Journal for a month swap Round 2 - Sign up April 11-30. Send out June 14

[astrangeone]

Been writing in my journal - this is my first swap away from home.   Going to gussy it up when I get back - I'm in Hong Kong right now.

Andrea

[RougeRaven]

I punched the holes in all my pages but I think I will wait to bind it. I always get stuck on ideas for the covers 

[Alexampersandra]

In the interest of getting some backgrounds set up and preparing some decorations to use when appropriate, I've stopped trying to make a journal myself (there are some truly hideous attempts... I'm learning, but slowly) and I'll be using the store-bought one.

I uncovered a bag full of scrapbooking papers and tidbits last night, so I will be all over this tonight!

[Smmarrt]

One of my favorite methods, (and I think I stole it from rackycoo) is to cover a page with all the paper scraps from larger pieces of scrapbooking paper, leftovers or off-cuts. Makes for an interesting background and adds lots of color. Then you can still write, draw, stamp or journal on top of the background.

I'm looking forward to a quiet weekend of prepping, baseball and getting some fun envelopes and other bits to add to the journal.

[MiLady]

I've been following one of the tutes for journal making and cut out all my papers to the same size then put glue down my spine but my pages aren't sticking! anyone got any advice??

[Mountains and Clouds]

I've been following one of the tutes for journal making and cut out all my papers to the same size then put glue down my spine but my pages aren't sticking! anyone got any advice??

That tutorial is actually for a "perfect bind," which, in my opinion is slightly less than perfect   Remember those books made in the '50's that would crack as soon as you open them?  Perfect bind!  But all is not lost!  In some cases, if you do the same thing, and then stretch some cheesecloth over the binding, and put it in a vice (with about a quarter inch sticking up), you can actually hammer down the top so it kind of squishes together and will hold the pages in!    [Ack! Sorry this is probably reeeeeally confusing, but I'm off for work now... I'll try and find a tute or something maybe later!]

Otherwise, there are a lot of coptic binding tutorials on here, which are not too confusing after you play around with them for a while!

[zzdia]

I don't think coptic binding would work because the pages are all cut into the same size and aren't folded in half. Have you tried holding the pages together with some binder clips and gluing them together while they're being clamped together? That used to work for me when I used to make notebooks like that. But I haven't done perfect binding in a while. You could try japanese binding. Here's a link to a quick tute: http://www.sff.net/people/Brook.West/bind/bindit.html

Also, a lot of bookbinding links here: http://www.tjbookarts.com/otherlinks.htm

[Mountains and Clouds]

If you're in the mood, you could always glue them back together down the middle and sew signatures   (I've done plenty of that too!)

Wow, those are some great tutorials, zzdia!

[RougeRaven]

I've been following one of the tutes for journal making and cut out all my papers to the same size then put glue down my spine but my pages aren't sticking! anyone got any advice??

That tutorial is actually for a "perfect bind," which, in my opinion is slightly less than perfect   Remember those books made in the '50's that would crack as soon as you open them?  Perfect bind!  But all is not lost!  In some cases, if you do the same thing, and then stretch some cheesecloth over the binding, and put it in a vice (with about a quarter inch sticking up), you can actually hammer down the top so it kind of squishes together and will hold the pages in!    [Ack! Sorry this is probably reeeeeally confusing, but I'm off for work now... I'll try and find a tute or something maybe later!]


Otherwise, there are a lot of coptic binding tutorials on here, which are not too confusing after you play around with them for a while!

I think I know the tutorial you're talking about, and if it is, then it suggests using regular white glue. If you can find PVA (I couldn't find mine at craft stores so I went to an art store). It's super strong and like Mountatins said, if you apply to pva to the spine and then cover it with a strip of cheese cloth then you should get far better results.

Once you have the cheese cloth on the spine, clamp the text block together so the folios don't spread apart. Then you can add your covers once it's all dry =)

[calluna]

Also, people say that PVA is the same as Elmer's glue, and that may be...however, I've never had good results (not even mediocre results) from trying to do a glue/perfect binding with Elmer's, it's just too thin/watery. If you want to try using glue for several bookbinding projects, splurge on a glue that says right out on the label it's PVA (polyvinyl acetate); it takes at least a few layers (let each layer dry before adding another), and you really do have to make sure those pages are lined up perfectly and clamped tightly together, but the finish is nice and dense and rubbery. The stuff that holds those tear-off-a-page-a-day calendars together all year is PVA. The brand I've used comes in a smaller and a larger size, so you have to weigh which is the most economical for you; it is not cheap, at any size, but it goes a long way, doesn't readily spoil, and it doesn't dry or clot up in the bottle like Mod Podge or rubber cement would over time.

I feel so overwhelmed right now, but with a few days remaining, there's still the chance that life could sort itself out by the weekend, in time to sign up.