One of my favorite things about bookmaking is: the definition of a "book" is broad, and the scope of possibilities and creativity really is limitless.
One of my favorite things about teaching bookmaking is: continually observing how each individual incorporates book technique into their creative lifestyle.
Bookmaking is a perfect combination of craft and technology, thought process and materials - creating a structure with a purpose. We all approach the task of engineering and construction a bit differently, and I find bookmaking is an art which appeals to many personality types from varied academic backgrounds with diverse experiences and interests.
Imagine my pleasure when bookmaking was incorporated into a local hackerspace event!
(If you haven't heard the term before, you may want to familiarize yourself with it now)
Solid State Depot, the Boulder hackerspace, has been doing its thing for a few years now, and they often hold classes, workshops and events (check out boulderhackerspace.com/ to see what's going on).
Just before Christmas, they had a DIY Skill-Share Present-Making Extravaganza. I bet you can guess what one of the skills was... bookmaking! I helped my hacker-friend Joel create a simple lesson plan for the evening - efficient for time and materials, it conveyed the technique and allowed for creativity. The binding method was Japanese Stab Binding, and fun was had by all!
