My eldest needed another prop for a play; this time it was ugly needle craft. Hm. In theory, to make ugly needle craft you need to do the opposite of all that is done for good needle craft. The director sent an image of cross stitch as an example, but these guidelines would work for most kinds of needle craft, should you find yourself needing to make cringe-worthy thread embellished decor. So here are my pointers:

• Use poorly woven cloth that does not have an even or straight weave (I used a scrap of a cotton drop cloth)
• Use inexpensive thread (I think this thread came from a bracelet kit)
• Don’t starch the cloth or iron or tape edges
• Have only a vague plan, don’t mark cloth with guidelines
• Watch an engaging movie, don’t correct the stitching mistakes
• Completely ignore color theory
• Mess up repeating patterns
• Try for long straight lines of stitching
• Put in a spelling mistake
• Use all capitals, make them different sizes
• Left align the words
• Use strange color changes for the letters

Honestly, this should have everyone’s OCD twitching, even if you don’t usually have OCD.

For a prop for a play set in the 1920s, I made a simple leather journal from 11×17 paper, goat leather, and waxed linen cord. I made a paper template to test the wrap and strap, then cut the leather and dyed it in a mottled pattern using a wool dauber. I finished the leather with a spray designed for leather and suede that should resist water and drying out and cracking.

I use 11×17” paper because the grain of the paper goes the right way when it is cut in half (8 1/2 x 11”) and folded. (Try this yourself: gently bend a piece of paper length wise and then width wise. One direction will bend more than the other; this direction lies along the grain of the paper and the paper will fold or tear more easily along the grain.) Each signature (group of papers to be sewn) in the book is made from four sheets folded in half together. I marked the outside of the six signatures with pencil and marked the matching spots on the leather. I then used an awl to poke holes at the marks.

Here is where I erred. I was hoping to sew the signatures to the leather without long lines of thread on the outside of the cover, but the goat leather was too thin to support the stitch I wished to do, so I had to change my attack. I made an odd number of holes, but for the new method, I needed an even number. Lesson learned: when trying a new technique, have an escape plan. I ended up skipping the middle hole, which is not ideal, but still made a secure attachment.

For each signature, I sewed up and back following the holes, which made nice parallel lines on the outside. To finish, I tied the beginning thread and end thread together before snipping the ends.

I have taken book binding classes and can do a hard bound book, but this was quicker and we had all the materials on hand. Plus, it looks really cool.