DIY Gilded Book Edge | Sea Lemon

[@Rob_Fordd]

Gold leaf page edges actually have a real practical purpose too. Since gold is sooo soft, when the book is closed the metal on each page basically fuses together, creating a seal that makes the book pages much less vulnerable to humidity in the air long term!

[@derekr7814]

Putting gold leaf on the edges is much more difficult and labor intensive.

[@prototypep4]

@@derekr7814 much much more worth it though. If you're getting into bookbinding do it right not just these tacky "shortcut the shit out of everything" types of craft people are into these days.

[@planetjumper1]

True dat THANK YOU for the extra push to go big or go home Real deal Goulding FTW

[@thecommandocrew2692]

@@prototypep4 let people enjoy making things dawg

[@prototypep4]

@@thecommandocrew2692 make things with quality dawg.

[@vickyp]

Awesome! Another easy method is to get a gold ink pad and just go directly with it along the sides! Gold ink pads manufactured for scrapbookers and cardmakers are acid-free and non toxic too!

[@leopardprints]

That's such a good idea. I'm making smaller books so I think that would work better. I'm also going to try metallic marker pens for thinner notepads.

[@scarlett4399]

Vicky Papaioannou that’s such a good idea! I am buying a sketchbook for school and I wanted to diy it and I will defo do this, thanks

[@mcuna42]

What a wonderful idea! I definitely want to try that. Do you like any certain brands?

[@sidorpa1919]

Doesn't the gold ink wear off though? Especially if you're touching it frequently? Or is it a permanent solution like the acrylic paint? (Sorry, I know this comment is from 5 years ago, but hopefully you can help a sister out lol).

[@sidorpa1919]

Hi, did the gold ink pad or metallic markers work? Or did they rub off with frequent use?

[@karenkavett]

I love this, Jennifer! I especially like the pastel colors that blend into each other!

[@Andromeda285]

me too!!

[@JoDidntHearYou]

I love this idea! You do such a great job of filming and editing your videos. Your voice and enunciation are spot on for clear instructing. I know that's kind of a strange compliment, but it's something I really appreciate because my hearing loss can make it difficult for me to understand or hear each separate word. You're awesome! Thank you so much for continuing to educate us on book binding!

[@pricepaperbeveling7413]

totally agree

[@UjjalVallabh]

I'm going to try this! Just another idea, when I was in school I used to press the pages together like in this video and write the subject name on top of the book with a thin marker. This was helpful when I needed to grab the book in my bag, especially when you have a lot of books. I did it for my friends too! ☺

[@RachelStormborn]

I was just starting to research about page gilding and trying to find a reasonably easy method. Choosing the correct paint was the big conundrum for me and your testing saved me a lot of time and money. TY!

[@shachiphene]

cool! i remember kids used to do something like this with metallic sharpies on their composition notebooks in school

[@ShindoGirl]

your tutorials are honestly the best. Simplistic with the results you want.

[@mariloupelletier9140]

Hi Jennifer! Thanks for making all these great videos, it helped me a lot to create nice books. I tried this method today and it worked so well. The paint I used was the Liquitex Ink (I bought it for another project). It's an acrylic liquid paint and the best part was that the pages did not stick together at all. With one layer, it was opaque enough but I know that I could have put many more without risk. It's worth the try!

[@SimpLeeBeth]

The pink and blue turned out so pretty!!! 💓💙💓

[@saltyrebel2037]

THANK YOU SO MUCH! I have a large collection of (to me) priceless books. I had decided to try gilding a throw-away and I'm glad I did because... I had to throw it away! I'm going to try the spray method on some other cheap stuff and/or notebooks to get the hang of it.

[@Umayisnothere]

I love your videos and i just made two hardcover notebooks thanks to you! I was going to try the acrylic method for gilding the edges and then I discovered a much easier technique and I wanted to share it here. I couldn’t find my gold acrylic paint so instead I brushed on a thin layer of gold calligraphy ink which worked wonderfully! Definitely recommend :)

[@SheIsAsAwesomeAsMe]

I didnt even watch the video yett.... And i am already sooo excitedd.... Been waiting for this video for almost two years now!!!!

[@unshanks]

I'd considered doing the spray paint method before, but was worried about the paint bleeding too far into the pages. Thanks for testing that, now I'll be able to try it with fewer worries!

[@yellowhedgehog17155]

i have a book where some of the building has come off, and i've been wanting to find a way to fix it for a while now. thanks so much, now i can repair my book so all the pages are nice and metallic!!!

[@pamn.593]

Thanks for the video! I've tried gilding the edges of a notebook before and found that a small roller brush used with acrylic paint worked pretty well and the pages didn't stick together too much.

[@mariatoft2000]

Hey.... gold gouache worked perfect for me🤗

[@felimekj]

This was great. I love the blue and pink one, so different and really pretty!!! Thank you for sharing this idea! :)

[@nicoleinthesea]

Thanks Jennifer! the pastel/ombre one looks soooooo pretty! definitely gonna try this out on my valentine's day gift!!!

[@kristenblack3930]

Thank you for this tutorial. I am going to be altering several journals and had been wondering what to do with the edges. Conundrum solved, thanks to you.

[@dorienknop9802]

I did this on my sketch book a while back. I really like the look of it.

[@chulheelee3767]

감사합니다.

[@SeaLemonDIY]

Thank you!

[@charlottechong2343]

Thank you sealemon! I really appreciate you trying out all the different products to see which would be the best :D your videos are the best

[@MyrtleNyx]

For some ease of use try deco markers. They have an oil base so the pages will originally stick, but once easily unstuck the gilding will hold fantastically. They are so easy to use, and less messy than using paint or spray paint. I have a silver leaf one for my books. Also for non metallic I would suggest alcohol markers. This will seep a little into each page, (normally about 1mm), but it gives a vibrant and colourful finish! I recently got a fantastic lagoon blue/green finish to one of my books that is a present by using this method.

[@TrentR42]

Hey SeaLemon, to step up your edging game, have you ever heard of fore-edge painting? You're a talented artist and it'd be interesting to see you tackle that technique.

[@sruthisj7703]

I have almost bumped into all your videos twice or thrice. Waiting for more videos.

[@scottcudahy8200]

As always thanks for sharing a variety of painted edging. Much appreciated!

[@bd_ART]

This is one of my favorite videos ever 😻😻😻 I will try it

[@Ysheel]

this tutorial was great Jennifer!!! i think that other good method is use paint in powder like the shadows for the eyes, i think if you use paint in powder whit a little bit stick is probably a method with a good result how the spray. (sorry for the bad english) greats!!

[@Gr95dc]

I just painted it with golden sharpie, worked ok for me

[@sentrentumv-Labratura]

I am Italian , and I would advise first to color the edges of polish the paper with very fine sandpaper , so doing avoid the penetration of color sprays , or with Labratura gold hot dissolving . Pardon My English

[@heartlessbabemsp4128]

I'm Albanian but I learn Italian at school

[@SuperBilleh1369]

Yay! So glad you showed this. I've been curious about it and now I know how to go about trying it for myself. Thank you so much.

[@likhithr.j2647]

I also like your room how you organized it

[@umbjdaLeilaLopes]

Amazing idea! I have tried once with a Polka pen. It works but needs patience.

[@hargisP2]

You could also try what is called art gilding. First use a red color, and then gold. And when open it looks like a Salmon color. Or a blue base, with silver over the blue. Open it has a light blue shade.

[@deborahbloom4624]

Oh my googness! I was literally just wondering how to do this!

[@karenbelenluszcz6933]

Qué genialidad! Felicito este canal, desde Buenos Aires, Argentina. Mando muchas bendiciones y saludos. Sus videos eran lo que necesitaba. Aunque no sé cómo llegué a este video ja ja ja Que Dios los bendiga y María los proteja

[@luisatafonso]

I really like your videos. They help me at my work as a graphic designer :) Thank you!

[@felicityb4949]

I used gold paint markers & they worked well

[@Itsjust_nix]

Awesome method

[@marellareyes9897]

Blooming, Jennifer!

[@HejMette]

Hey, my name was in the video! Cool :) Thanks for taking the request, your videos are great! :)

[@SeaLemonDIY]

+Mette Ostenfeldt Thanks for commenting! ;)

[@ois4465]

Sea Lemon your so good at making diy

[@graceholdiman1274]

This is so cool! Could you do a vintage floral pattern tutorial? I love the way it looks!

[@tharinsimran5510]

Oh my gosh This is so creative

[@TraceyDay13]

Thanks, Jennifer! As always, love this tutorial xx

[@esccools]

Thank you so much for this video Which method do you think will last longer

[@rachel19984]

Pretty cool idea! I will try it on m my sketchbook

[@LiteralColbyExxxtras]

Is it normal for gilding on a book to rub off and scratch?

[@kristieleighauthor]

It would be really helpful to have the brand listed in the description so that when links no longer work-like the acrylic-that we might be able to find. Also would like to know what "cheap" spray paint didn't work so I can avoid that brand as well :) Thanks so much for this tutorial!

[@emmavoels2]

Hi Jennifer, love your bookbinding videos so much. Would you be willing to do a tutorial on Treasure Binding? At least, a cheap method that replicates the gold plates with gemstone embedded on the covers. I've seen so many beautiful books on the internet that were treasure bound and would love to be able to replicate them for my personal library. Thanks.

[@hospitalcakewalk]

I completely forgot what this technique was called so I coloured all the edges of my book I'm making with black sharpie. it took a while but looks awesome and it's waterproof but I'm thinking next time ill be using your painting technique XD

[@kathleen4367]

This is so cool! I’m wondering if you’ve ever tried this technique on a deck of playing cards?

[@justBorja]

Looks great! I really like the ombre effect :)

[@geekyravenclaw4211]

Please do a tutorial on how to make a paperback book a hardback

[@ariellwrf6844]

I'd suggest carefully removing the cover & then following her hardcover tutorial :)

[@Quntah888]

Oh I would LOVE to see that! 😁👍🏼

[@geekyravenclaw4211]

+Ariell WRF that's what I was thinking but it would be cool to see a full tutorial

[@caitlynm.1087]

+Komal Cheema If you want all the Harry Potter books in hardcover all you have to do is check your local goodwills book section. Over the course of a couple of months I was able to accumulate all of the books in good condition for about 4$ each.

[@caitlynm.1087]

Komal Cheema No problem! It's important to remember that you might not find the books right away. Don't get discouraged and keep checking. The price is worth it. ^-^

[@doobaluyut4693]

i subscribed i love alll your video's 11 year old kid i love to paint and you made it more fun

[@Pooja_Ash]

Even distress ink works pretty well.

[@WhoAteEarth]

i just use my spray paint and use some paper to protect the covers. works well, doesn't rub off, and doesn't make the pages stick together :)

[@treasure2148]

Sea lemon video marathon New subie

[@dmprdctns]

Excellent...! Thanks... Very helpful.

[@randomtux1234]

waaaaaaaat? gold leaf spray in a can? nice!!!

[@ellens.bookishcollection]

I want to try this! But for your more expensive hardback books, would you do acrylic paint or spray paint?

[@MDAIlMondodellArte]

molto bello il risultato!

[@dalskiBo]

Great tuorial, thanks Sea Lemon.

[@laurenwilkinson2375]

this was very helpful. thank you!

[@nathanielferguson]

I am a minister and I am wanting to guild a Bible which has low GSM paper. My first few efforts had the gilding flacking off. I did not use the spray adhesive after painting. Do you have any tips to make it work well?

[@anurlailika]

I really love the gradient one, think I'm going to try it! Anyways, your hair looks gorgeous

[@gracesimmons8638]

@SeaLemon could you do a diy harry potter wand video!!

[@PracticalBibleStudies]

A stick. From a tree.

[@melissamccauley782]

Awesome! Curious if you have a suggestion for doing several books at once?

[@jerem0621]

Do you think that this would apply to Bible edges too?

[@kathleen4367]

Jeremiah Hughes Did you ever try this?

[@yeung8718]

Does this method also work for sketchbooks like Canson Mix Media?

[@thecroftfan]

I used the spray paint method on one of my internship report and sadly the paint ended slightly bleeding into the pages… It's not that much visible but when operating the pages that were stuck together, it made the ink and paper shred… But anyway it turned out pretty good I might say :-D

[@ariellwrf6844]

you might have been spray painting a little too close to the paper. I've done this before & 2 steps back can really make a difference.

[@thecroftfan]

That's probably what happened… I don't remember it's been around 8 months since I've done that so…

[@reynajeronimo739]

I really like this diy😃

[@dimasguardado4947]

I love it I love these videos +sealemon

[@welltube1010]

is there a difference in shine or quality between brush painted and spray painted?

[@masterjennifer4549]

Thank you!

[@christhebush1585]

Wow! Your room or the place where you work looks so creative. How do you sticks those mini buckets on the walls with paint inside it And have it not fall?

[@SeaLemonDIY]

+Book Worm Thanks! I film in my little office :) Check out how I made those mini buckets and more on my space - bit.ly/CraftRoom

[@sowjanyaleo8755]

I will try it

[@ichorgod]

I wonder if you could use an ink pad to apply color to the edges. Would it work? or would bleed into the pages?

[@LenaJohansenMUA]

Love the ombre effect you made. Need to be more creative myself ;-)

[@craftywabbit9547]

great ideas...

[@khaled90kld]

is there anyway you can add a layer that makes the sprayed color more reflective?

[@TheJavirich]

3:17 Do you have a tutorial for that beauuutiful cover?? I love that spine

[@rosewoods1901]

Hi! Could you show us how to print in signatures/good ways to design page layout?

[@JoDidntHearYou]

Yes please +SeaLemon! I wanted to print my own planner in Microsoft Word so I could attempt binding with that beautiful Coptic stitch you did a while back. Trying to print on both sides of the paper, as well as having two pages per sheet of paper (to fold into signatures) was really difficult. Thank you again for all the amazing tutorials! We really appreciate it!

[@LoopyLaloo]

In Microsoft Word, there are lots of printing options, so if you'd like more info I'll explain :)

[@rosewoods1901]

+LoopyLaloo that would be awesome! I've tried following a ton of online explanations and I just can't get it to work. At the moment I just do a lot of math and print in small batches while making a ton of mistakes. It is frankly time consuming and frustratingly boring

[@LoopyLaloo]

+rosewoods1901 (Long reply coming up, sorry :3) To format your book thing so it looks like a book, you need to change your margins. So go to 'Page Layout' and click 'Margins' and then select 'Custom Margins...'. In the thing that pops up, choose 'Orientation' as 'Landscape'. Directly underneath where it says 'Multiple pages:', change from 'Normal' to 'Book fold'. This means you can fold landscape paper in half. To make signatures, choose 'Sheets per booklet' and change to 16 if you want to fold four pages to make one signature. From then on, you can fiddle with your margin measurements until you like the way it looks. To print your whole thing as signatures, go to 'Print' and keep all the settings as is except 'Print Double Sided'. If there's an option under that, make sure you choose 'Flip along short edge'. That just makes sure it doesn't print upside down or do something weird. And then hit Print and hope for the best. XD Remember, the whole thing takes trial and error, so I recommend printing a test trial of just the first couple of signatures so you don't waste so much paper or ink. If it doesn't work out perfectly, or you don't like the margin measurements, you can always alter if for next time. Hope this helps, and if you have any more questions, I'll try my best to help again :)

[@geekyravenclaw4211]

Microsoft Publisher? That's what I used

[@erleah2876]

i was like in my mind 'please have a spray paint method and then it was there so Thank you

[@cozynblue]

Pretty cool!

[@jessicamalpas1194]

I know that it's not about this video but I saw in your storage video that you have a rotary cutter and I was wondering if it was good because I was thinking about getting one

[@SeaLemonDIY]

+jessica malpas Yes! I like to use it when trimming fabric.

[@jessicamalpas1194]

+Sea Lemon thank you

[@uzmarashid3566]

Hey your videos are awesome 👍

[@jrm2716]

I don't know if this was covered or in the comments... Will the paint cover ink stains?

[@angiel516]

Love your channel so much! :3

[@witchyway7642]

Super Cool! But I have a question, what if you have a fabric cover journal, and you want to have keep the journal cover clean for a long time, what materials should I used?

[@briannab5296]

... maybe spray it with ScotchGuard?

[@nicolleoconer8992]

Thank you so much for this!! :) I have a question though. What if the book has deckle edges? Is it still ideal to use this method?

[@matt15068]

What gold spray did you use? Your link is not working for me. Did it turn out nicer that way? Thanks

[@justinebeaalano2942]

Hey? Can I ask for a tip?I was thinking of making a paper mache like design for my book cover, then painting it, what should I do?

[@diys2love665]

can we use watercolour or poster paints instead of acrylic paints?

[@flare8089]

This makes me wonder how metallic watercolours might work to colour the edge of a book!

[@mauricebrown9641]

CAN ONE REGILD OVER ORIGINAL GILDING IF THE NEW DYE IS DARKER; OR DOES THE OLD/ORIGINAL GILDING HAVE TO BE SANDED? THANKS

[@sowjanyaleo8755]

easy and nice

[@valerieleiter4211]

+sealemon could I use pastel chalk with hairspray so it stay on? because I don't have spray paint and I thought it could stay:) I hope you can read it my english isn't so well^^

[@Cindoraart]

Good idea. I can imagine it could work but I would use Fixativ and maybe the colours aren't that vibrant. (I'm not a native speaker and understood : )

[@Steeksify]

+Valerie Leiter I don't really recommend it. Even if you manage to get a clean, consistent layer of chalk, a layer of clear varnish would likely not be durable enough to handle a moderately used book.47

[@Cindoraart]

+Steeksify I did it yesterday with soft pastels on my sketchbook and used professional fixativ for chalks, pastels and pencilwork and everything went fine. Nothing inside the book and nothing came off so far. I have the sketchbook very often in my hands and in my bag. I will see what happen : )

[@rizzalabs9027]

Sea Lemon i love your videos! thats why i like DIYs!

[@rizzalabs9027]

Sea Lemon i love your videos! thats why i like DIYs!

[@rubsymoon839]

This is great Jennifer! Thank you! :) I was just wondering, how did you/make do the circular shelves on the wall with the paint in? ^_^

[@salgonemesrebeka]

wow! Its so easy?!