Hand Bound Washi Paper Booklet and Matching Card

 I have a girlfriend who is a wonderful watercolor artist. I wanted to make her some thing unique for her upcoming birthday.  I thought that perhaps I could make her a watercolor paper booklet to paint in during outdoor adventures.  I made some hand bound Japanese booklets a long time ago but forgot how to stitch them so I looked it up on the internet....voila!...I found complete instructions for four hole stab bound books.

I used a conical shaped book binding hole punch but it made large holes so I had to find a thicker wax cord normally used for leather sewing. For my future booklets I will use a simple awl and linen thread like the traditional Japanese bookbinders do.

 For the cover, I adhered the printed washi paper to some thicker, stiffer solid colored paper using double stick tape (Heiko)  Inside the booklet, I alternated watercolor paper with plain card stock so my friend could paint and not worry that it would seep through to the next page. The finished booklet is 4-1/4" x 6-1/4",

 The matching cherry blossom birthday card was easily made with a die that came with a magazine purchased at Barnes and Noble.  Using the die on a DCWV shimmer paper (from a 6x6 pack), I was easily able to cut the intricate design.  To make adhesion simple, I ran the die cut piece through my Xyron machine. By rubbing the piece firmly before separating the layers you can minimize the  adhesive strings and lay down the die cut piece easily onto your card blank. Dust the card with cornstarch if the surface is still sticky.  I used the second part of the die to cut the printed paper to fit the other side of the card.  A Spellbinders die set and an old 'happy birthday' Japanese stamp was used to make the character label. Pink Distress Ink was rubbed around the label to soften the edges. A few artificial cherry blossoms and pieces of mizuhiki were added to complete the card. I plan to purchase (from HM Ben Franklin Crafts) a water brush (the kind you fill with water for portable painting) and a set of Kuretake watercolor cake-style paints to add to my gift.  I hope my friend will be surprised and pleased with the birthday gifts.  Thanks for stopping at my blog site today. Hope you enjoyed your visit enough to return often.  I would appreciate a feedback comment if you have time to leave one. Mahalo!