As long as I have my phone...
In the past, I had my for myself a hollow book to hide my phone at events. There were flaws, I had some major issues with construction, and after upgrading to a new phone (read that - larger phone) I needed to make another book camouflage.
After incessant googling, I found a journal brand that I (a bit obsessively) fell in love with: Paperblanks. The Paperblanks brand makes a series of journals with historic designs, and, BEST OF ALL, have metal clasps closures that add tons of character and enjoyment to their use. I ended up purchasing the Grolier Ornamentali journal in the "midi" size (5x7"). An important part of my book search was to find a book that had a substantial thickness that was about a 3:1 ratio with my phone.
Another supply I needed for my hollow book project is a bottle of Elmer's Craft Bond Tacky Glue. I decided to use this glue over the many other options in the craft store's adhesives aisle for a few reasons:
- There were many, many different types of Mod Podge, but I have no experience with this product, and didn't want this product to be my introduction. Elmer's is a brand that I (and every school child) had experience with.
- One of the descriptors on the bottle states the glue dries clear and remains flexible. These were major requirements in my search.
- It was priced well.
I also needed some basic paintbrushes that I wouldn't mind throwing away when the project was over. I found a four-pack of some basic brushes, and they did the job well.
The How-To
After sourcing my materials, the first step was to determine where the "split" in my book would be - where the two thirds mark is in pages. I want to glue together two-thirds of the pages, knowing that I would have to carve out just more than a third of those pages to nest my phone. The two-thirds should be for the back two thirds of the book.
After deciding the split area, I needed to bind my top third pages to keep them from being accidentally including in the gluing. I wrapped a rubber band around these pages. It was just enough to segregate the pages, and also keep them out of my way as I worked.
In a paper cup, I combined glue and water, at a 2:1 ratio (two parts water). By diluting the glue, it allows for the glue to spread more easily, and prevents too much build-up of glue - as I have a metal clasp closure, I need to ensure I don't bulk-up the glued pages and make them too thick to utilize the clasp.
Starting from the back, I began applying light layers of glue, one page at a time. Between each page's gluing, I closed the book to ensure the pages were lining up properly. After a couple dozen pages, I stopped doing this, and I think this was a mistake. when I finished gluing all the pages, I noticed that the pages were slightly mis-aligned. So I highly recommend continuously checking alignment as you glue.
When gluing pages, each page couldn't take a full brushing of glue across the entire surface. That lead to too much weight and build-up. I alternated to gluing three pages lightly and then one page fully. When gluing lightly, I brushed a square outline along the edges of the page, and then either an "x" or "z" along the body of the page. This method worked really well. I also made sure not to put glue right up against the edge of the paper. This was to prevent glue from squeezing out from the edge and possibly cause a problem for me. I then later went back and applied glue along the fore edge, top edge, and bottom edge when I had completed the gluing.
I also glued the end sheet to the inside of the back cover. Initially, I did not glue these, but after all the pages had been adhered together, the pages themselves were a bit too flimsy. Gluing the end sheet to the inside of the back cover gave a sturdiness that was very satisfying.
After all the gluing was complete, I needed to press the pages and give them time to dry. I placed parchment paper between the last glued page and the first of front third pages. (This worked really well, and the glue didn't adhere to the book.) I then placed many heavy books (and a basket) on top of the book and let it sit for a few hours.
When I was ready to start carving out the hollow, I needed a different set of tools: my phone, the book, a pencil, and my fancy x-acto knife set.
I started by outlining my phone's shape on the top of the glued set of pages. I first did a close outline of the book to get the exact shape and size. I then added an eighth-inch along the volume and power buttons. I found in my old book, in which I had not given extra space around the power button, the power button would frequently be pressed when I was handling the book (most of the time when I wasn't wanting to press it) and my book quickly drained of power.
I then made a gradual slope to integrate the extra space into the outlined shape, added some extra space at the top and the bottom of the phone (as I actually have to get the phone in there), and my shape was set. I was ready to start carving pages.
I had three blades that worked really well for the carving (which I don't know how to title, so let's call them A, B, and C):
A, the acute, long blade, was what I used for the first few pages when I first started carving. B, the tiny "a cute" blade was what I used for smoothing the corners when I was doing finishing work. And C was my largest blade, which worked really well for carving once I had a good depth started.
When I was nearing the end of my carving, I noticed that I had sloped inward a bit with my carving. Blade C worked well with going back and taking out the chunks of paper to keep my sides straight.
After I was done carving, straightening, and had checked that my phone fit, I wasn't very happy with how rough my sides looked. I dug out some sandpaper and cleaned them up, and was very satisfied with how it turned out.
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| From the left - two photos of the book before sanding the edges, one photo after sanding |
I also had on hand a paper placemat from a party the week prior, and thought it would look pretty lining the carved out section of the book. I cut out a long strip for the sides, glued it in, and then carved off the excess along the top, and then cut out a piece to line the bottom.
I also took blade C and carved a bit of an angle around the top of the edges of the carved area, and lightly sanded it. I then put in a bit of parchment paper, and pressed the book under some heavy books (just books this time) and let it dry.
And that was it! My phone fits great, and the page saver ribbon works really well as a tongue to help pop out the phone.
Looking back at the first hollow book
My first hollow book was...not the best product. I started by cutting out the space for my phone, and the glued together the pages. This was a huge mistake. It lead to my edges completely not matching up, and to a lot of warping. When looking along the top edge and bottom edge, the sheets that were glued really stuck out, and didn't "camouflage" well with the book. As stated earlier, I also didn't leave enough space for my power button. I loved the book - I loved the beautiful leather cover and the cute size. But it proved to be the source of a lot of frustration, and didn't have a lot of use.
