Cotton Rag Khadi Paper Sketchbook Options at Bound by Hand

by Susan Green April 28, 2020

Cotton rag Khadi paper sketchbook options handmade in the Bound by Hand studio

I love Khadi paper - aka cotton rag paper - because it's incredible tactile; it's a pleasure for me to handle whilst making, and it's a pleasure for you to use as an artist. Plus, it's very pleasing to look at - cotton rag paper is handmade, so no two pages are exactly the same, and it has attractive deckle edges because it's made in a mould. And the icing on the cake, for me, is that it's environmentally sustainable - it's made from recycled textile manufacturing waste (e.g. t-shirt offcuts) that would otherwise end up in landfill.

I use cotton rag paper to make a number of different sketchbook styles for artists because it's strong and it takes dry to wet mediums, including watercolour. You can even stitch into the paper - there are some images of creative techniques below (and the image at the top of this page shows Derwent Graphitint pencils used wet and dry).

Scroll down to learn a bit about the different types of cotton rag sketchbook you can buy in my online shop.

Japanese Stab Stitch sketchbooks

These cotton rag sketchbooks are stitched in the traditional Japanese Hemp Leaf pattern

Wabi Sabi lay-flat sketchbook

These sketchbooks are held closed with a linen ribbon. Like cotton rag paper, linen is an eco-friendly material.

I recently began experimenting with stitching into my cotton rag sketchbook. It works really well!

Concertina Sketchbook: 200gsm cartridge pages & khadi covers

These concertinas are stitched at their centre page, each 'arm' extends outwards and folds in when you've finished using it.

With 12 pages (and another 12 at the back) this concertina book extends to over 1 metre!

Exciting ways to use cotton rag paper

I enjoy working with cotton rag paper so much that I'm almost always thinking of new ways I can put it to use. I'm currently working on concertina (accordion) books with cotton rag pages and covers, and I've got a few more ideas, too. Why not sign up to my newsletter so you know when they're available? Click here.

If a paperback option doesn't appeal to you, I also bind Sketchbooks with leather and cork covers - scroll down for the full collection.

Happy making, drawing, painting and stitching, everyone!

Susan x

info@boundbyhand.co.uk
+44 (0)77548 759371

P.S. You might also enjoy reading Eco-Friendly Handmade Books

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