COMPLETED GRIMOIRE!

Hello, all! I am ecstatic to announce that my grimoire has finally been constructed! It didn't take as long as I thought it might. With the help of my roommate, it was finished in two sittings. It probably took somewhere between six and ten hours of work. The hardest part of the whole thing was deciding on the materials and the method of construction. We went through roughly five or six design ideas until we finally came up with something we thought would work.
So, as promised, here are pictures! In some pictures, it looks a bit odd, because I still need to add more paper to the back in order for the book to be full. Please feel free to tell me what you think! I'm so proud of it and I'm so excited that it's done!

Goings On

Hello, everyone!
Well, things have been progressing slowly as of late. Between moving in, getting the house in order, and getting two businesses up an running, every else in my life has been getting neglected. I've been ready to start on the cover for my grimoire for quite a while now, but there have been two problems. I haven't been able to decide on a pattern for the cover, and I haven't really had time to think about it. But I've gotten together with some people and thought about the design. I'm not sure exactly how I'm going to get this level of intricacy, but the idea is this. Rose vines around the edge as a border, with two bushes growing from the bottom. Through the bushes you'll see cat eyes peeking out at you. I may also put in "Nefabit's Grimoire" in subdued lettering. Not sure how it's going to work yet, but we'll experiment over the weekend.
In other news, I have received my lectern! It's just as beautiful as I imagined it, and more! The only problem is that the latch for the lock is a bit off center, and to open it you have to push the top to one side. But Dad is going to move it over for me, so no problems in the end.
I'll get some pictures up soon, and when I start making the grimoire, I'll take pictures of each step of the process. Until then!

Ready to get started!

Well, I've ordered the final components for my grimoire, and I'm ready to get started! I've got book board, leather, endpapers, screw posts, glue and ribbon! I'll probbly need to wait until things slow down a little bit, but I look forward to it! I've also got my lectern on the way, (see below) so before long I'll have a total setup! Hopefully my next post will be showing off my completed book!
Until then!

What do you think?

Hey everyone! I don't know if anyone still checks up on here because it's been so long, but things have been so busy! I'll be moving home on Tuesday! Yay!
So anyway, I was desperately thinking of something to post, and an idea just came to me! What is your grimoire/book of shadows like? Do you keep a disc? Do you have an elaborate leather book? Did you buy it or make it? What inspired you to compile it? What sorts of things do you write about? Leave a comment and tell the world!
Oh, and I've updated my jetpack of links, which you can see from the link to the left.
Be back soon!

Florentine Papers

Florentine papers are by far my favorite - for bookbinding and everything else! When I'm done with my grimoire, I'm going to pick another Florentine paper for whatever my next project may be. These papers are so beautiful! They are inspired by traditional Italian patterns from the Renaissance and are now made by Rossi Cartotecnica in Florence, Italy, just like they were centuries ago. I have samples of some of these patterns, and I can tell you that the pictures do not do them justice. The pigments are so vibrant, with gold accents that are harder to see in the picture. Even so, you should really click on the picture to see the full size image. If you're interested in these papers, the best selection I have found is at Paper Mojo on this page.

More Inspiration!

These beautiful books are crafted by Myceliae. I was impressed with her unique style, and she inspired me to get some work done!
She hand makes these books from beginning to end. She dyes the leather, binds the pages and even gilds the edges! As you can gather from her gallery on DeviantArt, she also has an interest in mushrooms and mycology. (Me too!)
These books are a wonderful example of craftsmanship that is hard to find in our modern world of machines and cheap manufacturing. Her profile is well worth checking out! Y0u can see all her books as well as her pictures and paintings!

What is your grimoire really worth?

It's a question worth asking. If you read the previous post I'm sure you're thinking about what you can do to prevent loosing of damaging your grimoire. But sometimes it can't be avoided, and if you do loose your precious book, it's a good idea to be able to receive some funds to make a new one. How do you do that? Again, with an ounce of prevention. Make a list of all the supplies you have bought for your grimoire, from paper and ink to binding glue and book leather. Think back to the beginning. If your grimoire was once housed by something different such as a three ring binder, include that into your costs. If you write by hand, include an estimated cost of the pens you have used, whether that includes three 20 count packs of ball point Bic pens or a Chaeyhane feather dip pen and four bottles of Aladine calligraphy ink. Have you bought a thumb drive or other portable gadget to store your digital grimoire? Count that in. If you do hand illustrate your book, include all art supplies used. Just really scour the nooks and crannies of your mind to include every penny you spent on your grimoire.
So what good will all of this do? Well, not only will this reinforce your appreciation of your grimoire, but even better, you can insure it so that if it is ever lost, stolen or destroyed, you can claim that money to cover the costs of replacement. And once you calculate how much money went into making your grimoire, you'll really appreciate that security. You will also know how much to insure your grimoire for if you must ship or mail it somewhere.
To give you an idea of what your grimoire is worth, check out this image, a list of all the expenses of making my grimoire.
As a final tip, make sure to keep a copy of the costs in at least two places!

The secure grimoire

It's a very good idea to have numerous back-ups of your grimoire. It takes so much time and effort to write, compile, create and organize a grimoire, and with only one copy, if something happened to it, all of your efforts would be lost forever. Of course, the first step is to take care of your corporeal grimoire. Keep it away from children, don't leave water sitting next to it, don't eat over it and don't leave it just anywhere. If you go on vacation, leave your grimoire with a trusted friend and bring a backup copy with you. If you move, never, ever, ever let the movers pack it up! Keep your grimoire with you, or else send it ahead of you by insured, registered mail. Things will get lost or stolen in the hands of movers (I've moved six times in my life, now going on seven). So, with a dose of common sense and an ounce of prevention, your grimoire will be fine. The next step is to back up the information. If you hand write your grimoire, copy all of the pages by scanning or typing them into the computer. Save the files in a good rich text editor and create files and folders as you wish. Or, if you type and print out your information, just be sure to save it all in one place. Ok, good! Now you have it in two places. But what if something happens to your computer? Save all the files on a cd or two. Keep one in a safe place within the house and send the other one to a close friend. If something happens to your house, you'll at least still have the information. Another good idea is to have a portable, shareable version. I have a copy of my grimoire on a thumb drive, which I can carry with me to coven meetings, etc, when it might be useful to share my information. This, of course, is much more practical than lugging around a seven pound book! Last, but not least, be sure to update all of your backups regularly as you add more to your grimoire.

Inspiration for your grimoire

I was browsing around on DeviantArt this evening looking for something interesting to post about. Well, I found something!
Here are a few pages hand painted by Tigressong in her hand bound grimoire that she made herself. (She made the paper too!) Her artwork is very unique, in sort of a collage style. If you want to know more about her inspiration, go to her gallery and read about her and her art. Then have a look at all of her artwork and start mulling around ideas of your own!
I'm intending to find more grimoire content/art/information to give you inspiration! There is so much out there . . . You know, (detour!) I remember when I first read about grimoires or books of shadows. It was in some Wicca book, and it was described pretty much as "a hand written copy of the coven's rituals and rules, sometimes written in code."
How boring. Make it a work of art! An extension of yourself!
The grimoire is your most important tool. Make it reflect your personality.

The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam

Again with the not-being-related-to-grimoires
thing, but . . . this is just so beautiful. I actually found this last year, and I remembered it when I came across a similar book. This picture does not do the binding justice. The picture I had found before was much better, but I couldn't find it! :( The Rubaiyat is a book of Persian poetry by Omar Khayyam. (I suppose that "Rubaiyat" means poetry) One of the original copies of the book was believed to have been lost when the Titanic sank.
Now, I must go eat.

Meren heart
Nefabit :3

Styles of Binding

I believe that the best way to bind a grimoire is through the screw post system. This binding style allows one to move pages around without having to take the whole book apart, which is ideal for those who prefer to print out pages or draw artwork in the book. This is an especially good advantage with larger tomes that would be hard to work in without the advantage of removing pages. Unfortunately, it isn't quite as strong as a traditionally bound book, but it still serves its purpose tremendously well. The pages of this style will always lie flat, which is a great advantage. Another advantage of this system is that if the number of pages outgrow their binding, you can add an extension to the screw posts and make a new back piece. Of course, it is better to create the book to allow more room than you think you need, and put blank pages in the back to hold the shape. Also, one should not make a book too thick, as the thicker the book becomes, the weaker the spine will be, no matter what binding style is used.
Coming in at second place is the traditional binding system, sometimes called perfect binding, which is the most durable and beautiful style. The folios, or signatures, are sewn to a backing cloth, usually linen, and the cloth is sewn at the sides to the spine. What this allows is for the book to lie flat without damaging the signatures. If you look at a well bound book from the top when it is opened, you will see that the backs of the pages bend upward, allowing the book to stay open. This style is particularly sturdy due to the fact that the pages are sewn together, and they have no holes that can rip and tear. If you drop the book, it is less likely to be damaged than a post bound book. However, there are plenty of disadvantages to traditional bindings too. The first and foremost being that the pages are not removable. You cannot print out the pages, and so are forced to hand write them. If you spill ink, make a mistake or simply wish to remove the page . . . too bad. Technically you can remove the pages, but that feat takes skill, time, and patience.
There are other styles of binding as well, but not many of them suit grimories very well, especially if the book is more than an inch thick, which of course is common for grimories. Case binding is similar to perfect binding, but the pages cannot bend out, and so it is much easier to damage the spine and the pages often will not lie flat. In fact, it is common for this binding style to only open halfway, forcing the reader to hold one of the sides straight up, while the other side lies flat. Of course, hand writing in a style like this is practically impossible.
Styles such as comb binding, spiral binding and ring binding are practical in the early stages of grimoire development (mine is still in a three inch binder, eagerly awaiting its new home), but is very impractical in the long run. Three ring binding is weak, and pages will often tear out due to the loose binding. Comb binding allows the pages to lie completely flat, but is very weak for large amounts of paper, and pages are not easily removed. Spiral binding would allow you to remove pages, but with some difficulty, and again is no good for large amounts of paper. Here is a link to a page that illustrates different styles of binding.
And for now, ttfn!

Meren hear,
Nefabit :3

Exotic Leathers

Well, our trip to the fabric store has been delayed, so I hopped back on the computer and found myself at the cyber doorstep of an exotic leather retailer. They offer rare and strange leathers such as alligator, ostrich, stingray, shark, snake, lizard, fish and chicken! The only thing they didn't have was toad leather. But alas, I found it here. :P It would be very interesting to match the animal skin to the purpose of the book one is binding. Say if you were writing a grimoire about aquatic magick, ocean legends and astral water creatures, shark or stingray leather would be very interesting. I must admit, I am a bit tempted by the toad leather. However, as cool as that would be, I think I'll stick with calf leather. Not to mention that anyone who already had um, shall we say, notions about witchcraft, would only find justification from a grimoire made out of toad skin. Oh well. . . . We live in such a strange world.
Meren Heart,
Nefabit :3

Some assembly required

Well, the supplies for my grimoire are on the way! I ordered everything from Talas, and here's what I'm getting! I'll be using eterno bookboard, which is acid free, very durable and archival quality. You can find it here. Over that I'll be using forest green calf hide - a fine grain yet durable bookbinding leather. You can find it and other colors here. The image to the right is a Florentine book paper - unfortunately the picture does not display the vibrancy of the colors. Ah well. When I have finished assembling my grimoire, I'll be sure to post pictures of it inside and out! I want to be able to move pages around, so for the binding, I'll be using solid brass screw posts, found here. Other supplies include glue, knives, bone folders, etc. Anyway, now it's off to the fabric store to buy ribbons that match the endpaper! Ta ta for now!