Spreading the wealth...

I remember being in art school and trying to find an easy-to-understand tutorial on bookbinding so I could make my friend a journal for her birthday. The one I finally found was not only difficult to find, it was difficult to understand! Eventually I did learn, by pulling information from about 5 different sources and pooling them. It hit me a while back that if I had this much trouble finding a tutorial, others might as well. I did an Etsy search for "Coptic Binding" "Chain Stitch" "Bookbinding" and others and came up with no tutorials. So, I talked myself into making one.

It was an interesting process to write down on paper what my hands were so used to doing. I had to think hard to make it simple and specific at the same time. I think most people are afraid of Coptic binding because it looks or sounds complicated, but once you learn it is very easy! After coming up with written instructions, I got out my handy-dandy digital graphics tablet and created simple illustrations (which I find way more effective than photos) in Adobe CS2. I even created little arrows to show the motion of the thread. I tested this out on Hubby (who is not known for his craftiness) and he said he got it, so I have confidence you will too!

Today just felt like the right day to unveil this labor of love. It is now available in my Etsy shop for purchase, and coming soon I will have hardback, paperback, and advanced techniques to share. I'll also be grouping them together for a discounted price if you think you want to tackle all three.

Hope you all had a lovely Monday. (Perhaps so lovely that you want to learn a new skill?)