In the past few years, several people have asked if they could use my blank books as \u00a0scrapbooks. \u00a0My answer has always been an emphatic, “No!” Inserting extra thickness into any tightly bound book will sooner or later break the spine. With a Coptic or long-stitch binding there is a bit of leeway, but as soon as the boards or covers move beyond being parallel, the hinges are put under stress and will break. I have made some books that are suitable for scrapbook use and I thought I’d document how I construct them.<\/p>\n
The goal in building this type of book is to accommodate extra thickness between the pages while using a strong binding structure that will support extra weight. \u00a0I, personally, don’t like making scrapbooks: they tend to be large and I like small. The pages are difficult to sew and the endpapers can be a pain, but enough whining, here’s my current foray into the art of building a scrapbook.<\/p>\n
Many steps are identical to the construction of the usual sewn binding, but I’ve included photos of most steps so you can follow along. See my pages on “Making a Book”<\/a> for more information.<\/p>\n\n\t\t