Archive for the ‘Bookbinding’ Category

Daniel Essig’s Denver Workshop

Monday, December 14th, 2009

I had the pleasure of attending Daniel Essig’s Denver workshop last month on Coptic bindings, Ethiopian end bands, mica windows and mica pages. Here are many pictures, both of his work and the workshop.  He kindly shared many of the techniques he uses for his sculptural books, even some which weren’t covered in the workshop.

Here’s the book I made:

Cam's Coptic binding with Ethiopian end band and mica window

I was especially pleased to learn techniques for creating aged, weathered surfaces using crumpled paper and layers of milk paint which is then brutally distressed and sanded.

Here’s a box using the above technique as well as others I’ve learned along the way.  The hinges and fittings are hand-formed from copper and patina’d, the window is a domed watch-glass held in place by riveted copper pieces. The box is lined with green cave paper.

I plan on making a book that will be housed in this box – but not today.

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Root Leaf Flower & Seed

Thursday, February 19th, 2009

Finished Root Leaf Flower & Seed over the weekend, here’s the pic of the binding. Paste paper made by myself.

Root Leaf Flower & Seed

Root Leaf Flower & Seed

Root, Leaf, Flower & Seed

Sunday, February 15th, 2009
“From root to leaf and flower to seed,may all that we have be all that we need.”

So goes my favorite Pagan chant. I believe it’s from a book on Yule, but I could be mistaken. I was inspired to make a series of drawings of roots, leafs, flowers and seeds.  I’d been working on it all summer (’o8) and finally finished it.

Here are pics of the drawings and picture of the book will appear  shortly. The binding is a drum leaf binding, invented and refined by Tim Ely – a marvelous, simple and adaptable technique which allows the facing pages to open flat.

Petroselinum crispum, graphite on bristol

Petroselinum crispum, graphite on bristol

Nautilus Book

Sunday, January 18th, 2009

I recently came across these pics of a wedding album I did in 2004.  Good friends were were married on the Oregon beach and wanted a wedding album which somehow incorporated a nautilus.  I went a bit further and made the entire book in the form of a nautilus.  Friends and guests wrote their wishes for the couple on the pages within.

The book was wonderful to handle – slinky and serpentine.

Book of Helleborus niger – Bound!

Sunday, April 13th, 2008

My BFF and I bound our books on Saturday using a very durable and simple binding often used in children’s books. We discovered that ’simple’ does not mean that much precision is not needed. When I use this binding technique again I’ll know to make a little adjustment which will allow the book to open lay flat.

Overall, this turned out well!

Book of Helleborus niger

Friday, April 11th, 2008

The final two pages for the soon-to-be-bound Book of Hellebore. I’ll snag some pictures of the binding in process and the finished book.

Title page

Title Page

Hellebore flower

Final plant drawing on the last page.

Hellebore niger in Ink and Wash

Monday, March 31st, 2008

For the last several weeks I’ve been working on a series of line and watercolor wash drawings of Helleborus niger. Each is 4 x 6 inches and when complete, I’ll bind them together in a nifty book structure ( more on the binding later).

I’ve been fascinated by hellebores for years and have several in my garden. They are mysterious plants – the first to bloom in the spring, shiny, leathery evergreen leaves. In the autumn under the surface of the soil small pale shoots which will be the next spring’s flowers begin to form.

The roots are also famously poisonous, causing cardiac failure if taken in sufficient amount. Magical lore suggests that powdered hellebore root will confer the power of invisibility if sprinkled along one’s path. Read more.

Each of these drawings will be folded in half to create facing pages in the upcoming book. The crease is visible in a couple of these pics.