Making your own books is so much fun, but one of the things we need to do is make covers for them. In junk journalling, anything goes, but sometimes we want to use some fabric. Yes, you could go and buy some book cloth, but the variety of designs might not be what you are after, and also, the whole point of junk journalling is to not buy new stuff, right?
So what if you have a gorgeous fabric and want to use it on a hardcover journal? Gluing the fabric directly onto the cover is difficult as the glue might leave lines and wrinkles that you aren’t particularly after – so what if you could turn it into book cloth at home – without the need to buy anything?
There are multiple ways to do this at home – one common method is to use iron-on interfacing like Heat ‘n’ Bond : you simply follow the package instructions to attach the interfacing to the back side of your fabric and magically have your own book cloth. Which works great – but maybe you don’t want to go out to buy interfacing, and you want something a little more, let’s say, natural?
Well this is where this tutorial comes in – because you can make your very own cloth at home with things you have in your kitchen cupboard. It might take a bit of time, but the results are worth it.
In order to do this project you will need:
- Large plastic sheets (I used cereal box liners cut open and pulled apart)
- Your clean and ironed fabric
- A large brush
- A bowl to put your paste into
- Space to let everything dry
So what is this paste I mentioned? There are different pastes you can use, like store-bought wallpaper paste, but in this case my favourite is wheat paste (you could also use the same paste you use for making paste papers, but I find, in this case, wheat paste is stronger). Any leftover wheat paste can also be used as glue, fyi. Here is how to make some:
Ingredients
- 250ml (1 cup) warm water
- 3tbsp plain flour
- 3 tbsp cold water
- tea tree, clove or other essential oil with antibacterial properties (optional)
Place the 250ml warm water in a pot on the stove to begin heating. In a cup or small bowl, mix together the flour and cold water to create a paste (you may need more or less water depending on how dry it is) Pour mixture into the heated water on the stove and stir well. Allow to go back to a boil then turn off the heat. Put a couple drops of essential oil into the mixture after it has cooled. Store in a clean jar in the fridge for up to 6 days.
So once you have your paste all ready to go, lay out your fabric wrong side up, carefully paint on a layer of paste moving from the centre outwards, then flip the fabric over carefully and smooth it down, making sure to get rid of any air pockets. Add another layer of paste to the top in the same way, then set aside to dry. It is best to leave your book cloth over night to be certain it’s dry.
Once dry, you just peel it off the plastic and it is ready to be glued down to your cover.
If you are a more visual person, you can watch my tutorial from my YouTube channel right here:
I hope you enjoy making your very own gorgeous book cloth! If you enjoyed this tutorial and would like to share your results, you can join my facebook group, Create Wildly so we can all see your creations!