A notebook for sketches and notes has long ceased to be an exceptional attribute of creative personalities. Of course, artists, sculptors, writers and designers must have more than one sketching album in their arsenal. But people far from the art world appreciated the opportunity to have a sketchbook on hand. With their own hands, the created notebooks demonstrate the creativity of the owner, and the notes, photos, cartoons that fill the pages allow you to save precious moments of life for yourself.
Why do I need a sketchbook?
The sketchbook was originally used only for its intended purpose. Artists constantly need practice, so the presence of a notebook for drawing in the bag makes it possible at any time to engage in creativity: capture a landscape, a scene, capture a sudden idea, portray someone else's portrait. Such instant sketches are often done by architects, designers, advertisers. Sketchbooks of artists are often true masterpieces that can be viewed for hours.
Writers and journalists also do not deny themselves the pleasure of constantly having a convenient tool for work. Good thoughts come suddenly, and if you do not write them down, then after a while they will evaporate without a trace.
And travel lovers love to return to their travel travel books. They keep the impressions of the trip, little joys and discoveries.
How to make a sketchbook?
You can buy a ready-made notebook. There are so many great notebooks on sale now that you can spend hours choosing the right copy. But it’s much more fun to create an album yourself. Then you can give it an individual character. You will have the opportunity to put in your work those qualities that are important to you.
Therefore, before you make a sketchbook with your own hands, think over every little thing. Decide what size album you need. Will you always carry it with you or occasionally take it to the open air. Think about what format it will be. You may find it more convenient to work with a square notebook. Or you are used to sketching on rectangular sheets. Binding also matters. There are options with the ability to add sheets, there are book bindings, bindings on springs, ties. But what you do not need to give up is the tablet. Rigid cardboard allows you to use a notebook in any circumstances, giving a solid support for a pencil or pen.
Choose material
So, we create a sketchbook with our own hands. To do this, you need to purchase paper, cardboard, fabric or leather, glue. If you intend to stitch the sheets together, then get a strong thread (preferably kapron), a needle. For binding we need gauze. And also prepare a press and scissors.
When buying paper, think about what purpose you are collecting a notebook for. Sheets can be lined and clean. The density, texture and color of the paper may also be different. Many for the sake of convenience sew several types of sheets into a notebook at once. Part for watercolors, part for notes, part for pencil sketches.
We are engaged in binding
Let's look at a factory sketchbook. It’s not so difficult to repeat the book binding with your own hands. Only patience and accuracy are needed.
The paper you prepared for your future album needs to be stitched into small notebooks. To do this, bend the sheets in half, and then fold them together, connecting them along the folds. Do not make notebooks too thick. Take three sheets.
After that, we make five holes in each of the notebooks. So that they are located exactly on the same level, you need to puncture holes on one of the notebooks according to the marking. But on the following little books, make punctures according to the finished template. Your “reference” notebook will act as the last one.
Now we begin to sew. We insert the needle into the outer hole, bring it out, and then again we pass the needle with the thread, but already into the hole of the second notebook. Now we have a thread inside booklet number two. It is necessary to bring the needle out again using a neighboring puncture. The next step is to skip the thread inside notebook number one. Moreover, we will bring the needle out through the same hole, capturing the thread stretched inside the booklet along the way. Then we move according to the familiar pattern, not forgetting to grab the needle stretched at the previous stage with a needle.
Binding notebooks together is even easier. Just when we bring the thread out, we simultaneously hook the loop on the previous notebook with a loop. Then you again insert the needle through the hole inside the book. In the final, you should get cute pigtails. In some cases, they are not even covered, leaving as decorative elements.
Cover
Now your sketchbook for drawing should get a cover. To do this, glue the root of the notebook with gauze. Then we cut out two large squares or rectangles from cardboard (it is better to take thick sheets with good rigidity) (it all depends on the chosen shape of the notebook) and one narrow elongated rectangle (it closes the spine). When measuring centimeters, do not forget to make allowances.
After this, we place the blanks on a piece of fabric or leather in order to carve out a decorative “coating” of the cover. Between the fabric and pieces of cardboard we lay a thin layer of padding polyester.
We sew the corners of the fabric, cut and carefully tuck. The fabric must be glued to the cardboard blank. Then these places will be closed with a flyleaf. For him, you can choose a decorative paper with an interesting pattern or embossing.
By the way, making the cover, you can prudently gum, which will fix the pencils and pens, preventing them from getting lost.
Open source
It is even easier to assemble a sketchbook with your own hands on brackets.
The advantage of this design is that the fasteners can be wrung out and additional blank sheets can be added to the album.
Sew such a notebook is not necessary. It is only necessary to make holes in the bundle of paper with a hole punch, and to insert the snap rings into them, grabbing at the same time dense cardboard covers.
Cover design at your fingertips. You can sheathe cardboard with leather, apply a pattern, emboss, and paste over with a cloth. You can complement the album with a clasp, holders or pockets for pencils and pens.