First of all, album #1 - the pale brown/maroon piece, with a pair of long, thick ribbons, that have to be unraveled upon opening:


Let's see how the bride and groom unraveled the long ribbons:


Then there is album #2, blue piece that has an extra long ribbon that wraps around the album many times:


Read previous posts:
Two albums - Part 4: Finishing the covers with ribbons
Two albums - Part 3: Preparing the covers
Two albums - Part 2: Preparing the accordion spine
Two albums - Part 1: Preparing the sections

Before attaching the covers to the book blocks, I had to attach the closure ribbons. The pale brown/maroon piece has a pair of wide color-matching ribbons, while the blue piece has a single extra long yellow/green stripes ribbon that wraps around the album many times.

After marking the width of the ribbons on the board with an awl, slits are made using a chisel.


Portions of the board were removed to accommodate the thickness of the ribbons. This is called recessing. You don't want any ribbon to show after you put on the end paper. The inside of the cover should be completely flat and smooth so that the pages don't get indented.

As artists, I believe that we grow everytime we create a new piece. Our style changes and grows overtime, and new work would build on previous ideas and experiences. (But of course there is always the "breakthough".)

Everytime I make a new book, new ideas develop and feed into the successive pieces. It seems that over these last few months I was really into using multiple bookcloth as a design element for the cover, as well as using extra long ribbons/ties to create some sort of visual effects that extends the practicability of the ties. And most likely I will continue to toy with these ideas in the coming pieces.





Visit Studio CaiLun for more pictures of Ellen's 30th.

Besides the hardcover journals and a few coptics that are available at Greenjeans during the holiday season, two pieces from my collection are also up for adoption.

Ribbon-hinged Notepad (2005)
Bookcloth, decorative paper, Davey bookboard, draft paper (acid-free paper), ribbon, linen threads

Golden Leaf (2006)
Decorative paper, draft paper (acid-free paper), linen threads; Long stitching. A set of 2.

The 8 hardcover journals are fimally completed. 7 of them, along with a few coptics, will be available at Greenjeans before this weekend (hopefully).

This series contains variations of exposed binding with case, 4 methods, 2 variations each.


From left to right in the picture:

1. Long stitch with, 8 sections
2. Long stitch with links, packed, 8 sections
3. Tacking binding with bookmark, 6 sections
4. Long stitch, 7 sections
5. Long stitch, 8 sections
6. Long stitch, 7 sections
7. Long stitch with links, packed, with cheille tie, 8 sections
8. Tacking binding with ribbon tie, 6 sections

As I mentioned earlier, I didn't like the bright red ribbon I had originally chosen for the book, so I switched to a dark maroon ribbon instead. It works so much better with the grey and the maroon threads.


The book block and the case holds the ribbon in place without glue, therefore the ribbon extends itself to the fore-edge and creates an X structure that holds itself closed.


Visit Studio CaiLun for more pictures of Journal for Todd.

I have never named my book in a serial fashion: Book 5, Book 56, or Book 78, etc.

First of all, it's never possible, as I couldn't possibly number each and every book I made. Books that I feature on Studio Cailun certainly have serial numbers as they are listed in the database, but those that are not featured just don't have any. On the other hand, which one should I count as the first one? How about those with volumes? It's just too confusing.

But then I called this one Book 79, oh why not? Perhaps I can start calling them with their entry numbers on Studio Cailun whenever I can't come up with a title.

I categorized Book 79 as sculptural, though it can most certainly be used a journal. The construction of the book is practical: the book opens flat for writing, the end flap serves as a bookmark, and the ribbon ties the book closed.

I certainly enjoy this piece as a sculptural piece more than anything else. Whether the ribbon lays open or wraps around the book, I just enjoy it being displayed more than it being used.

The ribbon is a wired ribbon, so its form stays in all positions. It's being sewn onto the spine with the long-stitching, and its pattern counterparts the stitching. It also becomes a pivotal element of the book.

The grid of the graph paper is seen through the cut out of the spine, which at the same time, resonates with the parallel structure of the stitching and the ribbon. It's just awesome when every detail of the book just works together.

More pictures of Book 79 are posted on Studio CaiLun.

It's almost a year since I last worked with tacket binding. This has always been my favorite binding, as I love the worm-like structure on the spine. It's the cutest stitching ever. This time, it's a hardcover.

When the book is tied close by the wrapping ribbon, the texture and color of the ribbon resonates with the tacket binding, creating a very interesting harmony. It's as if the two rows of "worms" are virtually linked together.

More pictures are posted on Studio Cailun.