Coptic Notebooks

Event Info

This one day, virtual workshop takes place on Zoom on Wednesday, December 13, 2023 from 6:00 pm– 8:30 pm Eastern time.

Complete Schedule:

• Wednesday, December 13, 6:00–8:30pm

Please Note: Registration for this workshop closes on Wednesday, December 6th at 11:59 pm.

About the Workshop:

This virtual class at Center for Book Arts is taught by instructor Beth Sheehan.

Coptic stitch – one of the oldest and useful book structures – is a simple sewn book that is extremely flexible. Because of its ability to fold back onto itself, it is the perfect structure for sketchbooks, journals, and datebooks.

By the end of this two-hour workshop, participants will each have their own soft-cover coptic book!

Required Materials:

• Text pages, any number of signatures (text weight; I will be using 8.5×11 copy paper, 5 signatures with 6 pages per signature.)
  Cover paper, 2 sheets, same height as text pages but slightly longer (decorative paper any weight will work but text weight or thin cardstock is best. I will be using 2 sheets of 91# text weight Colorplan paper, 8.5”x17”)
• 4 curved needles
• Bookbinding thread
• Bookbinding awl
• Pencil
• Ruler
• Cutting tool (X-acto, Olfa knife, scalpel, etc.)
• Cutting mat
• Glue stick or double-stick tape
• Scrap paper

About Beth Sheehan

Elizabeth (Beth) Sheehan is a printmaker, papermaking, and book artist living in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

Her work investigates ideas of memory and perception to explore her own lack of episodic memory.

Sheehan’s work has been exhibited internationally and is held in public collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Center for Book Arts, and the San Francisco Public Library.