How to Stitch a Book
Stitching books is an important step in bookmaking, or book binding. Bookmaking is an extremely rewarding craft, and handmade books have many uses. You may feel at first as though you're all thumbs, but after sewing a couple of books together, you can accomplish the process in a short amount of time.
Things You'll Need
- 4 or 5 sheets of paper, size appropriate
- Ruler
- Pencil
- Awl or nail
- Ball-peen or tack hammer
- Pins
- Needle with large eye
- Thread
- Scissors
- Bulldog clips
Instructions
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1
Fold each sheet of paper in half, creasing each firmly along the fold.
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2
Stack the papers inside one another, laying the creases on top of each other.
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3
Using a ruler, measure your stitch spacing on the inside crease of the top page, and use a pencil to mark it with dots. Ideally, the stitches should be 1/4 to 1/2 inch long and should begin and end within 1/4 inch of the top and bottom edges of the paper.
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4
Punch small holes at each pencil mark using either a fine awl or small penny nail. A ball peen or tack hammer can help with this step.
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5
Place a minimum of three pins into the holes as you go, being extremely careful to keep the pages lined up.
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6
Thread your needle with a generous length of thread and knot. Use the length of the papers as a guide, allowing an extra 6 inches or so. If using regular sewing thread, double it for strength. Choose a color to blend with your paper, as the stitching will be visible when the section is opened to the center.
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7
Sew the section, or signature, by pushing the needle up through the top so that the knot is on the spine of the signature. Go down through the next hole and up through the following, and so on until you have reached the bottom of the crease. Tie off here unless you are planning to add additional sections.
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Tips & Warnings
Bulldog clips are handy for securing and holding your papers together while sewing.
Waxed thread offers a little more strength.
You can have as many signatures in your book as you like by following the same procedure.
Be certain the papers are not sliding around while you work at the hole punching. Otherwise, your pages will require trimming and will not come out looking as nice as the raw edges.
It is not recommended to use more than four to six sheets of paper in a section, as it becomes very difficult to deal with.
Avoid using heavy papers like card stock for bookmaking.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit livre blanc ouvert pages a4 image by Melisback from Fotolia.com
