I really enjoyed your no-nonsense methods for bookbinding, especially for beginners. I made maybe 100+ books after being so annoyed with the cost of watercolor sketchbooks. I wish I'd seen this video for my first few books. Other YT'ers make very good tutorials, too, but most were so complicated that it seemed daunting. Not yours. Beginner friendly yet gorgeous results. Well done, Lora.
First of all, thank you for taking the time to watch my video when you already do book binding. Thank you so much for your kind comment, it means a lot!
Aww thank you so much for your lovely comment! I hope you will enjoy making your own! I'd love to see it if you want to send me a pic or tag me on Instagram (I wish we could send photos in TH-cam comments, but that would probably be a risky door to door with some people hahal
Thank you for going through all the trouble to show us your book-binding procedure. I will follow your tutorial for sure. You have such an encouraging way to show and explain things. Thank you. 💐
I've watched a few of your videos now, and you explain things so well. You think of everything we might need to know, and explain what you're doing so clearly. Thanks again!
They turned out beautifully!! ❤ I’m going to try this. I accidentally ordered some huge watercolor paper and was trying to figure out how I would use it up. Great idea!
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the video! I still feel kind of new to my channel too haha. Finding my way and working out what people will like, while at the same time doing what I like
Absolutely loved your tutorial I know it was awhile ago but I've just found it. You made it very easy to understand and I cant wait to try making my own sketchbook. Thankyou so much for all your advice, much appriciated. I cant believe its your first tutorial, you were born to teach.
Thanks Lora. You did a terrific job and I really enjoyed your explanation, tips and insights. If I didn’t already have so many sketchbooks that I need to use up first, I would have felt more than ready to make my own right now. 😃
Thanks Liz, that's lovely feedback! I especially appreciate you taking the time to watch, even though you're not needing a new sketchbook at the moment!
Yeah, go for it! It’s so nice sketching in a book you’ve made yourself! I’ve been using this tall book today and loving the size. Actually I’ve liked every size I’ve made so far, so I’ve no idea what my favourite size is haha
I love this video. I've been wanting to do a watercolor book for a long time, and there's a book binding course offered close to where I live but it's quite expensive and I don't have the money for that. I would try this! You are the best (:
Thank you, I’m so pleased you enjoyed this. I’m sure a bookbinding course could teach you a lot of things that I don’t know, but courses can be very expensive, I feel the same way. I hope you will give it a go, it’s so nice to sketch and paint in a book you made yourself!
@@madebylora yeah, I guess is a professional course for it's price but it's not what I need, this video it's more than enough for me. I'm so excited! Thank you so much!
@@nabel6499 thank you! Are you also on Instagram? I’d love it if you could share a photo with me when you’ve made it (but no pressure!). It’s a shame we can’t add photos in TH-cam comments (although I guess that could open up a whole can of worms with people sending inappropriate images)
Lora, I just finished making my first watercolor sketchbook. I followed your video on how to make a sketch book. It turned out really nice. Thank you for teaching me.
@@hangingoutwithronwalters4505 wow that’s great, thanks for sharing that! I’m so glad my tutorial was helpful. Hope you have fun filling your new book!
Thank you so much for your comment, it means a lot to know that my video is clear and encourages people to give it a go! Are you on Instagram? If you make one, I'd love to see it if you wouldn't mind sending me a pic or tagging me. (No pressure)
Thanks so much for your tutorial! So easy to understand! And I feel CONFIDENT I could make one of these treasures! Thank you!!! Just some suggestions: If you do want multiple folios to each signature, You can trim each signature separately using a straight edge and sharp craft knife. Trim the edges back to the original desired folded width. The trick is a fresh sharp blade and patience. Use more light cutting strokes instead of deep ones. Like you demonstrated on the book board. Also, I use an old beatup hardcover book as a make-shift whole punching cradle. Oh, lastly, try your hand at using curved needles. It makes it so much easier to do those stitches where you are attaching the signatures to each other. Again, this video was a joy and incredibly helpful to me! Happy binding! ❤️🙋♀️
Thank you for your kind words and suggestions! I have tried trimming signatures since making this video and I did ok with it, but I still need more practice to get a very neat finish (I miss the big electric guillotine in the office at my old job hahaha). I did try once with a curved needle and while I found it easier to link to the previous signature, I found it more awkward stitching through the holes. I should probably give it another try. Thank you
Very impressive tutorial. I appreciate you going the extra mile to introduce the smaller journal to make up for the video learning curve - thank you! I plan on making a watercolor journal and may use sketch and watercolor signatures in one book. This is the first tutorial I watched that includes making a more sophisticated cover and spine from scratch. Thank you so much for this great tutorial!
Aww thank you, I'm so glad you found it helpful. I've thought about doing different types of paper for different signatures but I've never actually done it. I feel like I'd end like I do with Shampoo and Conditioner, I can never manage to use them at the same rate hahahaha
Thank you so much for not giving up after the technical difficulties! I made a book following a different video but the stitching part wasn't super clear. I really appreciate your detailed explanations, I think I'll give it another go 😊
Thank you! Hope you're able to do another book with more confidence. There are quite a few different ways to sew pages, but I mostly stick with this style (so far).
I’ve never made a book before and I’m looking forward to now making my own watercolour sketchbook. I have plenty of paper, darning needles and soft furnishing fabric leftovers which will be perfect. Thank you so much for this tutorial.
Hi Michelle, thank you! I really hope you will enjoy the process of making your own book. I love the feeling of sketching in a handmade book, I hope you enjoy it too! I'd love it if you could share it with me if you're also on Instagram (but no pressure!)
Thanks for sharing! I’m tired of looking for a nice sketchbook with a good quality paper and that doesn’t cost crazy amount of money. Next time I’ll try to make my own and maybe it’ll even look decent 😄
Sounds like making your own will be the perfect solution! I'm loving using the bigger book that I made in this video. I hope you'll love it too if you make one!
I can't wait to save some time to try this! Have had some a2 pieces of paper sitting around, their time is coming :) Also I'm there with you on missing a heavy duty guillotine. Took me a while to remember where have I actually used one... But we had some at uni :'))
I’m so happy that you want to give this a try! It’s a great way to use up big paper that you haven’t used. Do you use Instagram? If you make a book, I’d love to see it.
Good job making up for failed camera. My surface pro four broke on me a month ago and I just replaced it with a Lenovo windows 11 and now my video editor will not run. UGG. So I launched today’s video using movie maker which comes with windows, but it’s so lame. you are a great trainer and now I am going to make my own Sketchbook. I think a personalized touch is an excellent idea. Thanks.
Dear Lora, ( the king was crowned I watched it on tv. ) I also watched your very nice explained tutorial. The step by step explanaition was very good. I want to thank you ever so much. Your books that you made a realy nice looking, also the technik of how the paper should be folded bevor cutting. I also like the idea of using leftover Material great and the bakside of the paperblock. Very nice what you made . Wishing you a nice sunday many greetings from Christiane Berlin Germany
Thank You, Lora : ) Well Done!!! I've made books in the past. You made me want to get out my things and do it again... hmmm, sketchbook or watercolor paper .... : )
Thank you! If you didn’t want to have two books, you could always make one and do half your signatures with sketch paper and half with watercolour paper! 😃. I have even thought about making a book where each signature is a different type of paper.
Such an excellent tutorial! Thank you so much! My first ever handmade watercolour sketchbook is now driying under some heavy books and I can't wait to see it ready... 💚
Thank you for this wonderful tutorial. You make it look so simple. I have made a couple but much prefer how you have done yours. And mine didn’t have covers but will definitely have some now. 😊
I get so excited to hear that people have used my tutorial! I hope you are happy with the result! If you’d like to share, I’d love to see it. (If you’re on instagram I’m @made_by_lora)
Excellent video, well paced for a beginner like me, love the way you improvised withe the smaller version too. Stitching part well explained and demonstrated thanks
Thank you! I’m glad you found this video helpful! A couple of people have said that the stitching part would be easier to see with a coloured thread. I don’t like to do that for blank sketchbooks because I sometimes like to draw across the join. However, next week I’ll be binding a book and will be using coloured thread and also a different technique for the covers. Keep an eye out for that, if you’re interested to see more.
Made my very first journal using this video. I watched it in full first, which I highly recommend, then went back to consult different sections. The only difference is that I used an old book and gutted it. This is an amazing video and made this much easier than I ever imagined it would be! Thank you for sharing!!
A Year After You Made The Video (tutorial) and you're STILL inspiring people. ME!! Oh my! Because of my hectic schedule, it's taken me several days to watch the whole thing, and now I can HARDLY WAIT to make myself a sketchbook. Thank you so much for being brave enough to start making (and finishing!) the tutorial. I'm going to go like your channel and see what else I can learn. You're a treasure!
Thank you!!! It is a long one to watch all in one go haha, I’m so glad you managed to watch it and feel inspired! I really hope you will enjoy making your own book! If you’re on Instagram, I’d love to see a pic of what you make, if you’re happy to share it.
Hi Terri, I’ve been working my way through comments from the last few days and just replied to a comment from you on my travel kit video, and I suggested you look at this one, before I realised that you’d commented on this video too Hahaha oops! I hope you will give it a go to make your own book! Sorry, that sounds a bit pushy, but it’s such a nice feeling to have actually made your own book, I just want everyone to experience it! 😁
@@madebylora hello, I have made three of the tiny teeny sketchbooks. Two with grey toned paper and one with mixed media paper. Thankyou for posting such a detailed tutorial - I don't think mine are sewn as tight as they could be but I'm happy since it's the first time I've ever tried them 🙂
@@terrilyon6825 Oh that’s amazing! I’m so happy that my tutorial was helpful! Now you’ll have to do more sketching to keep up with all the books you’ll be making hahaha! How tight to pull the stitches can be tricky. You’ll do a few too loose and you’ll probably do it at least once where you pull too tight and rip the paper (I still do that occasionally) and then somewhere along the line you’ll get it just right.
Thank you so much Lora for making the diy sketchbook videos! I hVe made a few in the past but I want to make a few using some of the tips you used in making yours. ❤❤❤
@@Mity_Moose that's good advice, thank you! When I filmed my holiday sketch flip through I thought it was too long and chatty so I also did a shorter version. There are slightly more views on the longer version so I should have just trusted myself.
Thank you so much for sharing your interesting tutorial, I make my own books similar to yours, I made myself a book press, quite easy really, saves using all them heavy books as a press, also we have a dog which eats boneo biscuits, so I use the empty boxes which I cut them to size and glue them together, makes great book covers, thank you again, and good luck with future tutorials.
Thank you! Mention of Boneo biscuits brings back happy memories of my grandparents’ dog! (He would not touch it if you offered him a whole one, it had to be broken in half first haha)
@@madebylora well at least I get something from the boxes, incedently, I don't know if you have seen mike deakin? He creates journals cards etc, he is very good, well worth watching, have a great day.
I watched the video again and made a toned brown paper sketchbook following along with your video. I didn't have e any fabric so I used scrapbooking paper and I am quite pleased at how it turned out. It is small 3.5x 5.5. So I'm starting inktober 7 days late. I'll start with page/day 8 tomorrow and then make up the first 7 days as I go along. Thank you for the inspiration! ❤
Oh, I’m so pleased! And that’s a good idea to leave blank pages and go back (much easier that starting at 1 and trying to catch up that way, I think) If you’ve got mod podge or a similar thing, you could paint it on over your paper, it gives it a “plasticy” coating which is more durable than just paper on its own. I’ve done it when I’ve made diaries with printed paper covers. I normally paint on the mod podge while the paper is still flat, but it should work the same when doing it after the book is made. I do 2 layers at right angles to each other, so if any brush marks still show, it gives a kind of canvas texture effect. Obviously you don’t need to do that, but thought I’d mention it just in case.
Absolutely LOVED this video Lora!! Thanks so much for sharing (and doing everything twice because of the memory card issues). I think in order to do this, I’d need to buy slightly thicker fabric than the thin cotton fabrics I have for crafts. I think I might even have one of those hole-punching needles from my scrapbooking days. The sewing for the binding is what has always made me feel most apprehensive, but I like how you explained it. Both books turned out lovely! ❤
Thank you so much! That means a lot! You might be ok with your fabric if you let the glue get a bit tacky before sticking to the fabric. Maybe worth doing a little test (unless of course you're looking for a reason to go and buy more fabric haha)
Thank you, Lora. This is a fantastic tutorial. The best I have seen. Your step by step was at a pace that I could really see and understand. Great job😊 and thank you.
I just discovered you last evening and so pleased You Tube recommended your channel. This instructional video is so informative and inspiring. I wasn’t looking for book binding info but now I want to make a sketch book. Was looking for travel sketching information and found that as well. Thank you for doing such great videos.
Hi Tami, thank you! I’m so glad you are enjoying my videos! It’s such a nice feeling to sketch in a book you made yourself, I hope you’ll give it a try.
I've been wanting to make my own art journal because I'm just not happy with what's available in the store. Now I'm sure I can do this. Thank you for this video.❤❤❤❤
I’m so pleased you found my video helpful! I’m sure you’ll love making your own books! My guess is that when you’ve done it once, you’ll never go back! If you’re on Instagram I’d love to see what you make, if you’re happy to share.
Wow, this was incredible. You are such a good teacher. This was so clear and easy to follow. I'm so excited to watch this again and make my own journal. Thank you! 😊💝
Really great toot! I’m sure I won’t have any problems because you answered all my questions as you went along. I noticed that you have a pocket in the back of your blue sketchbook and wondered if you can do a demo about adding pockets in the back. I love the expanding ones in Moleskine journals and keep a ruler and other items in there. PS I’m from the US and I love hearing the rain on your roof! We live in an area where most of the weather goes around us!😢😂
@@madebylora that’s great; looking forward to it. You might consider using colored thread in your next book. I think it might show up better in the video. You did a great job though. Sarah
A couple of people have suggested coloured thread. Normally I do white because I sometimes like to sketch across the join between pages. I'll be making a book for Inktober this year, so I'll film that and I will use coloured thread. I won't be finishing the binding and the cover until the end of the month, so keep an eye out for it at end of October/start of November.
This is the best tutorial I have found to help me make my own watercolour journals! Very comprehensive but easy to follow. You also explained some of the things I was struggling with! Thank you so much 😊❤
@@madebylora I just posted about my first attempt on IG. I made this before I watched your tutorial and you can see what a mess I made of the spine! I hope you don't mind but I tagged you and mentioned your video for anyone else wanting to learn. I have very few followers but it would be great if even just a couple of people watched your tutorial to help grow your channel! I've watched a couple of others and I do find you lovely and calming to listen to! Thank you for taking the time to make your videos🥰
@thepoodledoodlepainter aww thank you so much for sharing that! That is really kind of you! I'm actually getting close to being monetised on TH-cam which I never expected to happen (although I'm not there yet). I'm glad you've enjoyed my videos!
Lovely book; your voice is so soothing. Did you ever consider Pellon Fusible for your material. One step iron on makes your material into bookcloth. Prevents glue seapage. Use the featherweight option; no bulk at corners.
Thank you! Yes, if I think the fabric is too thin, I have used fusible interfacing a few times. Maybe I’ll show that in another video some time. For this one I was trying to keep the number of steps as low as possible to keep it simple - it’s already a long video haha
This makes me so happy! I’m so glad that my video was helpful and that you managed to make 2 journals so cheaply!! Did you enjoy making them? I hope so!
Lora, thank you so much for making this video! Are you able to attach the spine and cover pages the way you did in this video, if you are using 300 gsm watercolor paper? Will the pages lie flat? I saw another video where someone attached their cover in a “floating” manner to allow the thick paper to lie flat. Personally, I would prefer to glue it securely as you have done, providing it allows the book to open flat for painting. I hope this makes sense? Thank you again!
Hi Diann, thank you for your question! I’ll do my best to answer, but this could get a bit long haha. First of all I should let you know that the thickest paper I’ve bound into a book is 190gsm so obviously not as thick as your paper, but it does lie flat. I’m not an expert but in my experience, whether a book lies flat or not seems more to do with how it’s bound rather than how thick the paper is. In the past I’ve done a few that didn’t lie flat very well and they were just using printer paper! The key to success seems to be to make sure the card for the spine is flexible and also the correct width. On mine that don’t open very well, I had made the spine either too stiff or too wide. (I think I probably measured the width of the folded papers before sewing them together. Sewing pulled the pages closer together, hence my spine being too wide). Hopefully I’m making sense so far! Also you want to make sure you’re keeping your spine hollow by not gluing your pages to the inside of the spine. Another option that could work for the spine is to use an extra piece of fabric inside the spine instead of card, so that your spine would be really flexible. (I’ve got one I made using fake leather where I didn’t put any lining inside the spine and that works really well for laying flat, although the fake leather was a nightmare to glue!). It might be worth making yourself a note book or something first with cheap paper before using your expensive watercolour paper, so that you get more confident with the process of making a book first and looking at how the spine flexes etc. I really hope this is helpful! Let me know how you get on. Oh, and one more thing I just thought of…. I tried taking a short cut by glueing the first and last pages to the inside covers, (instead of adding separate end papers) and that also seemed to restrict the book from opening well.
@@madebylora thank you Lora! Yes your explanation made perfect sense, and I appreciate the detailed answer so much! Can’t wait to make my own sketchbooks with the watercolor paper of MY choice!♥️
So it turns out that I *am* interested in knowing that that gap is called the throw up :D Books turned out great! Do you think that quilter's cotton would be thick enough if it had lightweight interfacing on?
Hehehe thanks. Yes I think the cotton with lightweight, iron-on interfacing would work. (I was actually thinking of showing that in this video but wanted to keep it as straight forward as possible and decided to show interfacing in a future video instead)
If I'm only doing a thin booklet with a few pages I often just staple the pages in the centre, but if it's a book with multiple signatures, I don't know how you'd hold them all together if each signature is stapled separately. You could perhaps do a little line of glue next to the fold to attach signatures to each other, but then those pages wouldn't open fully (just like on the pages inside the front and back covers). Not sure that is any help for you, but thanks for the question!
@@madebylora yes, I was thinking about the glue. Because I did just glue the pages together for my DIY sketchbook, and it's holding well. It wasn't signatures, it was several pages folded and glues together at the spine.
I've not got a tutorial for using the Amazon brown paper, but the making process was the same. The only difference is that I decided to rip the pages instead of cutting them. It seemed to suit the book because the paper was a bit crumpled. I held a ruler down on the paper when I ripped the paper so that the ripped edges weren't too scruffy. I've also made a note to show that technique in a future video too.
@@madebylora thanks for the info; I’m going to try making that next. I made a watercolor book with your tutorial and it was great. I had all the stuff. I plan to do Inktober with it! Thanks for opening this up for me!
Can you believe it.... I can't find the book to measure it! (I have a vague memory that I may have given it as a gift to someone). I believe the pages are approximately 10cms (so paper cut at 10x20cms).
very nicee
Thank you
I really enjoyed your no-nonsense methods for bookbinding, especially for beginners. I made maybe 100+ books after being so annoyed with the cost of watercolor sketchbooks. I wish I'd seen this video for my first few books. Other YT'ers make very good tutorials, too, but most were so complicated that it seemed daunting. Not yours. Beginner friendly yet gorgeous results. Well done, Lora.
First of all, thank you for taking the time to watch my video when you already do book binding. Thank you so much for your kind comment, it means a lot!
Best MAKE YOUR OWN JOURNAL video ive ever seen ! Thanks for sharing i am going to make my own 🎉🎉🎉
Aww thank you so much for your lovely comment! I hope you will enjoy making your own! I'd love to see it if you want to send me a pic or tag me on Instagram (I wish we could send photos in TH-cam comments, but that would probably be a risky door to door with some people hahal
Thank you for going through all the trouble to show us your book-binding procedure. I will follow your tutorial for sure. You have such an encouraging way to show and explain things. Thank you. 💐
Thank you so much, I'm glad this was helpful
I've watched a few of your videos now, and you explain things so well. You think of everything we might need to know, and explain what you're doing so clearly. Thanks again!
Thank you! Makes it difficult to do short videos, but I like to over explain and simplify hahaha
They turned out beautifully!! ❤ I’m going to try this. I accidentally ordered some huge watercolor paper and was trying to figure out how I would use it up. Great idea!
That's brilliant! I hope your watercolour book/s turn out well! Have fun!
Brilliant...well explained
Thank you!
how fun.. can't wait to watch
I hope you enjoyed the video
Really enjoyed the video tut. Thank you for sharing. I am new to your channel. On to watch another ...
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the video! I still feel kind of new to my channel too haha. Finding my way and working out what people will like, while at the same time doing what I like
Absolutely loved your tutorial I know it was awhile ago but I've just found it. You made it very easy to understand and I cant wait to try making my own sketchbook. Thankyou so much for all your advice, much appriciated. I cant believe its your first tutorial, you were born to teach.
Thank you so much for your lovely comment! I hope you will enjoy making your own books too!
Thanks Lora. You did a terrific job and I really enjoyed your explanation, tips and insights. If I didn’t already have so many sketchbooks that I need to use up first, I would have felt more than ready to make my own right now. 😃
Thanks Liz, that's lovely feedback! I especially appreciate you taking the time to watch, even though you're not needing a new sketchbook at the moment!
An excellent tutorial. You have inspired me to get my book binding kit out and make a sketchbook. Happy days.😀
Yeah, go for it! It’s so nice sketching in a book you’ve made yourself! I’ve been using this tall book today and loving the size. Actually I’ve liked every size I’ve made so far, so I’ve no idea what my favourite size is haha
I love this video. I've been wanting to do a watercolor book for a long time, and there's a book binding course offered close to where I live but it's quite expensive and I don't have the money for that. I would try this! You are the best (:
Thank you, I’m so pleased you enjoyed this. I’m sure a bookbinding course could teach you a lot of things that I don’t know, but courses can be very expensive, I feel the same way. I hope you will give it a go, it’s so nice to sketch and paint in a book you made yourself!
@@madebylora yeah, I guess is a professional course for it's price but it's not what I need, this video it's more than enough for me. I'm so excited! Thank you so much!
@@nabel6499 thank you! Are you also on Instagram? I’d love it if you could share a photo with me when you’ve made it (but no pressure!). It’s a shame we can’t add photos in TH-cam comments (although I guess that could open up a whole can of worms with people sending inappropriate images)
@@madebylora haha oh yeah, but I am on Instagram I'll follow you and share a picture when I do it!
Lora, I just finished making my first watercolor sketchbook. I followed your video on how to make a sketch book. It turned out really nice. Thank you for teaching me.
@@hangingoutwithronwalters4505 wow that’s great, thanks for sharing that! I’m so glad my tutorial was helpful. Hope you have fun filling your new book!
This has to be one of the most enjoyable tutorials I've seen on TH-cam. Definitely going to have a go. Love it!
Aw thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed it! If you make something I'd love to see it (if you're on Instagram)
Best tutorial I've seen yet! I'm going to finally (after many years of using the pamphlet stitch) attempt this bookbinding method. Thank you.
Thank you so much for your comment, it means a lot to know that my video is clear and encourages people to give it a go! Are you on Instagram? If you make one, I'd love to see it if you wouldn't mind sending me a pic or tagging me. (No pressure)
This is the best I've seen too, really informative.
Aww thank you. That means a lot!
Thanks so much for your tutorial! So easy to understand! And I feel CONFIDENT I could make one of these treasures! Thank you!!! Just some suggestions: If you do want multiple folios to each signature, You can trim each signature separately using a straight edge and sharp craft knife. Trim the edges back to the original desired folded width. The trick is a fresh sharp blade and patience. Use more light cutting strokes instead of deep ones. Like you demonstrated on the book board. Also, I use an old beatup hardcover book as a make-shift whole punching cradle. Oh, lastly, try your hand at using curved needles. It makes it so much easier to do those stitches where you are attaching the signatures to each other. Again, this video was a joy and incredibly helpful to me! Happy binding! ❤️🙋♀️
Thank you for your kind words and suggestions! I have tried trimming signatures since making this video and I did ok with it, but I still need more practice to get a very neat finish (I miss the big electric guillotine in the office at my old job hahaha). I did try once with a curved needle and while I found it easier to link to the previous signature, I found it more awkward stitching through the holes. I should probably give it another try. Thank you
@@madebylora💗
What a great tutorial. Your journals are absolutely amazing.
Hi Maria, thank you so much! I hope you will enjoy it if you make one for yourself!
Very impressive tutorial. I appreciate you going the extra mile to introduce the smaller journal to make up for the video learning curve - thank you! I plan on making a watercolor journal and may use sketch and watercolor signatures in one book. This is the first tutorial I watched that includes making a more sophisticated cover and spine from scratch. Thank you so much for this great tutorial!
Aww thank you, I'm so glad you found it helpful. I've thought about doing different types of paper for different signatures but I've never actually done it. I feel like I'd end like I do with Shampoo and Conditioner, I can never manage to use them at the same rate hahahaha
Thank you so much for not giving up after the technical difficulties! I made a book following a different video but the stitching part wasn't super clear. I really appreciate your detailed explanations, I think I'll give it another go 😊
Thank you! Hope you're able to do another book with more confidence. There are quite a few different ways to sew pages, but I mostly stick with this style (so far).
I love these sketch books and your artwork is amazing!
Thank you so much!
Brilliant. A great tutorial, well structured and easy to follow. Thanks 😊
Thank you very much!
This was an amazing video... Easy to follow, I will be keeping this Because I will be trying this.
Thank you so much! I hope you will enjoy making and using your own sketchbook!
thank you for the great tutorial! your voice is soothing and you explained everything perfectly..
Thank you so much! I’m glad you enjoyed the tutorial…. I hope my voice didn’t send you to sleep! Hahaha
This is a very good tutorial! I‘ve made books before, but learnt something new from you. Thank you!
Thank you! I'm glad you found my tutorial helpful.
I’ve never made a book before and I’m looking forward to now making my own watercolour sketchbook. I have plenty of paper, darning needles and soft furnishing fabric leftovers which will be perfect. Thank you so much for this tutorial.
Hi Michelle, thank you! I really hope you will enjoy the process of making your own book. I love the feeling of sketching in a handmade book, I hope you enjoy it too! I'd love it if you could share it with me if you're also on Instagram (but no pressure!)
Thanks for sharing! I’m tired of looking for a nice sketchbook with a good quality paper and that doesn’t cost crazy amount of money. Next time I’ll try to make my own and maybe it’ll even look decent 😄
Sounds like making your own will be the perfect solution! I'm loving using the bigger book that I made in this video. I hope you'll love it too if you make one!
Tha k you so much for sharing! I have a pad of watercolor paper that just fell apart so I might give this a go!
That’s a great idea! I hope you do!
I can't wait to save some time to try this! Have had some a2 pieces of paper sitting around, their time is coming :)
Also I'm there with you on missing a heavy duty guillotine. Took me a while to remember where have I actually used one... But we had some at uni :'))
I’m so happy that you want to give this a try! It’s a great way to use up big paper that you haven’t used. Do you use Instagram? If you make a book, I’d love to see it.
Loved the video. I can now make my own sketch books. Time to get comfy and watch your other videos!
Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed this! I hope you’ll enjoy making and using your own sketchbook too!
Excellent tutorial! I will definitely be doing this soon! Thank you!
Thank you! I'm glad it's helpful!
Good job making up for failed camera. My surface pro four broke on me a month ago and I just replaced it with a Lenovo windows 11 and now my video editor will not run. UGG. So I launched today’s video using movie maker which comes with windows, but it’s so lame. you are a great trainer and now I am going to make my own Sketchbook. I think a personalized touch is an excellent idea. Thanks.
Thank you! I have learnt that I need to film in smaller sections! Haha. I've got a Lenovo too (still on Windows 10).
Dear Lora, ( the king was crowned I watched it on tv. )
I also watched your very nice explained tutorial. The step by step explanaition was very good. I want to thank you ever so much. Your books that you made a realy nice looking, also the technik of how the paper should be folded bevor cutting. I also like the idea of using leftover Material great and the bakside of the paperblock. Very nice what you made . Wishing you a nice sunday many greetings from Christiane Berlin Germany
Thank you very much! I hope you will enjoy making your own books if you give it a try!
Thank you for sharing. I feel inspired to have a go at making one.
Thank you! I hope you will have fun making and using your own sketchbook!
This was interesting as I like to make my sketch books. Worth listening to.thankyou
Thank you! This is such a fantastic guide on making a sketchbook. Loved it.
Thank you very much! Glad you enjoyed it, and thank you for sticking with it through my camera issues haha
Really appreciated your tutorial! Thank you for the video! ❤
Thank You, Lora : ) Well Done!!! I've made books in the past. You made me want to get out my things and do it again... hmmm, sketchbook or watercolor paper .... : )
Thank you! If you didn’t want to have two books, you could always make one and do half your signatures with sketch paper and half with watercolour paper! 😃. I have even thought about making a book where each signature is a different type of paper.
Thank you for the tutorial .very well explained I'm encouraged now to make my own. Thank you againg
Thank you, I hope you’ll give it a go. It’s a really nice feeling to hold a book that you made from scratch!
I love this video so much! You are so good at explaining and showing all the steps along the way. I can’t wait to give this a try ☺️
Aww thank you so much, that means a lot! I hope you will enjoy making and using your own as much as I do!
Such an excellent tutorial! Thank you so much! My first ever handmade watercolour sketchbook is now driying under some heavy books and I can't wait to see it ready... 💚
Oooo that's exciting! I'm so glad you've been able to follow my tutorial. I hope you will love using your sketchbook!
Thank you for this wonderful tutorial. You make it look so simple. I have made a couple but much prefer how you have done yours. And mine didn’t have covers but will definitely have some now. 😊
Ah thank you, I'm so glad you found this helpful!
Nice and hard work
You are lovely …I can’t wait to make a couple of books…you are a great instructor,the tutorial is explained and shown perfectly,thank you so much…
Thank you so much! I'm so pleased you found this helpful. I hope you will enjoy making your own books as much as I do!
Well done. Love the results.
Thank you!
Thanks for this tutorial! I gave it a go. We will see if my sketchbook opens tomorrow once it has dried 😂
I get so excited to hear that people have used my tutorial! I hope you are happy with the result! If you’d like to share, I’d love to see it. (If you’re on instagram I’m @made_by_lora)
Excellent video, well paced for a beginner like me, love the way you improvised withe the smaller version too. Stitching part well explained and demonstrated thanks
Thank you! I’m glad you found this video helpful! A couple of people have said that the stitching part would be easier to see with a coloured thread. I don’t like to do that for blank sketchbooks because I sometimes like to draw across the join. However, next week I’ll be binding a book and will be using coloured thread and also a different technique for the covers. Keep an eye out for that, if you’re interested to see more.
Lovely! Thanks for
Made my very first journal using this video. I watched it in full first, which I highly recommend, then went back to consult different sections. The only difference is that I used an old book and gutted it. This is an amazing video and made this much easier than I ever imagined it would be! Thank you for sharing!!
That's great! I'm so glad this was helpful!! I hope you will enjoy your new (old) book!
Thank you ❤️
You explain it all so well. I learnt new things 😃
Thank you!
I like the way you presented your kit. I got some good tips. 😀
Thank you
Thank you!!!! You made this so easy! I am excited to make my own sketchbook❤
It makes me so happy to think that there will be more handmade books out there as a result of my video! I’m so glad you found this helpful!
A Year After You Made The Video (tutorial) and you're STILL inspiring people. ME!!
Oh my! Because of my hectic schedule, it's taken me several days to watch the whole thing, and now I can HARDLY WAIT to make myself a sketchbook. Thank you so much for being brave enough to start making (and finishing!) the tutorial. I'm going to go like your channel and see what else I can learn. You're a treasure!
Thank you!!! It is a long one to watch all in one go haha, I’m so glad you managed to watch it and feel inspired! I really hope you will enjoy making your own book! If you’re on Instagram, I’d love to see a pic of what you make, if you’re happy to share it.
@@madebylora I’ll absolutely share it! I think I found and followed your account on IG. 🤞🏻
Glad you made a mini because that's what I want to do!
Great tutorial, thanks so much for sharing this very cool skill. I've no idea if I have the patience for this but I'll give it a bash! Thanks 😊
Hi Terri, I’ve been working my way through comments from the last few days and just replied to a comment from you on my travel kit video, and I suggested you look at this one, before I realised that you’d commented on this video too Hahaha oops! I hope you will give it a go to make your own book! Sorry, that sounds a bit pushy, but it’s such a nice feeling to have actually made your own book, I just want everyone to experience it! 😁
@@madebylora hello, I have made three of the tiny teeny sketchbooks. Two with grey toned paper and one with mixed media paper. Thankyou for posting such a detailed tutorial - I don't think mine are sewn as tight as they could be but I'm happy since it's the first time I've ever tried them 🙂
@@terrilyon6825 Oh that’s amazing! I’m so happy that my tutorial was helpful! Now you’ll have to do more sketching to keep up with all the books you’ll be making hahaha! How tight to pull the stitches can be tricky. You’ll do a few too loose and you’ll probably do it at least once where you pull too tight and rip the paper (I still do that occasionally) and then somewhere along the line you’ll get it just right.
Excellent tutorial! Thank you.
Thank you!
Thank you so much Lora for making the diy sketchbook videos! I hVe made a few in the past but I want to make a few using some of the tips you used in making yours. ❤❤❤
Thank you. There are so many variations for bookbinding, it's fun learning new techniques. Do you watch Nik the booksmith? She's my favourite youtuber
This was brilliant, so helpful. I will be giving this a go. Thank you
Thank you so much! So glad it’s helpful
This was extremely helpful and you just gained a subscriber ❤
Thank you so much. I was worried no one would watch it because its a long one!!
People will always watch what they need. So, just keep being creative, and stay true to yourself.
@@Mity_Moose that's good advice, thank you! When I filmed my holiday sketch flip through I thought it was too long and chatty so I also did a shorter version. There are slightly more views on the longer version so I should have just trusted myself.
@@madebylora there ya go. 😊
Thank you so much for sharing your interesting tutorial, I make my own books similar to yours, I made myself a book press, quite easy really, saves using all them heavy books as a press, also we have a dog which eats boneo biscuits, so I use the empty boxes which I cut them to size and glue them together, makes great book covers, thank you again, and good luck with future tutorials.
Thank you! Mention of Boneo biscuits brings back happy memories of my grandparents’ dog! (He would not touch it if you offered him a whole one, it had to be broken in half first haha)
@@madebylora well at least I get something from the boxes, incedently, I don't know if you have seen mike deakin? He creates journals cards etc, he is very good, well worth watching, have a great day.
this is great, thank you for this wonderful tutorial!
Thank you!
Wonderful tutorial, thank you ❤
Thank you
I watched the video again and made a toned brown paper sketchbook following along with your video. I didn't have e any fabric so I used scrapbooking paper and I am quite pleased at how it turned out. It is small 3.5x 5.5. So I'm starting inktober 7 days late. I'll start with page/day 8 tomorrow and then make up the first 7 days as I go along. Thank you for the inspiration! ❤
Oh, I’m so pleased! And that’s a good idea to leave blank pages and go back (much easier that starting at 1 and trying to catch up that way, I think)
If you’ve got mod podge or a similar thing, you could paint it on over your paper, it gives it a “plasticy” coating which is more durable than just paper on its own. I’ve done it when I’ve made diaries with printed paper covers. I normally paint on the mod podge while the paper is still flat, but it should work the same when doing it after the book is made. I do 2 layers at right angles to each other, so if any brush marks still show, it gives a kind of canvas texture effect. Obviously you don’t need to do that, but thought I’d mention it just in case.
@@madebylora I do have mod podge and will put 2 coats on tomorrow, thanks for the tip!
Absolutely LOVED this video Lora!! Thanks so much for sharing (and doing everything twice because of the memory card issues). I think in order to do this, I’d need to buy slightly thicker fabric than the thin cotton fabrics I have for crafts. I think I might even have one of those hole-punching needles from my scrapbooking days. The sewing for the binding is what has always made me feel most apprehensive, but I like how you explained it. Both books turned out lovely! ❤
Thank you so much! That means a lot! You might be ok with your fabric if you let the glue get a bit tacky before sticking to the fabric. Maybe worth doing a little test (unless of course you're looking for a reason to go and buy more fabric haha)
Great tutorial!❤
Thank you!
Despite your technical difficulties, this was a very well done video, and very thorough. Thanks for sharing this!
Thank you so much!
Thank you, Lora. This is a fantastic tutorial. The best I have seen. Your step by step was at a pace that I could really see and understand. Great job😊 and thank you.
Aww thank you! What a lovely compliment! I really appreciate that, thank you!
I just discovered you last evening and so pleased You Tube recommended your channel. This instructional video is so informative and inspiring. I wasn’t looking for book binding info but now I want to make a sketch book.
Was looking for travel sketching information and found that as well. Thank you for doing such great videos.
Hi Tami, thank you! I’m so glad you are enjoying my videos! It’s such a nice feeling to sketch in a book you made yourself, I hope you’ll give it a try.
I used some waxed floss for teeth to make a recentlysketchbook. I might prefer nonwaxed thread.
I’ve never thought of using dental floss! 😁
Thankyou sooo much this was an absolutely fantastic tutorial and i would never of guessed it was your first one cant wait to see more thankyou again
Thank you so much for your lovely comment!
Small fact of the day : I found binder notebooks are the hardest to make, I tried making one today and I was struggling, still succeeded
Well done for persevering. Maybe now it will be easier to do it in future.
I've been wanting to make my own art journal because I'm just not happy with what's available in the store. Now I'm sure I can do this. Thank you for this video.❤❤❤❤
I’m so pleased you found my video helpful! I’m sure you’ll love making your own books! My guess is that when you’ve done it once, you’ll never go back! If you’re on Instagram I’d love to see what you make, if you’re happy to share.
Wow, this was incredible. You are such a good teacher. This was so clear and easy to follow. I'm so excited to watch this again and make my own journal. Thank you! 😊💝
Aww thank you so much, that really means a lot! I hope you have fun making and using your own journal!
Hi lora, just wanna say thank you! I always want to make my own sketchbook and this video has been such a treat really!
Thank you so much! I hope you enjoy making your own.
Excellent explanations of all the steps. Thank you so much!
Thank you! I’m glad it was helpful!
Really great toot! I’m sure I won’t have any problems because you answered all my questions as you went along. I noticed that you have a pocket in the back of your blue sketchbook and wondered if you can do a demo about adding pockets in the back. I love the expanding ones in Moleskine journals and keep a ruler and other items in there. PS I’m from the US and I love hearing the rain on your roof! We live in an area where most of the weather goes around us!😢😂
Thank you! I've made myself a note to include a pocket in my next tutorial.
@@madebylora that’s great; looking forward to it. You might consider using colored thread in your next book. I think it might show up better in the video. You did a great job though. Sarah
A couple of people have suggested coloured thread. Normally I do white because I sometimes like to sketch across the join between pages. I'll be making a book for Inktober this year, so I'll film that and I will use coloured thread. I won't be finishing the binding and the cover until the end of the month, so keep an eye out for it at end of October/start of November.
This is the best tutorial I have found to help me make my own watercolour journals! Very comprehensive but easy to follow. You also explained some of the things I was struggling with! Thank you so much 😊❤
Thank you so much for your lovely comment!! It really makes me happy to know that this is useful!
@@madebylora I just posted about my first attempt on IG. I made this before I watched your tutorial and you can see what a mess I made of the spine! I hope you don't mind but I tagged you and mentioned your video for anyone else wanting to learn. I have very few followers but it would be great if even just a couple of people watched your tutorial to help grow your channel! I've watched a couple of others and I do find you lovely and calming to listen to! Thank you for taking the time to make your videos🥰
@thepoodledoodlepainter aww thank you so much for sharing that! That is really kind of you! I'm actually getting close to being monetised on TH-cam which I never expected to happen (although I'm not there yet). I'm glad you've enjoyed my videos!
Lovely book; your voice is so soothing. Did you ever consider Pellon Fusible for your material. One step iron on makes your material into bookcloth. Prevents glue seapage. Use the featherweight option; no bulk at corners.
Thank you! Yes, if I think the fabric is too thin, I have used fusible interfacing a few times. Maybe I’ll show that in another video some time. For this one I was trying to keep the number of steps as low as possible to keep it simple - it’s already a long video haha
Great! Thank you so much, really helpful 😊
I did it! Two travel art journals made for the price of the 50p pad of watercolour paper I found in a charity shop 😁
This makes me so happy! I’m so glad that my video was helpful and that you managed to make 2 journals so cheaply!! Did you enjoy making them? I hope so!
Yes! I feel so satisfied 😊
And the paper was 300g W&N Cotman - very nice 😂
You'll never go back to buying books now haha x
Lora, thank you so much for making this video! Are you able to attach the spine and cover pages the way you did in this video, if you are using 300 gsm watercolor paper? Will the pages lie flat? I saw another video where someone attached their cover in a “floating” manner to allow the thick paper to lie flat. Personally, I would prefer to glue it securely as you have done, providing it allows the book to open flat for painting. I hope this makes sense? Thank you again!
Hi Diann, thank you for your question! I’ll do my best to answer, but this could get a bit long haha. First of all I should let you know that the thickest paper I’ve bound into a book is 190gsm so obviously not as thick as your paper, but it does lie flat. I’m not an expert but in my experience, whether a book lies flat or not seems more to do with how it’s bound rather than how thick the paper is. In the past I’ve done a few that didn’t lie flat very well and they were just using printer paper! The key to success seems to be to make sure the card for the spine is flexible and also the correct width. On mine that don’t open very well, I had made the spine either too stiff or too wide. (I think I probably measured the width of the folded papers before sewing them together. Sewing pulled the pages closer together, hence my spine being too wide). Hopefully I’m making sense so far! Also you want to make sure you’re keeping your spine hollow by not gluing your pages to the inside of the spine. Another option that could work for the spine is to use an extra piece of fabric inside the spine instead of card, so that your spine would be really flexible. (I’ve got one I made using fake leather where I didn’t put any lining inside the spine and that works really well for laying flat, although the fake leather was a nightmare to glue!). It might be worth making yourself a note book or something first with cheap paper before using your expensive watercolour paper, so that you get more confident with the process of making a book first and looking at how the spine flexes etc. I really hope this is helpful! Let me know how you get on. Oh, and one more thing I just thought of…. I tried taking a short cut by glueing the first and last pages to the inside covers, (instead of adding separate end papers) and that also seemed to restrict the book from opening well.
@@madebylora thank you Lora! Yes your explanation made perfect sense, and I appreciate the detailed answer so much! Can’t wait to make my own sketchbooks with the watercolor paper of MY choice!♥️
@@FreshEclecticism Glad it all made sense! Hope all goes well with making your own books. I love using my handmade books and I hope you will too!
So it turns out that I *am* interested in knowing that that gap is called the throw up :D
Books turned out great! Do you think that quilter's cotton would be thick enough if it had lightweight interfacing on?
Hehehe thanks. Yes I think the cotton with lightweight, iron-on interfacing would work. (I was actually thinking of showing that in this video but wanted to keep it as straight forward as possible and decided to show interfacing in a future video instead)
15:22 Could i just staple signatures together without sewing them? Thank you for the tutorial!
If I'm only doing a thin booklet with a few pages I often just staple the pages in the centre, but if it's a book with multiple signatures, I don't know how you'd hold them all together if each signature is stapled separately. You could perhaps do a little line of glue next to the fold to attach signatures to each other, but then those pages wouldn't open fully (just like on the pages inside the front and back covers). Not sure that is any help for you, but thanks for the question!
@@madebylora yes, I was thinking about the glue. Because I did just glue the pages together for my DIY sketchbook, and it's holding well. It wasn't signatures, it was several pages folded and glues together at the spine.
QUESTION Lori, do you have a video about how you made your little notebook with the Amazon paper? I’d love to make one. Thanks,
I've not got a tutorial for using the Amazon brown paper, but the making process was the same. The only difference is that I decided to rip the pages instead of cutting them. It seemed to suit the book because the paper was a bit crumpled. I held a ruler down on the paper when I ripped the paper so that the ripped edges weren't too scruffy. I've also made a note to show that technique in a future video too.
@@madebylora thanks for the info; I’m going to try making that next. I made a watercolor book with your tutorial and it was great. I had all the stuff. I plan to do Inktober with it! Thanks for opening this up for me!
That's so lovely to hear! I'm so glad it's been helpful.
Hello! I have a question, what are the measurments to your square notebook?
Can you believe it.... I can't find the book to measure it! (I have a vague memory that I may have given it as a gift to someone). I believe the pages are approximately 10cms (so paper cut at 10x20cms).
Thank you!
With all this beautiful effort i hope the paper was acid free. :)
I've gotten free wall paper books. All kinds of weight there.
O wish you would have done it in a different color of thread. Would have been easier to really see what you were doing.
If I make another binding tutorial I will keep that in mind. For sketchbooks I like to use white because I often sketch across the join in the pages.
It’s best to talk less on these kind of videos so the video is shortened.
Thank you for the advice! I do have a tendency to over explain
I disagree!! I it amazing to have a tutorial that suits absolute beginners. The thorough explanations are excellent. ❤