Some days I just need to finish something to feel successful. Yesterday a non-adhesive binding fit the bill. I’ve played with this structure in several variations, but this was my first attempt with a fastened cover.

The book is 4-1/2″ wide by 5-3/4″ high and 5/8″ thick, with 192 pages of light-weight Mohawk Superfine paper in eight sections. The cover is an acid-free blue-gray Kraft paper that is similar in weight to a file folder. It is folded over itself so the front and back covers are doubled and the spine has three layers. The button is a 1960s Japanese button from assemblage’s shop on Etsy. (I love these buttons. I didn’t think I’d be using them on books, but hey, it works!)

The same linen thread is used on the spine as for the closure. The closure thread attaches the button and is threaded across the inside of the cover and under the book block at the spine, to the hole on the other side. Though the binding itself is non-adhesive, I did use some glue to attach a couple of small pieces of bookcloth to the cover where the button is sewn and where the thread exits, to strengthen the paper.