April Showers of Correspondence

Dear Everyone ~

In honour of National Letter Writing Month 2021, albeit almost over, I would like to showcase three pieces of noteworthy mail I’ve recently received and to announce two very limited editions of Bundles of Stationery Joy.

David Reed is one of my three youngest workshop students ever. After taking my Introduction to Bookbinding via Zoom workshop in March, he mailed a beautifully handwritten French-themed thank-you ensemble. The layers were a trio of delight to open. First, he lined his outer envelope with a classic French marbled paper. Second, he hand-folded the inner envelope from a magazine page featuring two angelic scribes. Third, he also lined his inner envelope with a bird’s eye view of Paris paper. His charmola letter was accompanied by his business card, which was tucked into a glassine envelope.

Laura J. Lago is an artist and budding bookbinder who I met in the summer of 2015, shortly after opening the shop. Several months ago, Laura purchased The Art of the Hand-folded Envelope kit, so I was anticipatory when her envelope arrived. At first glance, after admiring the butterfly theme & vintage postage, I see there’s washi tape on the sides of the envelope. I think it might be for embellishment … In her letter, Laura explains that her kit has gone missing and so she has improvised her “flaps.” I promptly printed out a fresh handout and mailed it off to her in an envelope I hand-folded in return.

And here is a one-of-a-kind enveloped postcard that artist Janet Bouldin watercoloured for me while she was perfecting her envelope illustrations for the MORE Art of the Hand-Folded Envelope kit. She writes that illustrating the shape of an as-yet unfolded envelope is incredibly enjoyable for her.

Although April is nearing its end, it’s never too late to begin sending mail. I have assembled a limited edition of Bundles of Stationery Joy wrapped in two different styles of Japanese paper: fabric-like lace and Sogara yuzens.

A word about the Sogara Yuzens: Each lovely sheet features a single scene across its entirety. Each wrap I’ve cut is a full quarter sheet that you can reuse for bookbinding, collage, or lining an envelope or two! Each bundle is beribboned with Japanese flat silk cord, which you can also reuse for bookbinding or gift-giving.

As always, each bundle presents an assortment of 30-some pieces, including letterpress-printed notecards, hand-bordered sheets with matching envelopes, and at least three enclosure cards, including one handmade from Italy and one from Smythson’s in the U.K. And an octet of 10¢ Letters Mingle Souls stamps.

Bundle of Stationery Joy, Scenic wrap
Bundle of Stationery Joy, Fabric-like lace wrap

Epistolarily, Bari

A–Z: Announcing Zooming for four workshops

Dear Everyone ~

Fresh from the joys of teaching Introduction to Bookbinding, I’m excited to offer my second solo Group Zoom, Trio of Accordion Books, in response to several recent requests from near & (very) far to teach the accordion technique via Zoom. This structure is lovely for a multitude of media, from fountain pen to watercolour, from brush & ink to collage. And this particular style of cover allows for your book(s) to fan out upright and to stand up on their own when on display.

I’ve also added to my Private Zoom repertoire two of my most popular boxmaking workshops: Petite Accessory Box and Simple Keepsake Box. I’ve developed a multi-page handout for each, charmingly illustrated by Emmy Kennett, which I will send by mail (with real stamps!) the week following your workshop, to give you the confidence to make more boxes on your own.

The Petite Accessory Box with its two dividers offers you three practical compartments to organize your desk accessories, or jewelry, or … The Italian cotton ribbon adds a bit of pizazz and a reliable closure should you want to take your box on the go.

The Simple Keepsake Box has a flat-lidded top and is an adorable cube shape (3 x 3 x 3). It will happily decorate your desk, housing all manner of small accessories—or your house keys. Nota bene: Each of the five boxes shown here was made by a student, from start to finish to button embellishment.

The Butterfly-stitch binding is another perennial favourite with its delicate stitching. And although it requires four needles to stitch, it’s rhythmic and an easy stitch to master. Plus, with four needles, you have the opportunity to use four different colours of thread for your stitching. The book lays completely flat, making it easy to draw, write, or collage in. Your cover will be made using luscious 100% cotton Saint-Armand papers, reinforced with thick watercolour paper for a soft yet sturdy cover that feels really good in your hands. Alternatively, you can use decorative Japanese paper for your covers. Choose your cover option from the dropdown menu in the shop listing.

One of the joys of making the accordion books in three’s is the umpteen variations of colour combinations for your covers. I have assembled four fresh palettes using Fabriano Tiziano: Cadbury, Pâtisserie, Siena, and Santa Fe. This Group Workshop is scheduled for Saturday, May 22, from 10 to 1 (CDT), and I hope to see many of you there.

Trio of Accordion Books
Petite Accessory Box
Simple Keepsake Box
Butterfly-stitch Book

See you zoomish, Bari

The “Introduction to Paper” sampler has gotten ampler!

Dear Everyone ~

Several weeks ago, as I was assembling the Introduction to Bookbinding paper sampler, I decided to create a sequel sampler available for purchase. I have selected papers that I think are lovely, of course, and also versatile for multiple mediums in addition to bookbinding. I’ve named the sampler “Introduction to Paper.” The assortment is a binder’s dozen of various sheets ranging in size from a postcard—yes, an actual postcard—to 8½ x 11.

I’ve included larger sheets (than in my previous sampler) whenever possible, so you can discern the grain direction, fold the sheet into a mini-signature, and then test a multitude of mediums. In my experience, most of the papers are multi-versatile, and I encourage you to try them out with as many writing or drawing tools as you have on or in hand. For example, I love using a micron pen or marker on the Aquarello watercolour paper.

The Esleeck Fidelity Onion Skin paper is a lightweight, delicate-seeming sheet with a lovely cockle (air dried) finish. At first glance, you might think it would feather or buckle with the slightest amount of ink, but it doesn’t. I’ve enjoyed using it as the pages in little (3 x 3!) linen-covered books. I doodled on the first couple of pages to try out a few different types of pens and was delighted with the effect.

The sheets in the Schreibblock and Carta Pura pads are grain short, meaning that the paper grain runs in the short dimension. Oftentimes, because I love these papers and would like them in a book, I de-pad several sheets, which is easily accomplished, & create signatures by simply folding the sheets in half. Voilà, I (or you) have enough signatures to make a lovely 5½ x 8½ book. The Buttonhole-stitch book shown here has signatures I made from a single Carta Pura pad.

The 13 sheets in the sampler are hand-numbered, and their sequence corresponds to a typed index giving the paper name, colour, weight, and country of origin. I encourage you to fold your sampler sheets to get a sense of their grain direction. In keeping with the theme, I've “approved” the index with a hand-chevroned Eurokraft paper ribbon, held in place by a Bari Zaki Studio years-in-business seal.

The sampler is presented in a British glassine envelope, and the sheets are fastened with a tiny butterfly clip covered in Japanese paper. A mini-pencil likewise covered in Japanese paper completes the ensemble.

Introduction to Paper

Esleeck Fidelity Onion Skin

Yours in paper, Bari

Speaking with my postal muse about “I hear you.”

Dear Everyone ~

Last month, my very dear friend Alyson Kuhn, a.k.a. my postal muse, published a book—independently, which I have just learned is different than self-published—with gerontologist Jane Mahakian, titled I hear you. The subtitle, Talking and listening to people with Alzheimer's, poignantly previews their book’s subject.

I ordered my copy from my local bookseller, although I hear you is also available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Nobody in my family or inner circle is living with Alzheimer’s, but reading the book made the reality or prospect of caring for someone with dementia seem less daunting. I think that all of us can relate to the stories that Alyson and Dr. Jane share. I recently had a chance to ask Alyson a few questions about co-authoring this book and about the book’s production, design and—Alyson being Alyson—its papery accessorizing.

At what point did the idea for writing this book together begin to percolate with you and Dr. Jane?

I met Dr. Jane when it became prudent to move my mother from her home of slightly more than 50 years, into a memory care community. Dr. Jane master-minded the move and helped me present it to my mother in a positive light. I continued to think about ways my siblings and I could make our mother as comfortable and confident as possible in her new environment. That said, challenges and even dramas arose, and my fingers fired off impassioned emails to Dr. Jane over a couple of years. She and I realized we could write something together that would help a lot of people, and we started working on our vignettes. But I discovered I didn’t want to publish anything about dementia while my mother was still alive, even though she wouldn’t have been aware of it.

So then what happened?

My mother lived gracefully with dementia for over a decade, and a couple of years after her death, I got back in touch with Dr. Jane. She still had her print-outs of our vignettes in a manila folder and knew exactly where it was in her office. We both considered that auspicious!

I’d describe the design of your book as friendly and delightful, even comforting. How did you and Dr. Jane decide on your format and layout?

We wanted the book to feel accessible, not heavy or scary. Our designer, Sheri Kuniyuki, and I have worked together on many projects. She is an attentive reader herself, and saw the book’s design as a big opportunity to make its content more appealing. Dr. Jane and I hope that readers treat their books somewhat like a manual: make notes, underline things, even snap photos of specific bits.

Having responsibility for someone with dementia is a heavy load, though your book describes most scenarios with such clarity and lightness. Is there a downside you didn’t write about?

I think two things contributed to our generally upbeat tone: First, Dr. Jane’s 30-plus years of managing the care of people with dementia. She is incredibly skilled not only at talking and listening to her patients, but also at problem-solving for them and their families. Second was my unexpected knack for keeping my mother’s evolving needs and desires front-and-center. That said, the downsides of dementia are sobering and can be overwhelming, but the more of us—people without dementia—who become comfortable talking and listening to people with dementia, the fuller their lives will be. And the less “socially disappeared” they will be.

I’d love for you to share the backstory on the accessories for I hear you.

And I’d love to. Sheri designed a “reversible” bookmark that both Dr. Jane and I could use. Particularly because of the pandemic, I didn’t anticipate any book signings in the near term, and I wanted a way to personalize books for certain people. I also wanted to be able to include a message, not just a signature. The Official Bookmark becomes a little keepsake, and it allows a reader to loan or gift his or her book to someone else, without angst over giving up an autographed copy.

The bookmark was letterpress printed on heavy card stock (that feeds smoothly through my typewriter) at Full Circle Press in Grass Valley, California. I’ve known the proprietress, Judith Berliner, for almost 25 years, and she suggested that I have a companion notecard, which could run on the same press sheet. So, I came up with “You are hearing...from me,” and Sheri designed the Official Notecard. Then, because I would be sending book-related mail, I decided to have a return-address rubber stamp for I hear you. Sheri has designed stamps in this format for me, and for mutual friends and clients, for many years, so this is the latest in a long line.

Any other accessorizing decisions?

Of course! I’m using a Pilot purple disposable fountain pen to sign the bookmark and notecard, and to address most of the envelopes in which I’m mailing these. Unfortunately, I don’t feel the current Alzheimer’s stamp evokes the spirit of our book, so I’m using other stamps, usually in a pair or trio, like the classic mail transportation stamps (from 1989) on the envelope I sent you. The “brainy” 32¢ Fulbright Scholarship stamps from 1996 are great as a pair; I’m also enjoying using three of the new Brush Rabbit second ounce (currently worth 20¢) stamps in a corner configuration. I’m also doing that with Bradbury Thompson’s LOVE and his ABC–XYZ stamps. The clerks at my local post offices are great about doing a single round-date that cancels all three stamps.

The actual Alzheimer’s stamp is a semi-postal, meaning that it costs more than a Forever stamp, and the surcharge goes toward Alzheimer’s research. I would love to be supporting that, but until there is an Alzheimer’s stamp whose mood comes closer to that of I hear you, I’ll continue finding other stamps. For now, I’m overfranking for art and the USPS!

Speaking of finding, how can people find out more about what’s in your book?

Via Zoom! On April 7 (at 9 a.m. PDT), Dr. Jane and I will be the speakers on a Commonwealth Club program. You can read more and register here. And on May 7 (at 4 p.m. PDT), I will be speaking under the auspices of the Monterey Public Library. That is the Friday before Mothers Day, and I will make the point that twice as many mothers as fathers develop Alzheimer’s. The library event is free (by advance registration), and details will be posted here shortly. I’m profoundly grateful and equally excited.

Musing, Bari

Heavenly housemade Hahnemühles are here!

Dear Everyone ~

Hahnemühle Bugra is one of my absolute all-time favourite papers for bookbinding, and also for painting & drawing. In the paper world, Hahnemühle is considered a pastel paper, with a felty finish on one side and a laid finish on the other. I myself am fond of it for fountain pen, wild for it for watercolour, and so on and on. Yes, you could say I have a penchant for it. I am drawn to it. Hahnemühle accepts all manner of mediums marvelously.

Let me add that I am also gaga for the way it glues. Hahnemühle is my paper of choice in my case-binding workshops, for students’ signatures, precisely because it glues so nicely—providing a wonderful experience for novices gluing their first end-papers.

In 2015, when I began to teach the Buttonhole-stitch book, one of the options I offered was to make a book using all 16 colours of the Hahnemhle Bugra, times 2, for a total of 32 signatures.

A year or so later, whoa and woe, Hahnemühle decided to discontinue all but five of the 16 luscious colours, figuratively breaking my heart. But now, all 16 colours are being made again. To herald the Hahnemühle revival, I have made a great array of Hahnemühle pads. They are beyond colourful. They are, in happy fact, stripe-tacular. Some pads feature four colours, some feature three, and a few feature just two alternating colours, looking quite dessert-like.

Celebrate the arrival of spring with a delicious Hahnemühle pad: 120 4 x 7¼ sheets, ready to do your doodling or other bidding. The pad is mounted on an uber-thick piece of binders board, for a total weight of slightly above half a pound. Not to provoke a pad panic, but when they are gone, they won’t be back this season.

Heavenly Housemade Hahnemühle Pad

Padding right along, Bari

Previewing a kaleidoscope of Butterfly-stitch books

Dear Everyone ~

Last week, when I began assembling the kits of materials for the Butterfly Bookful of Botanicals—my third four-Saturday Zoom collaboration with Cat Bennett—I had a colourful, delightful Satagomi surprise, in the depths of my paper cabinet. Satagomi are colourful lightweight sheets, and I had originally planned to include two of them in each kit, for students to wrap around two of the ten signatures in their Butterfly-stitch books. The wraps would have created a narrow stripe or two along the otherwise creamy spine.

When I realized that I had enough of five different colours of Satagomi to include a wrap of each in every kit, the spine possibilities took flight. I stitched up a new sample book pronto, showcasing the luxuriously stripe-y spine. I think it’s better than a beach towel! Each kit also includes five thread-colour options. You could stitch your book with a single colour, or with alternating colours. Your four needles will barely be able to contain themselves for sheer joy. The colour coordinating possibilities are almost limitless. An exaltation of mix-and-matchability will reign.

The kit’s essential accessories are presented in petite glassines: a quartet of nickel-plated Italian paper clips, sealed with a single black & gold washi leaf; and a foursome of No. 18 straight bookbinding needles, which we will use simultaneously to stitch our books.

In workshop #1, you will focus full-thread-ahead on making your book. I will also have pre-recorded the lesson, so that you can revisit the steps after the workshop. The recording is about 30 minutes (because it’s purely technical, sans questions or creative distractions), and will be available for two months. Quite a few students have commented that they enjoy watching the recording after the workshop, to appreciate the fine points of the various steps and gain confidence to make a particular binding style independently.

In workshops #2, #3 & #4, Cat will lead the group through a series of drawing, painting & colour-mixing exercises. Between sessions, you will gather spriggery and other springery to draw in the next week’s workshop, filling your book with a wide & whimsical range of illustrations.

Thanks to the wonders of Zoomology, it is not too late to sign up for Butterfly Bookful of Botanicals, whose first session will be Saturday, April 3. But don’t daffodilly-dally, or you won’t receive your kit in time. No previous art experience necessary—Cat is consistently inclusive and inspiring.

And if you live in the Continental U.S., it’s not too late to sign up for Introduction to Bookbinding on Saturday, March 27. And if you register for both Introduction to Bookbinding and Butterfly Bookful of Botanicals (BBB), you will receive a 15% discount on your BBB registration.

We hope you will join us to share in the creative camaraderie and shared love of paper, bookbinding, drawing, painting & nature.

Aflutter, Bari

Introducing the Binder’s Dozen Paper Sampler

Dear Everyone ~

Introduction to Bookbinding is a new group workshop I’m offering via Zoom. It debuts two weeks from today, on Saturday March 27. This two-ish-plus hour workshop has been inspired by the Bookful workshops that I have co-taught with artist-teacher-author Cat Bennett. These group workshops have been a great accomplishment for both Cat and me, as Zooming has allowed us to include students from all over, and to teach a large group. Ah, technology!

Introduction to Bookbinding will be my first solo-teaching group Zoom workshop, and I am excited & energized. During the Bookful workshops, I had noticed some students encountering difficulty with certain steps and, therefore, becoming challenged to keep up. It occurred to me that a pre-Bookful bookbinding workshop focused on a handful of basics could sharpen students’ hand-eye-brain skills for making a first book.

In the two weeks since I announced Introduction to Bookbinding, it has attracted students who have already made books with me, both in-studio and, more recently, via Zoom. I am beyond delighted & inspired by this response. I’ve realized that this workshop can indeed serve as a refresher as well as an introduction.

One of my favourite aspects of a group workshop is assembling the kits of materials and tools. In typical Bari Zaki fashion, I love to offer several palettes of papers. From folding & trimming the papers to size, to organizing them in stacks, and photographing them all lined up on the center table, and, finally, enveloping them for posting. Happiness.

A special element in the Introduction to Bookbinding kit is the Binder’s Dozen Paper Sampler. This charmola set of thirteen different papers (held together with a tiny you-can-imagine-what) will help students at the beginning of the workshop to become acquainted with various paper types, weights, textures...and grain direction!

If you’ve been curious about paper & bookbinding, or if you feel your skills have taken a staycation, I encourage you to join us for this introduction to bookbinding & lovely papers.

Introduction to Bookbinding

Zoomderfully, Bari

Portable paper pleasures for spring

Dear Everyone ~

I just received a lovely shipment, actually a pair of parcels, one from Kunst & Papier, the other from Carta Pura. The new products involve papers that beg to be sketched, doodled, and watercoloured upon—and touched, of course.

The Kunst & Papier sketchbooks remain a perennial favourite, so I’ve restocked the yellow in both small square & medium square. I’ve also added a portrait and landscape format, available with a warm grey or black linen spine. The landscape format is lovely company for a little stroll along the lakefront, or seascape, or cityscape. Or perhaps just escape.

One of these sketchbooks’ many attributes is that they open perfectly flat. The paper surface is toothy and wonderful to draw (or write) on with fountain pen, pencil, brush & ink.

Blooming below, I’ve used a quartet of mediums: the Aquash brush pen, the fine white brush pen (for the stamens), the black ink brush pen (for the flowing leaves, with delicate lines made with a white Lyra colour giant). A medley of mediums on a superb surface! They fill the bill, sing a song, summon happiness.

Another lovely addition to the Bari Zaki Studio repertoire of blank books is a new accordion notebook, perfectly compact at 4 x 6. There are 10 panels, including the interior covers, and therefore 8 panels on the other (exterior) side. The paper has a cold-press finish and is so sturdy at 300 gsm that I’m enjoying using my first one for painted paper collage. I’m already eager to begin a second one using just a brush pen.

More good things: I’ve added three new Carta Pura pads. Two of them actually proclaim Carta Pura on their covers. They are made of the same divine paper as the Deluxe Carta Pura envelopes.

And furthermore: If you have enjoyed using the 100% cotton Aquarello, a larger size is now in stock—9⅜ x 12¼—for larger pleasure(s).

Kunst & Papier Square Sketchbooks
Kunst & Papier A5 Sketchbooks
Carta Pura Pads
Aquarello Pads
Accordion Notebooks by Pentalic

Everything’s coming up paper, Bari

Join us for Butterfly Bookful of Botanicals

Dear Everyone ~

The deep winter months have brought dreams of budding spring blooms and blossoming trees. Whilst Cat Bennett & I were musing about our next Bookful workshop, we were both longing to breathe outdoors, draw outdoors & document hardy botanicals.

Butterfly Bookful of Botanicals, our new four-Saturday workshop, is our third collaboration. We will celebrate early spring: more light & warmth, the pods that have survived winter, and the awakening of overall optimism.

This past winter, I reacquainted myself with a lovely style of binding called the Butterfly stitch. I had taught it numerous times in studio, but have only recently taught it via Zoom. Because of its name, and also because of its delicacy, the Butterfly stitch seems the perfect technique to use for the Bookful workshop.

When I delved into my paper cabinet to see what I could see for covers, I had just received a fresh shipment of Saint-Armand cover papers in a dozen understated, beguiling hues. They became my point of departure for the two palettes, Jewellery and Springery. Soon thereafter, an assortment of muted Satagomi papers whispered to me, inspiring the two signature wraps. As I like to remark: The more colour the better.

One of my favourite aspects of the Butterfly stitching is that you can use up to four different thread colours. For the kit, I have included five colours so you can decide how you want to mix & match. (Your kit includes enough of each colour that you could use just one to stitch your entire book.)

I will record the bookbinding workshop lesson in advance, and it will be available for you, with no interruptions or delay, immediately after the first lesson. Between sessions, Cat & I will both answer your questions in our private Facebook group. We invite you to share and to be inspired by each other. (Even if you are not on Facebook, it’s easy to create an account simply for the class.)

In Workshop #1, you will make your book using the Butterfly stitch. This Japanese binding style dates back to 11th century. It involves four needles for stitching, which is not nearly as daunting as you might imagine. The stitch is so simple, I'd describe it as rhythmic. Your pages lay completely flat, making it a delight to work directly in your book. Easy, breezy, springy.

In Workshops #2, #3 & #4, Cat will lead the group through a series of drawing, painting & colour mixing exercises. You will fill your book with illustrations of botanical bits you find between sessions.

In the highly detailed shop listing, you can read more about the multitude of mediums we will explore together, the materials included in your kit, and the tools you will need. Cat is a big fan of using what you have on hand. That said, if you feel inspired to shop for new implements….

We hope you will join us to share in the creative camaraderie and shared love of paper, bookbinding, drawing, painting & nature. No previous art experience necessary. In case you missed yesterday’s e-blast about Introduction to Bookbinding, you’ll find it here. I’ve timed that new workshop especially for anyone who might be feeling fluttery at the prospect of making an entire book. If you take both Introduction to Bookbinding and Butterfly Bookful of Botanicals (BBB), you will receive a 15% discount on your BBB registration.

Butterfly Bookful of Botanicals

Bye-bye, Bari (BBB!)

Introducing ... Bookbinding 101

Dear Everyone ~

I’m delighted to announce a new group workshop, Introduction to Bookbinding. My motivation for this has been long simmering and has now zoomed, so to speak, to a front burner. Over my years of teaching, I’ve noticed the steps in the bookbinding process that students tend to stumble over. Though some parts of the process are more intuitive than others, I truly believe that once you can wrap your brain around what you’re doing in the moment and what you’re going to do next, it all—almost magically—makes sense.

During the Bookful workshops I’ve been co-teaching with Cat Bennett, I’ve had a chance to observe several dozen students doing the same thing, but in their own slightly different ways, at the same time. I’ve noticed a bit of anxiety about falling behind the group. Even though I’ve pre-recorded all the bookbinding steps for Bookful, I want people to feel in the moment that they are in step and not lagging, so that they can enjoy themselves.

Some students have been hampered—great if you are on a picnic, but not on a Zoom—by being out of practice with a ruler, an X-acto, or even a gluestick. My hope is that Introduction to Bookbinding can replace any trepidation with confidence… and anticipation about making an entire book.

To me, materials are central to bookbinding. The same binding technique, when made with different materials… is a different book. So, Introduction to Bookbinding is also an introduction to different paper textures and weights and their temperaments. In the shop listing, you can read about the pair of single-signature stitched booklets you will make. As always, the workshop includes a complete kit of materials. (The process of assembling kits is near & dear to my paper-loving heart.) For this workshop, you have your choice of three different palettes: Primavera, Terrain and Nocturne.

This workshop can, in two delightful hours, bring you up to “cruising attitude.” By scheduling this workshop for March 27, I am hoping that students who might be hesitant about registering for Butterfly Bookful of Botanicals, which I am co-teaching with Cat Bennett in April, will feel emboldened. To encourage you, I will offer a 15% discount ($35.40 off!) on the registration for that series of four workshops to any “graduate” of Introduction to Bookbinding.

Introduction to Bookbinding

Basically, Bari