Bookbind a Hardcover Journal

A 4-Hour Bookbinding Workshop — Make Your Perfect Journal!

Bookbind a Hardcover Journal –Craft Your Perfect Journal

Start the new year with a new journal—one you designed yourself! In this 4-hour workshop, you'll learn traditional bookbinding while creating a stunning hardcover A5 journal that's completely yours. Whether your style is old-world charm, romantic, botanical, minimal, colorful, celestial, or timeless elegance—you'll have the materials and creative freedom to bring your vision to life.

Pair this workshop with our Vision Board Workshop for the ultimate New Year intention-setting experience!

Here's what makes this workshop different: total creative freedom! While you'll learn professional case-binding techniques, the design choices are entirely yours. We provide an extensive selection of gorgeous materials, and you decide how to combine them.

Create with:

• Decorative and handmade papers in countless textures, patterns and colors
• Ribbons, lace, vintage trims and delicate embellishments
• Stamps, ephemera and mixed-media elements
• Hand-dyed pages for an authentically aged, timeworn look
• Pockets, belly bands and silk ribbon bookmarks
• Textured materials, bling, and unique finishing touches

Every element—from your cover design to your page color to your final embellishments—is your choice. No two journals will look alike.

What You'll Learn:

You'll gain real bookbinding skills while bringing your personal aesthetic to life:

• Use hand dyed pages to create beautiful vintage effects (or keep them crisp and white)!
• Prepare cover boards, spine and spacers
• Stitch signatures (folded pages) using classic bookbinding stitches
• Assemble a sturdy text block that will last for years
• Case-bind a hardcover using traditional techniques
• Attach endpapers and complete the professional "casing in" process
• Create an elastic belly band to keep your journal securely closed
• Design and embellish your cover to match your exact vision

You'll work at a comfortable pace with expert guidance, but the creative decisions—color, texture, style—are all yours.

Why This Workshop Is Special:

Most workshops give you a template. We give you a blank canvas. You'll create a journal that genuinely reflects who you are, while learning real bookbinding skills you can use again and again for journals, sketchbooks, or handmade gifts.

I'm Cherie, and I've spent years making, dyeing, decorating, and collecting papers—I'm obsessed in the best way! I'll share my simple bookbinding techniques and passion for paper to help you create something beautiful and uniquely yours. Come have fun and maybe get obsessed too!

What's Included:

• Everything you need to craft your personalised journal
• All bookbinding tools and materials
• An extensive selection of decorative papers, ribbons, trims and embellishments
• Expert instruction in a relaxed, small-group setting
• Light refreshments and a welcoming atmosphere
• A beautiful creative space in Docklands

Who Should Join:

• Complete beginners (no experience or creative skills necessary!)
• Anyone who's struggled to find a journal that feels right
• People seeking a mindful, hands-on experience
• Journal and Stationery enthusiasts
• Gift-makers looking to create something truly personal

If you've ever thought "I wish I could find a journal that looks like this"—now you can make it yourself.

Location

The Cauldron Connect - Shop 11 "Wharf St" inside the Docklands District Shopping Centre (next to Magnet Galeries). More specific details emailed to participants prior to event.