Research
To begin the research for this assignment, I annotated a reading that was assigned in class: Sketching As Design Thinking. In this reading, I learned about the purpose of sketches, the types of sketches, and the attributes of sketches. As someone who has never really owned or used a sketchbook, this reading really helped me understand the purpose and usefulness of a sketchbook.
To see reading annotations view PDF
My next step in my research involved figuring out what type of sketchbook I wanted to make and what I wanted to include in the sketchbook.
In my research, I looked at the design of a traveler’s notebook. I was drawn to this style of the notebook because of the flexibility of the design. With a traveler’s notebook, one is able to remove the bounded sections of the paper. I liked this element because as someone who hadn’t used sketchbooks before, I was not certain what type of paper I wanted to include in my sketchbook.
Exercise
There was only one exercise for this assignment: to construct a mini sketchbook. In making my mini sketchbook, I was tasked to use a single piece of paper and cut and fold it in a way that makes a different type of sketchbook other than the classic fold.
To view all mind mapping pages view PDF
In folding the piece of paper, I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to do. I didn’t have much of a plan. Once I started folding, I found that folding the paper down to make a triangle was something that I really liked.
After my mini sketchbook was constructed, I needed to mind map a prompt that was given in class (What are your favorite things?). I really enjoyed the mind mapping process. I liked that I was able to freely get my ideas out on paper without worrying about my book looking nice or clean.
Iterations
I wanted to first practice to make sure that my traveler’s notebook design was something I would be able to make. For my practice sketchbook, my mom donated her old faux leather purse. My first test once I got my leather panel cut out was to try different “lacing” materials to see which one would hold my bound paper books in the sketchbook the best.
By testing the different “lacing” materials, I found that both the waxed thread and the thin elastic were not thick enough to sturdily hold my bound books into the sketchbook. I also found that the thick elastic was a little too thick and caused the spine area of my book to fold inward once the bound books were inserted into the book. For my final sketchbook, I went with a faux leather lacing that I later found; however, for my iterations, I continued with the thick elastic.
I wanted to address the problem of the spine area on the outside of my sketchbook folding in. In my research of traveler’s notebooks, most of them did not have a physical spine sewn into the book: the lacing of the bound paper books acted as a spine. I tested different “levels” (no spine, spine under lacing holes, and full spine) to see which level would be the best and would result in the least amount of folding once the pages were inserted into the book.
To see full spine testings view PDF
As one can see from the above pictures, the sewn-in spine inside of my sketchbook helped reduce the about of folding inward due to the lacing of the bounded books. At first, I was concerned with including a spine because I wanted to easily be able to fold over my sketchbook (so the front cover touched the back cover); however, after seeing that including a spine was necessary for the overall craft and sturdiness of my sketchbook, I decided to include one.
The inside of my sketchbook was pretty straightforward for me: I knew what I wanted to include. I was very set on having a lot of pockets in my sketchbook. I wanted to be able to keep any items or loose pieces of paper within my sketchbook.
The design of my cover was a challenge for me, though. Both in designing it and producing it. When I tried to etch my leather for the first time, it was not legible on the front side of the leather or on the back. The front side was too dark and the backside was too textured. I was sad because this was my first plan and all of the vintage-type sketchbooks I looked up either had no design or had an etched design. I readjusted, and I played with the idea of cutting through the leather and showing the leather behind it.
I liked this idea for the most part; however, the smell that was produced after my leather was cut by the laser cutter was quite horrendous. Perhaps it was due to the leather being genuine, though I am not sure. I googled how to get rid of the burnt smell in leather, and I mainly found that the smell would eventually go away, which it did for the smaller letters that were shut out but not for the big pieces. I wanted to go back to the drawing board and try to come up with another solution for my cover design. I knew if I used those pieces I would dread using my sketchbook, and I didn’t want that. I want to be excited to record my thoughts and drawings.
In combination with my laser cutter fails, I just had a really tough time with designing my front cover. With etching out of the picture, I really didn’t want too much of a design: I simply wanted the word “sketch” or “sketchbook” and that was it. I had a hard time determining if my design was simplistic or just too simple. I have always been drawn to the simplistic design, I think there is beauty in simple things, working with what you have the type of thing. Thanks to the help of my cats, I did think of one simplistic design that I liked and for the most part, stayed in the rustic theme. Without fail, my cats have found a way to sit on my project, I turn my back, and boom there they are. So, with the Cricut being available to use for the front cover design, I decided to cut a small paw print for my cover to signify their “help” with my projects.
A small test I did was to make both the front and the back covers of my sketchbook hard, like a hardback book. When I had both covers hard, I found that it was very difficult for me to flip my front cover to the back, which is something that I absolutely wanted in my sketchbook. So, I decided to do a “half hardback.” Only the back cover had a piece of thick cardboard, and on the front was only the leather and the pocket. By only having the one cover be hard, I was still provided with a sturdiness, as well as having that flexibility element too.
My last iteration came with deciding how to include my name on the back cover. With etching still, not an option, I wanted to try writing my name because there is some writing from the makers of the leather jacket seen on the inside of my sketchbook. However, my handwriting looked too sloppy for my liking, and the Cricut wasn’t able to write on the texture of the leather. So I opted to use vinyl instead. The only change I needed to make for my final product was the vinyl color.
Production
Once I did my testing, it was time for me to construct my sketchbook. For my final sketchbook, my dad donated an old leather jacket and a plaid shirt of his for me to use.
Some intentions behind my design choices:
- Sketchbook Style: I’ve always been drawn to old, rustic feeling items. By using the leather and the plaid fabric, I wanted to convey that feeling. I also wanted flexibility in my sketchbook; that’s why I chose the traveler’s style notebook. I also think the leather adds to the flexible feeling of the sketchbook.
- Size: I wanted a sketchbook that was big enough to comfortably draw but small enough that it wasn’t overwhelmingly big. I also wanted to include a lot of pages; my final design had 50 total loose-leaf pages.
- Front/Back Cover Designs: I chose to put the word “sketch” vertically on my front cover because I felt like it went very well with the stitching of the leather jacket. When I put “sketch” horizontally, I lost that sense of unity. I chose to put the paw print on my front cover to signify my cats and their “helpfulness.” I chose to have the paw print with the backside of the leather facing up to draw a slight emphasis to it.
Overall, I am happy with the way my sketchbook turned out. I am proud of myself for using material that would challenge me. I put a lot of research into my design. I had a hard time with craft though. I sewed everything that I could, in order to help with the craft and the sturdiness of my sketchbook. Cutting the leather out was the hard part. Because my leather came from a leather jacket, I had to cut the main leather panel for the sketchbook by hand. Although I think I did a good job with it overall, I do think my craft suffered a little bit. With that being said, I do think the rustic, old feeling I was going for “makes up” for my non-perfect edges. Rustic items already tend to have unfinished edges and lines that aren’t perfectly straight, so that is something that definitely helps me. I feel like the cover of my sketchbook might have been better off without the paw print; however, I like the story that it brings to my sketchbook. Sketchbooks are supposed to hold stories, so I think having the small paw print reminds me, in a way, of what my sketchbook holds. It also just makes me smile and think of my cats, which is a plus. I liked that I was able to really use recycled materials too. I was able to use pieces of clothing from my dad and half-used sketchbooks from my brother in my sketchbook. Overall, I am just very happy with the way I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and how I was able to adapt to changes.