All About Fabric Books
I have only made a few fabric books, but they have been fun and very satisfying. If you are into quilting or applique then they will be easy for you to make.
There are many different kinds of fabric books made and I am surprised that there are not more books available about them. I have seen some amazing works of art in the form of Fabric Books.
I quite like the small fat fabric book but you could make them any size you like. I have not seen many that have words in them but you could cut words from fabric or print words on paper and sew them on to the pages, paint or use a felt pen to write on the fabric or even bead the words.
Usually the picture on the page tells the story.They often have polyester batting under the fabric so the "feel" of the page is nice.It's also great to have tags and charms hanging off the pages. The more embellishments and texture that you manage to get into the book the more exciting it is to look through.
These Fabric Books make great conversation pieces on a coffee table, but be warned they do take a while to make.
The pictures shown in this lens are from my own Fabric Books
I hope you really enjoy this lens.
Please check out my New Art Blog2012
Fabric Art Journals: Making, Sewing, and Embellishing Journals from Cloth and Fibers
Fabric Art Journals: Making, Sewing, and Embellishing Journals from Cloth and Fibers (Quarry Book)
Amazon Price: $20.00 (as of 05/28/2012)
This book has instructions for actually constructing books from fabric, which is exactly what I wanted. I have made quilts and altered books, but have not done any book construction. This book has the detailed instructions and plenty of inspiration for making personalized fabric art! I ordered the book from Amazon, got it in two days, and the next day had made a basic little fabric book ready for embellishment!!! Easy enough for a beginner, or a great start for someone familar with fabric! This craft is one that is destined to be customized according to the skills and views of the artist!
Anyone Can Make a Fabric Book
When I made my fabric books I used fabric that I had pieced together then free machine embroidered first. I then appliqued my pictures on top of that. I sandwiched two pages together with batting in between them.The book feels great, and as I later beaded and hand embellished. Because of that it has great texture.
I have seen vintage style fabric books which are full of old photos printed onto fabric with a computer printer. This is great way to show pictures of family history.
Another Idea is just making a very simple book from Muslin( calico in NZ and Australia). You can leave the edges raw so they get that wonderful frayed look. You can use rickrack as that goes great with these fabric books. Using Muslin makes the book cheap and fun to write on with pens or to paint on or whatever takes your fancy. Old Buttons look wonderful on these books also.
Hope I have given you a few ideas to help you get started. Why not just play and see what you come up with. Remember there are no rules.
A Blowup Of A Page From My Fabric Book
Interesting Experience with Fabric Books
Today I decided to go surfing on the internet to see whats what with fabric booksI was really surprised to find that there are not that many web pages about fabric books at all.
There are some sites about the old fabric books that we used to give to babies, and maybe we still do but I'm not sure as I don't have any babies around me.
I see there are a few round robins going on with fabric books but not much else.
I spose it is challenging to tell a story with fabric, but quilters do it everyday and in some ways that is what makes up a fabric book.
Its really a collage with fabric that tells a story like a quilt.
I will be interested to see if, with time, creating fabric books becomes as popular as ,say, Altered Books.
Make An Art Doll for Your Fabric Book Cover
Fabric Book Cover
As you can see from the picture, I have made a very simple art doll to decorate the front page of a book I made.This doll is made from cardboard, you could use foam core if you wanted. I then decorated her with threads and fabric, and used a vintage picture for her head. I used wire and paper beads that I made for her arms and legs
Try it you will love it
Fabric Memory Books: Techniques, Projects, Inspiration
Fabric Memory Books: Techniques, Projects, Inspiration
Amazon Price: $5.18 (as of 05/28/2012)
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book!, January 18, 2007
By Karen Bettencourt "Karen B" (Woburn, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This is Lesley's second book and well worth the purchase. So many ideas and information, very much like Quilted Memories, but oriented toward making books. It covers: tools needed, fabric usage, book binding methods, etc. There are so many wonderful examples of books made from many types of "fabric" like interfacing and other spun polyester materials, which is really inspirational. I took Lesley's class on making fabric books and this book is the perfect source for remembering and using what I learned. But, you don't need to take her class, all the information you need is right here. Many other artists also contributed work to the book and their efforts are really fun to see. Buy the book soon, you will go back to it often for inspiration and study.
Raising the Surface
Raising the Surface With Machine Embroidery
Amazon Price: $15.93 (as of 05/28/2012)
This is a mind opening book. I am a doll artist opening up to fiber art and this book is filled with beautiful pictures and techniques.
Dont Forget about Drawing on Your Fabric Books
Enjoy Art With Fabric Books
This picture is of a page that has a background made from sewing togteather all those scraps of fabric that you usually throw away.What I do is get a piece of iron on interfacing then with the shiney side towards me, on the ironing board, I place the pieces all over lapping then iron them down onto the fabric.
The next step is to machine all over them.
Now its time to add some focus to the page and this is where I love to do some sort of drawing on some fabric then place that on the top.
You dont have to be able to draw well. Just do something really abstract. Have fun with it and Enjoy!
Now Its Your Turn To Squidoo!
Now it's your turn....Make your own Squidoo lens
Squidoo is a fantastic place to create a web site (called a lens). You can share your ideas on gadgets, crafting, arts, food or what ever's on your mind and maybe even make a few $$ along the way....oh and did I tell you it's FREE!
Click here to start your Lens
How to make A Fabric Book, by Di ( me)
Thanks for visiting my Fabric Books lens!
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jazziyarbrough
May 19, 2012 @ 11:23 pm | delete
- Thanks for sharing, I never thought this would be so interesting, thanks for inspiring me! Great Post.
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SophiesWords
Apr 30, 2012 @ 2:32 pm | delete
- What a beautiful lens - so inspiring. Thank you!
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printabledolls
Feb 2, 2012 @ 10:01 am | delete
- my dream to make one of it...
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wolfie10
Oct 4, 2011 @ 5:40 am | delete
- amazing lens. loved it
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thrivingmom
Sep 30, 2011 @ 8:21 am | delete
- Sew neat! =) These are just amazing.
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theraggededge
Sep 24, 2011 @ 5:37 am | delete
- We are definitely passionate about the same things. Heading over to your website to take a look. Blessed :-)
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SewDanish
Sep 11, 2011 @ 7:34 pm | delete
- What a lovely lense. So inspirational. Thank you for sharing :-)
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Close2Art
Aug 30, 2011 @ 11:59 pm | delete
- I love the artwork in the lens and it's a great idea, will try one...:)RWJR
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seedplanter
Jul 18, 2011 @ 8:22 pm | delete
- What a fabulous lens, filled to the brim with good ideas! I love to journal, and a fabric book would be fun to make. Might have to give it a try...
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Chris
Jun 6, 2011 @ 4:35 am | delete
- sooo cool! this lens is awesome.
_____________________________________
get the perfect DIY conservatory to improve the look and feel of your home!
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Brick_House_Fabrics
Jan 11, 2011 @ 2:27 pm | delete
- Fun ideas! Love the doll book!
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MoonandMagic Dec 20, 2010 @ 10:30 am | delete
- Such a great idea! I have never even thought about fabric books, they would be so personal as a gift. Thanks for the inspiration.
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theraggededge
Aug 24, 2010 @ 5:24 am | delete
- What a lovely lens... and you have a nice chatty style. Lensrolled to my Fabric Journals page and blessed by a Squidoo angel :-)
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PrometeusOlimpicus
Jul 23, 2010 @ 4:30 am | delete
- never thought such a lens exists, but here it is ! Great idea and really well built article. You made my day at the office be a pleasant one. and i work at a carpet cleaning
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Jun 3, 2010 @ 3:47 am | delete
- Great leens!
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NaturalMindset
Feb 11, 2009 @ 3:06 pm | delete
- Hi,
I enjoyed your lens! Five stars and lensrolled at So Many Sewing Sentiments.
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CrypticFragments
Sep 22, 2008 @ 9:56 am | delete
- I love fabric arts! may have to try this in my visual journal at some point
5* and lensrolled to my quilt fabric and Kaffe Fasset lenses!
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Adam
Aug 19, 2008 @ 10:31 am | delete
- I'm really excited about your fabric books :-) I've been quilting for a while and i get tremendous joy from it.
By the way, the reason why quilting is so much fun is because it puts you into a mental state called flow.
I only recently found this out!
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brenda bliss
Apr 25, 2008 @ 5:06 pm | delete
- wish you were coming back to teach in the U.S.---I Love what you taught me--we made this book front in KY....I have never visited a squido before--can't wait to look at your others!
Hugs Di,
brenda bliss
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nightcats
Apr 23, 2008 @ 12:17 pm | delete
- I have never tried a fabric book, but your lens inspires me to give it a go.
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This So Crafty page written by
DiMcDonald
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I create lots of Squidoo lenses on all sorts of subjects, however my main focus is on Creativity and Art.I am proud to say that these lenses have...
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