A new project

Obviously when in lock down, we are all picking up hobbies. I decided that it was clearly the time to do something I have wanted to do for a while. Make a book! And I found a great excuse to do it. Since the family has been getting into D&D, I decided that I would use that as a topic for my book.

I've wanted to make a book for AGES. Every time I got to see a manuscript, I have a longing to have and make my own. When a video popped up on youtube where the video maker was binding a book, I decided that I had the ability to get all the materials I needed. I also decided that it was something that I needed to do, like making my cape (which I finally made last year over Easter- best decision ever).

When my roommate moved out, she left me some paper which is lovely to write on. So, clearly, it makes a perfect opportunity. 

Since Mummy has some leather, I decided to use that. It is amazing green leather, and there is also some left over from the chairs in brown. I have a lovely stone that was given to me that is rather large, flat, and tan, with little fossils in it. I decided that the druid spells would fit the book best, especially as I can't/don't want to copy out all the spells. 

I have started work already and have decided that the best calligraphy for the book is the round medieval style. I have started working on that.

It's less blurry than it is in this picture, but I can't seem to get the camera to focus properly.
To be fair, it's a computer camera.

It looks better in person

So far, I have only gotten 4/109 spells, but it's fine, I'll get there slowly.

For each spell, I put a longer description on the left side of the pages, and a short summary of the information you might forget mid-game on the right.

I discovered that I can see through the pages just enough that I can use a template for lines and put it behind the page. This saves about an hour every single page, so is a FABULOUS discovery. I'm VERY pleased with myself.

The goal is to copy out the spells with little vines on the borders of the pages, with more and more flowers as the levels of the spells goes up. I'm also hoping to put some illuminations in the capital letters, and eventually (probably after it is bound) some illustrations on the bottom of the pages that aren't entirely full.

I'm not sure what the cover pages will look like, but I think that there is a good chance I will try to marble them. Which adds yet another component that I need to learn about.

All in all, a VERY ambitious project, but I'm really pumped up about it.

Florence