Scrap Sketchbook
March 15th, 2006
Herman Miller makes notepads from reused blueprints, where the back of each page has attractively out-of-context diagrams of parking lots and gravel beds. Apparently the ink on blueprints doesn’t recycle. Inspired by this, I had been gathering scraps from the studio for a couple years – and finally decided to bind them into sketchbooks.
This is a great way to divert a wastestream (remember – recycling is really downcycling), as well as a compromise – don’t throw away all those halfway decent doodles; preserve them for posterity, and mull over them for another few weeks as you doodle in your new “scrap-sketchbook”.
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March 15th, 2006 at 4:26 pm
This also gives old sketches new framing, new context and, thus, new meaning.
It also doesn’t hurt that your are literally allowing new ideas to spring from old ones. Nicely done.
March 15th, 2006 at 5:06 pm
Jeff gave me one of these sketchbooks last week- it’s incredibly nice! (It helps that he’s a great artist and architect too)
March 15th, 2006 at 6:49 pm
Dave, you make me blush. The idea, though, goes back to the medieval concept of palimpsest, where old manuscripts were scraped and reused as blank paper. Also the name of the arts and literary magazine at Yale:
Palimpsest
It ends up looking kind of like a Rem Koolhaas book.
March 16th, 2006 at 4:00 am
Cool idea. Just wondering how you actually make one of these.
March 16th, 2006 at 7:39 am
People have been asking how I “got them bound” – whoops I guess I neglected to mention that the velo binding is available at most print shops – these were done at TYCO in New Haven. Or bind them yourself – the hardest part is cutting them to size – and most print shops have a mechanical cutter, which is the easiest. Cuts through a whole pile of paper evenly.
Here are binding resources:
MAKE:Blog Book-binding Flickr stream
Really good instructions & pictures for saddle stitch binding, which is done in “signatures” or small bundles.
March 17th, 2006 at 2:20 am
Whoa! Great idea…. gonna make myself one. Thanks a ton!
March 18th, 2006 at 8:10 am
Thanks for the link to the Flickr stream. Very cool. Can’t wait to get started!
March 20th, 2006 at 7:57 am
Send in photos if you make one!
March 20th, 2006 at 8:16 am
I found your sketchbooks from moleskinerie.com. Very cool. I’ve used old topographical maps and magazines to make my own envelopes, but I admit, it never occurred to me to make them into sketchbooks—probably because I hate the trim-to-size step of book binding.
Thank you for the inspiration.
March 23rd, 2006 at 12:08 pm
Wow – old topo maps must look incredible. Do you have photos?
The trimming can be done on a machine at a print shop for just a few dollars – I was dreading it too, but it’s just a matter of explaining the (odd) request to the dude behind the counter.
April 26th, 2006 at 7:15 am
Indian web Designer
good idea. thanx very much
April 26th, 2006 at 7:16 am
Indian web Designer
good idea. thanx very much
June 9th, 2006 at 12:33 am
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