About Our 8" x 5.5" Handbound, Softcover, Uniquely Printed Leather Journal
Thanks for stopping by to learn more about our most popular and highly sought after, one of a kind style journal:
The 8" x 5.5", 400 page (counting both sides) lined or unlined, Softcover, Printed Leather Journal. This journal even comes with a matching bookmark! These journals are so unique because we've come up with a secret way of affordably printing the covers in an odd way that you could never imagine. Not one company, store, online site like Etsy or Amazon nor any other bookbinder sells this type of decorative journal.
Making these journals require a specific type of leather. This leather must then be cut to the exact size of 1' tall x 2' wide and then we have it shipped to a place where we send over as many digital designs as we want. The designs are printed in the most vividly detailed and boldly colored and in the highest quality possible. Once each order has been purchased and printed, they are then shipped back to us.
We then add two layers of a non-yellowing, non-tacky, super protective varnish to not only protect the surface of the journal and make it easier to clean, but also to enhance and maintain the boldness of the colors on the leather. The inside covers vary depending on the color of the leather chosen. We usually stick with black or white depending on the design, however, sometimes a design just calls for blue, purple, green, pink, teal, red, or gold inner covers.
On this page, you will learn all the details of how we bind our journals along with the little techniques and extras that make them so special. We will also share a little about the materials we use and how we acquire our prints to begin with. On this laptop alone there are 5,822 cover designs and between all four laptops, there are at least 12,000! We try to keep them organized, but with so many it's really not possible.
Due to space, loading time of the page and to make the selection process less overwhelming for you, the page of sample designs for you to choose from is narrowed down to between 50-75 of our best and most beautiful designs, all of which we have purchased directly from the artist/creator and also own the license to, therefore they are 100% legal for commercial use, limited or large volume.
Materials
It takes more tools and materials to make a journal than you may realize. First we start by purchasing the right leather. This leather must be lightweight and supple with a particularly smooth surface so that the print will adhere permanently. We add thickness to the layer to make it more suitable for journal covers in our own special way.
For the pages we use white, 8.5" x 11" Mohawk Superfine paper in the texture "eggshell" and it does feel exactly like the texture of an eggshell. It has just enough texture to make it ideal for sketching, drawing and creating art while also being perfect for writing with your favorite pen or practicing your calligraphy. I'm a huge fan of handmade papers, however, this is by far the highest quality paper I have ever worked with, much less used in bookbinding, and now my #1 favorite. It's actually the most common type of paper among professional binders. The paper we use is 8.5" x 11" but with the grain running short. Grain direction is crucial to the longevity and stability of your journal.
For the pages we use white, 8.5" x 11" Mohawk Superfine paper in the texture "eggshell" and it does feel exactly like the texture of an eggshell. It has just enough texture to make it ideal for sketching, drawing and creating art while also being perfect for writing with your favorite pen or practicing your calligraphy. I'm a huge fan of handmade papers, however, this is by far the highest quality paper I have ever worked with, much less used in bookbinding, and now my #1 favorite. It's actually the most common type of paper among professional binders. The paper we use is 8.5" x 11" but with the grain running short. Grain direction is crucial to the longevity and stability of your journal.
When purchasing handbound journals or any handbound book, it's best to be familiar with the importance of grain direction. Short grained paper in standard letter size is EXTREMELY difficult to find in the US. The first time I ever bought any, I paid $25 on Etsy for 20 sheets and it had an awful texture. I'm not sure it was actually Mohawk brand. Fortunately I found a source where I can buy in bulk which helps when I'm buying $3000 sheets anywhere from once to three times per month. We can spend anywhere from $400-$1000 in a single month on paper alone depending on how busy we are. It's well worth it though. Not only do we use it in bookbinding, but we also use it in my partner's company for invoices, stationary and typing letters to clients.
Back to grain direction. When making or purchasing a handbound book, the grain of everything from the paper to the bookcloth to the bookboard and even the fabric, whether making a softcover or a hardcover, must run parallel to the spine. Otherwise, the pages will not turn properly and the book will begin to warp within a few months. Even when using archival materials, the wrong grain direction can cause a book to warp so badly it becomes useless after a few years. You don't have to worry about that with our journals, hardcover or softcover.
Back to grain direction. When making or purchasing a handbound book, the grain of everything from the paper to the bookcloth to the bookboard and even the fabric, whether making a softcover or a hardcover, must run parallel to the spine. Otherwise, the pages will not turn properly and the book will begin to warp within a few months. Even when using archival materials, the wrong grain direction can cause a book to warp so badly it becomes useless after a few years. You don't have to worry about that with our journals, hardcover or softcover.
Putting it all Together...
Once we receive our printed leather back from the printer and apply the surface protecting varnish, allowing it to dry for 24-36 hours, it's ready to be trimmed so that the paper fits inside just right.
While waiting on the leather to return, we make up the pages to save time. Now that we are allowing the buyer to choose whether they want lined pages and in what color, or blank, unlined pages, we will either print the lined pages using one of our colored lined templates or begin making the pages out of plain, unlined paper.
Our templates are all the same lines, just in a variety of colors. Once 100 sheets of lined paper are printed both on the front and back, we take ten individual sheets and fold them in half making what's called a "signature". There are margins along every edge of every page with a larger space on top for writing titles, dates and whatnot. Each book requires ten signatures containing ten sheets of paper each. This creates 200 individual pages or 400 counting front and back.
We check each individual page to make sure the margins are even and there are no errors or pages that didn't get printed correctly in the batch before pulling and separating the ten sheets. We use an unguarded, guillotine paper cutter for trimming signatures. It's dangerous and one wrong move and it's bye bye to a finger or few.
Being autistic, I only see and learn through pictures and therefore I only know by eye where the signatures are to be aligned for the foredge cut. The height of a signature for these journals is exactly 8" tall. The width is around 5.25" I would assume. Even though I have no guideline or number to line the signature against for trimming the edge, each one comes out completely even.
We also have beautiful cover pages to choose from or we can make one especially for your journal. The cover page is the first page you see when you open the journal. If the buyer chooses a decorative cover page and or wants one with a specific image and name at the top, we will create it, print it and trim it to size as well. Sometimes we paste in the cover sheet, which is the way professional bookbinders do it, or we add lines to the other sides and it become the first sheet in the top signature.
While waiting on the leather to return, we make up the pages to save time. Now that we are allowing the buyer to choose whether they want lined pages and in what color, or blank, unlined pages, we will either print the lined pages using one of our colored lined templates or begin making the pages out of plain, unlined paper.
Our templates are all the same lines, just in a variety of colors. Once 100 sheets of lined paper are printed both on the front and back, we take ten individual sheets and fold them in half making what's called a "signature". There are margins along every edge of every page with a larger space on top for writing titles, dates and whatnot. Each book requires ten signatures containing ten sheets of paper each. This creates 200 individual pages or 400 counting front and back.
We check each individual page to make sure the margins are even and there are no errors or pages that didn't get printed correctly in the batch before pulling and separating the ten sheets. We use an unguarded, guillotine paper cutter for trimming signatures. It's dangerous and one wrong move and it's bye bye to a finger or few.
Being autistic, I only see and learn through pictures and therefore I only know by eye where the signatures are to be aligned for the foredge cut. The height of a signature for these journals is exactly 8" tall. The width is around 5.25" I would assume. Even though I have no guideline or number to line the signature against for trimming the edge, each one comes out completely even.
We also have beautiful cover pages to choose from or we can make one especially for your journal. The cover page is the first page you see when you open the journal. If the buyer chooses a decorative cover page and or wants one with a specific image and name at the top, we will create it, print it and trim it to size as well. Sometimes we paste in the cover sheet, which is the way professional bookbinders do it, or we add lines to the other sides and it become the first sheet in the top signature.
Blood, Bruises & Binding
Once the leather cover is ready, the print is within our standards of quality and all 200 individual pages, or 400 pages if you count both the front and back, are folded into signatures of ten folios each (folios are individual sheets of paper folded into half which are combined to create a signature), the stack of signatures go into the nipping press (pictured on the left) for 24 hours to flatten the fold as tightly as possible. This keeps the paper tightly folded together so that when the holes are punched, they all form even straight lines when put together.
We use disposable, plastic fabric grid sheets from Hobby Lobby to make sure our holes are punched evenly and straight. It sounds strange, but it works like a charm. We often just make marks on the top signature based on the dot placement we've filled out on the grid, which depends on what time of binding pattern is to be sewn. Then I take a triangle ruler and with all signatures stacked evenly in place, I will draw lines down the stack where the holes should be then use an awl, a large awl for 7ply thread and a medium sized awl for 4ply, to make holes in every signature. Then stack them back up, make sure the holes all line up and back in the press they go for another 24 hours.
Once the signatures have been in the press long enough, we use the same grid and tape it to the leather using washi tape or painter's tape, measuring the top and bottom to make sure it's even. Then I clip it down at the top and bottom for extra hold and punch the same pattern of holes into the leather. Once that's done, I select the color of Crawford waxed Irish linen thread ($40 a spool wholesale price for 7 ply!) to match the cover and the appropriate needle and using a traditional longstitch, I often play around with different patterns and techniques to give the book a cool looking spine.
We use disposable, plastic fabric grid sheets from Hobby Lobby to make sure our holes are punched evenly and straight. It sounds strange, but it works like a charm. We often just make marks on the top signature based on the dot placement we've filled out on the grid, which depends on what time of binding pattern is to be sewn. Then I take a triangle ruler and with all signatures stacked evenly in place, I will draw lines down the stack where the holes should be then use an awl, a large awl for 7ply thread and a medium sized awl for 4ply, to make holes in every signature. Then stack them back up, make sure the holes all line up and back in the press they go for another 24 hours.
Once the signatures have been in the press long enough, we use the same grid and tape it to the leather using washi tape or painter's tape, measuring the top and bottom to make sure it's even. Then I clip it down at the top and bottom for extra hold and punch the same pattern of holes into the leather. Once that's done, I select the color of Crawford waxed Irish linen thread ($40 a spool wholesale price for 7 ply!) to match the cover and the appropriate needle and using a traditional longstitch, I often play around with different patterns and techniques to give the book a cool looking spine.
A Book is Born
If you're ready to select just a cover design for your book and let us do the rest, head on over to the design page HERE. If you'd rather purchase a pre-made journal from the store, head on back HOME and see what's available. We are always adding new journals. If you'd like to choose your cover, binding thread color and type of pages, you can start at the Customizing Your Journal page. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask.
Click the book below to return to the Choose Your Journal Cover homepage...
