover these with paper of your choice, but make sure the paper is large enough to fold inside. (I glued 2 bits of card together for each cover to make them stronger). Mitre your corners and stick it down.


Cut a piece of black paper (or colour of your choice) that is 8 x 2 inches. Mark a line 1/2 inch in from each side. Place your book covers, insides facing, centrally and against the lines. Glue in place. This will be your spine.


Fold the overhang to the inside and glue in place. Rub gently with a bone folder to crease the top and bottom edges, and down the edges of the book covers.


Now, to make your pages. Take 8 or 10 pieces of 6 inch square paper. Fold 4 (5) of them in half, with the right sides together. Put aside.
Take the other 4 (5) and fold in half with the wrong sides together. Open these up and with the wrong side facing up, fold diagonally corner to corner, and then the other corner to corner. Make sure the creases are sharp and then push them together to give you triangle shapes with the folds inside.


Open these out and decorate how you please. Stamp, or stick images, text, anything you like. Be careful if you choose anything bulky as it will interfere with the folds. (You can decorate them before you fold them, but if you use heat embossing, be careful it doesn't crack when you fold. By folding first, you can see exactly where you can place your deco's.)
When you have them decorated, fold them up again then attach and glue one each of the triangles into one each of the sheets that were folded right sides together. Make sure that you line the edges up carefully. When all the triangles are glued inside the pages, glue each of the pages together.


If you want to attach a fastening to your book, do this now. I opened mine flat and attached a cord right across the centre. Now, glue the pages to the front and back of the book. Place them centrally, but also make sure that the book closes.


If you want to put any more embellishments on the covers, you can do that now. Your book is finished.

DOMINO BOOKS

I use a standard size domino, but you can use any of the available sizes.

DOMINO PREPARATION
The first thing to do is remove the spinner from the centre backs. Flick them out with a piercer or scissor tips. CAREFULLY. (Step 1)
Drill a small hole in the side of the domino. Level it with the centre back line of the dom. (Step 2)
Decorate your doms. You can use inks, paints, papers…anything you choose. The domino in this tutorial was covered with alcohol inks (I use Pinata inks, they’re much more vibrant than Ranger) and then a paper image was stuck on, outlined with black gel pen and then the image was covered with Diamond Glaze. Stamping and heat embossing is another fave technique.
Make sure you cover both the back and the front of the dominoes. (Step 3) This is so you have a coloured edge when the pages are in. When you decorate your dominoes, make sure you have the holes on the correct sides or your design may end up upside down. (see pic – Step 4).
If you want you can colour around the edges of the domino. I usually use a Krylon pen but this one is done with a black peel off marker pen. Choose some brads that match your decoration and glue them into the holes. I use superglue to do this. Make sure that the brad IS NOT fully inserted. You need a little bit protruding to wrap your closure. (Steps 5 & 6).
Place the back cover domino face down with the brad on the right. Put some glue into the groove and stick a piece of fibre or thread of your choice in. Length about 6 – 7”. (Step 7). Leave to dry and start making your pages.



PAGE PREPARATION
Your pages will be made up of 5 signatures. 1 signature consists of 3 pages.
Place 2 dominoes side by side and measure the width and length. Cut a piece of ordinary printer paper, slightly smaller so it fits within the doms. (Step 1A).
Cut 15 of these for your pages. Then, you need an extra one and also one on thin card. These two will be your template (paper) and cradle (card). Mark one corner of each of these with a T (for top). (Step 2A)
Fold each one in half and crease well. (Step 3A)
Cut a small piece of grosgrain or ribbon of your choice, slightly smaller than the width of your page. This will act as a support when binding your pages. (4A)
Take the cradle, put the template on it and the ribbon across the centre. With a sharp needle or paper piercer, pierce a hole either side of the ribbon and one midway (ish) between these holes and the edges. (5A) (I’ve marked mine with black pen so you can see).
Now, put one signature (3 pages, remember?) on the cradle and put the template on top of this and pierce right through all the holes. (6A) Do this with all 5 signatures and make sure your T is at the top. When you lay your sigs down, lay them down the same way.
Thread a needle with your chosen binding. I usually use embroidery thread separated into 3 strands. (7A)



BINDING THE PAGES
Take your first signature and with the mountain fold facing you, take your thread through the top hole. Leave a tail. THIS IS IMPORTANT..do not tie a knot in your thread. Bring your needle back up through the second hole, lay your ribbon over and take your thread over the ribbon, down through the third hole and back out of the fourth hole. (8A – 10A).
Take your second signature and place up against the first. Take your thread down into the bottom hole (11A) back up out the next, over the ribbon, down through the hole and back out the top hole. (12A – 13A). Now you will TIE your ONLY knot. Tie your working thread to the tail left in the first step. Use a reef knot (left over right, right over left) as this is the most secure knot. (14A)
Take your third signature and starting in the top hole, stitch as before. When you get to the bottom, you must join it to the second signature using a kettle knot. Take your needle, and slide it under the thread between the first and second signatures (note the direction of the needle) (15A). Take your thread through the loop and pull firmly. (16A).
Attach the fourth and fifth signatures the same way making a kettle knot at the top of the fourth and a double kettle knot at the bottom of the fifth. i.e. do two knots. (17A). Trim the ends of your thread.
Your pages are now complete and should look like (18A).



FINISHING THE BOOK
Put double sided tape (or glue) across the front and back outside pages, catching the ribbon down, (19A). Place your dominoes side by side, again making sure you have them the correct way round (this time both brads should be on the outside) and stick your pages centrally on the doms, front and back. (20A)
That’s it. Your book is now complete. To fasten it, bring the fibre around the back, across the front and twist round your brads.
21A and 22A