Lotus blossom stab binding

I’ve been working on several bookmaking projects, mostly to use up scraps that have been lying around. I found these two thick covers in my stash. They must have come from a collage pack somewhere along the line. I decided they would look good with a stab binding that would allow thread to sink in to the depth of the paper.

I wanted a rustic natural color paper for the pages. It took me awhile to find the right paper. Finally found some natural looking lotka (?) that I could cut to size. For good measure, I included some colored sheets separating every five pages.

Then I chose the binding pattern from Becca Hirsbrunner’s extensive library of tutorials. The lotus blossom worked well. It doesn’t have too many holes and echoed the Nepalese feeling of the book. I’m happy with the way it turned out. The stitching was a lot of fun. I think it will be a good book to keep test rubber stamps or other small designs. It’s only 4-1/4″ x 4-3/4″ in size and the stab stitching takes up about an inch of the spine.