DECORATIVE JAPANESE BINDINGS

As you can see, I have been doing quite a lot of binding this past week. Quite a pile of it, in fact.

 

I had been loathe to cut into my treasured sheets of handmade Washi, (some of which I showed in my previous post), they were so beautiful - several of them even looked like they were lit from within and the closer I looked at them, the more special they became. However, at the beginning of the week, I decided to make a start, and having begun, I just couldn't stop. 

Each time I completed one, I thought "Oh, I wonder what this paper would look like once it was bound - they were so pleasing to look at, to hold and to use. The notebook above shows the Kangxi variation on the Four-Hole Binding.

 

This green and pink one with the lovely gold splashes is the Hemp-Leaf binding, or asa-no-ha toji, to give it its correct Japanese name.

These binding look deceptively simple, but require a lot of accurate work, in order to achieve a good standard of finish. I think I will need to make quite a few more, before I achieve anything even approaching the Japanese sample I have.

 

Ah well, I can always dream. One of the aesthetics espoused by Japanese Design - "Bukkyo" - refers to constant refinement and improvement. So I guess I shall just have to bind a whole heap more :-)

Comments

[amypalko]

So glad you've got your binding groove back! These are utterly stunning - well done!
Amy
xx

[Karen]

Hilary, these are stunning! I love the washi papers, and that stack of finished books just looks soooo tempting and lovely.

As a tactile person, I'm longing to touch and feel... :)