Self-directed: "Out of control" - The making

The books before they had the covers on.

I chose the size of the flip books to be able to fit easily into the palm of one hand and flicked with the other. I decided that A7 would be the perfect size for the flip books, the pages in the end were a bit longer than an A7 page because I put a tab on the left hand side, so that images wouldn't be hindered when being bound and so that the audience has enough space to hold the book when flipping. The final books were abit abit thinner than A7 after trimming, but I left space at the top and bottom of them images specifically for that, so none ofthe image would go missing.

I originally planned to staple all the pages of one book together with an industrial staple, and I went to staples and they told me that it was possible for them to do that there and to come back when I was ready with my work. But in the end they weren't able to staple them all in one go but in about four goes. As I had no time to try and fix this by finding a place that was able to staple it or another method of binding it. So I made do and stapled it in small groups and then glued the individual groups together to make the book. I then trimmed the back bind so it was all straight and then set it with glue again, along the new flat bind. After it had dried I then trimmed the edges so that it was all need, easy to flick and all 90 degree angles. 

The covers

For the covers I decided to use the Letter Press to print the type, because I liked the tactile feel it gives because it slightly embosses the paper. I also chose this method of printing because I have never used this technique properly before and wanted to challenge my self to something new. 

The paper I chose was 150 gsm navy blue. I thought this colour looked more sleek and sophisticated than choosing a bright colour or a recycled paper brown, etc, but also less boring than just plain white or black. I did compare different white to see if they gave the books a different feel, the slight differences made them look just dirty. 

I decided to go with a silver coloured ink because I didn't want to go with what I would consider the norm by choosing white, and I think the silver compliments the navy blue paper with its tint of blue in it.

I chose the layout of the of the type to sit this way so that when I cut it to fit the books, the title of the each book, i.e. Vodka, will sit directly in the middle of the front cover and the title of the project, Out Of Control, will sit, small, at the bottom but in the middle of the page. I wanted to keep the print simple so that it wont take away from content in side and so that it would look sleek and sophisticated.