Weddingbee Blog

This post was originally published on July 22nd, 2009

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After printing and cutting the cardstock for our programs, the lingering question was how we would bind it all together. Initially, we were going to punch an eyelet in the corner to allow the sheets to cascade out and act as a fan, but… I dunno… I just changed my mind. I’m sick of eyelets (kinda sorta). These days, I can’t take a step in the apartment without finding an eyelet stuck to the bottom of my foot, and that bugs me to no end! My hand is a bit cramped, too.

Since we’re short on time, I would’ve been content with ribbon holding it all together, but a YouTube tutorial on Japanese stab binding kept creeping into my head. I first discovered it when looking for invitation ideas. At the time, my obsession was booklet-style invitations. But since we never went down the booklet route, I dismissed the idea altogether. Now, with our programs totaling 7 pages, this idea was perfect.

The tutorial itself is a very basic technique. But if you’re looking for a more intricate design, it can be done!

See?

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Awesomeness!

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Bur simple is what we need, so we stuck with the tutorial. Here’s a quick visual recap of how it was done. The written instructions may get confusing, so definitely check out the YouTube video if you decide to give this a whirl.

• Step 1: Assemble each program. Be sure to flip through it and check for duplicate/missing pages (I had many).
• Step 2: Create a template to mark where the holes should be punched. Lay this on top of each program, and pencil marks where the holes will be punched.
• Step 3: Punch the holes. The Crop-a-Dile had no problems punching holes through the 7 sheets.
• Step 4: Thread your needle. A large eye on the needle was needed for the twine to pull through.
• Step 5: Start sewing from the back to the front. I started with the center hole. Leave 2 inches at the tail-end of the twine so that you have enough slack to tie the final knot.
• Step 6: Sew around the spine of the same hole.
• Steps 7-14: Continue to sew through all of the holes. I worked from the center hole to the bottom, and back up through the spine.
• Step 15: Tie a knot with the two ends.
• Step 16: Snip the ends to your desired length.

And here’s the result…

What binding techniques are you using for your invitations/programs?