Custom Wooden Cover Notebook

As an educator, a custom planner tailored to my needs is a giant timesaver. While I was designing a fully custom planner I thought: "Why not go full DIY and create all the components of the booklet?" So I did.

The covers and different signatures are bound with the 'Secret Belgian Binding'. As a Belgian I am proud to be using this stitch. For more background information about the binding, look here.

In all honesty, for the binding I used the steps from this website. I'll include everything here for convenience. Also, YouTube is awesome for learning new skills!

You can customise the dimensions of the cover (and the amount of signatures) to your needs.

Follow these steps and try one for yourself!

For making the wooden book cover:

• Any wood you like
• Table saw
• Sanding paper
• Varnish
• Water
• Paper bag
• Tape
• Rags
• Wood glue

For the binding:

• The wooden book cover
• Colored waxed thread
• 16 sheets of text weight paper to make up the signatures
• A metal edged ruler
• X-acto knife and blades
• A pair of scissors
• A pencil
• A folding bone
• Sewing thread (unwaxed)
• Sewing needles
• Masking tape
• 2 clothepins

Cut 16 sheets of paper 5-1/2" x 7-3/4"

Separate into 4 stacks of 4 sheets each. (You can play with the amount of sheets. I've made books of 6 stacks of 6 sheets before.)

Fold each stack in half and bone the crease with a bone folder.

Each stack is called a signature.

Place the 4 signatures on top of one another

Mark sewing stations on the folded edges.

The first and last marks are 1/2" from the edges.

The rest are 5/8" apart to match the weaving on the cover.

Measure the thickness (for the backside of the book cover).

Make sure your wood is between 0.4 inch and 0.8 inch of thickness. This thickness wil determine how many strips you will have to make keeping the block of wood and the thickness of the saw blade in mind.

Cut your wood board to length. Make sure to ad at least 2 inches to the length of your cover. This way you have more options to play with the grain in the wood for the best results possible.

Prepare your tablesaw. Put the saw all the way down. Put some tape over the slit.

Turn the tablesaw on and adjust to desired hight. This way it will cut through the tape. Now when you cut the strips, they won't get caught and you can continue without worries.

Carefully cut the strips. Remember you have to make 2 covers (front and back) and making extra's is ALWAYS a good idea.

Adjust the guide of the tablesaw so you cut strips of about 1.2 inch. I like it a bit thicker for a more sturdy feel.

Cut the back strips.

Congratulations! You now have a few strips you can chose from. Make your selection.

Some tips:

• First select the strips that are the least damaged. Sometimes the cutting grooves of the table saw are quite bad.
• Then select those that have the best patterns.
• It's a matter of quality over aesthetics!

Look at the wood pattern and decide how you want to order the strips.

Once you're ready, it's time to prepare the wooden strips for glueing:

• Put some paper on your work bench
• Clean the dust
• Attach the strips to one another using tape
• Glue the sides of the strips while folding the strips
• Put a paper on the glued strips
• Repeat for the second cover
• Put some weight on it!
• Wait for the glue to dry

First indicate on the wood where you want to drill the holes. Then drill them. The holes should be 1 ³/₈" apart and 5/8" from the spine edge.

Almost there!

Now make sure the wooden covers are prestine. Sanding, sanding and sanding.

Sand al the sides of the wooden covers and the wooden back. Make sure you use a low-grit sanding paper first, then gradually use higher-grit paper.

Tip: after you sanded the wood with the highest grit paper, wet all the wooden pieces. Doing this, some small grains of the wood will rise up whilst the wood dries again. Then take some rough paper (for example brown paper bags) and use this for a final sanding. The wood will feel like satin!

Now you can apply varnish. Go outside to do this or apply varnish in a well ventilated space.

Cut 2 thirty-inch lengths of colored waxed thread for weaving together the covers and spine. The second length will be attached with a square knot on the inside of the spine when needed.

Tip: To hold the spine and covers in place while weaving, place masking tape at the top and bottom as shown below. There should be 1/16" space between the spine and covers. It is best to test the masking tape to make sure it can be removed without tearing the paper. Always remove it carefully. After weaving a few rows, the top masking tape may be removed.

1. Thread the thirty-inch length of the thread onto a needle. With the cover design facing you, start on the inside of the front cover (Fig.2) and bring the thread through the top hole. Leave 2" of the thread and secure it with masking tape. It will later be tied into a knot.

2.Weave the thread over the front cover and under the spine, then over the back cover into the top hole. Turn over and check that the thread is pulled taut but leave the 1/16"space between the covers and the spine. Weave the thread back under the back cover, (Fig. 3) over the spine and into the back of the hole of the front cover. Keep turning the cover to make sure the thread is not loose.

3.Weave back (Fig. 4) under the spine and into the top hole of the back cover.

4. Knot the thread at the end of the cover on the other side, as shown above. (Fig. 4.1)

Bring the threaded needle down the back to the second hole in the back cover. (Fig. 5)

Continue weaving the coveres together as in Fig. 2, 3, and 4 until you reach the bottom of the book. Knot the end.

Using unwaxed thread, insert the needle into the first hole of the first signature. Leave a 2" tail.

Open the signature. Use a clothespin to hold the signature in place while sewing.

Lay the signature on the left side and weave in and out catching the lacing on the inner spine as it is sewn across the signature.

At the end of the first signature insert the needle into the second signature as shown below. Weave in and out of the holes catching the lacing in the spine as before. At the end of the second signature tie the thread to the 2" tail with a square knot. Continue sewing into the third signature in the same manner. At the end of the third signature the thread must be fastened to the second signature or there will be a gap. Do this by making a kettle stitch into the second signature before entering the fourth signature. At the end of the fourth signature do the same. Make sure all threads sewn from the text block to the spine are taut before securing the last stitch with a kettle stitch knot.

Cool fact about this binding:wherever you open the book, there are no bulges. The artists who like to paint or sketch, they know the pain of the bulge in the sketchbook.

Enjoy!