Sketch Sunday has bonus bookbinding to counter its lateness. Last Friday night I made this book:

Inspired by books made out of recycled materials, I raided my collection of paper shopping bags. I often reuse the plain bags as gift bags, but the ones with shop names printed on them just build up. Sometimes I stuff them full of recycling from the workroom and use it to cart it all downstairs, tossing it in the recycling bin, bag and all.

But I love the idea of practising bookbinding techniques on free, rustic materials. First I cut up all the bags, trimming off bulky bases and handles. It occured to me that the cardboard lined handles of one bag would make interesting covers, with the gap for the handle allowing a peek at the interior. Fun cloth tags from a pair of jeans just begged to be used as book cloth, and followed the shopping theme.

Once finished, I considered what to use the book for. I could glue stuff into it – perhaps more tags from garments, or business cards. But I had an itch to draw all over the cover, so I got out my calligraphy pens and inks.

By the time I’d finished the cover I knew what I wanted to do. I wanted to doodle. I would put the book by the armchair in the tv room and doodle during ad breaks and boring articles in the news. So that’s what I’ve been doing:

Which has been so much fun. When I showed the book to Paul he instantly understood the concept and started describing the sort of doodling he does. Patterns mostly.

This is the sort of doodling I do when stuck somewhere and I don’t have any knitting with me, or it would be inappropriate to knit. I’ve always found it interesting how sketching is more acceptable than knitting in some situations. Nobody minds if you sit and sketch at their party, for example, but would think it rude if you knit (though it depends on the kind of party).

The text from the bags simply provides something for doodles to grow from. This is something I’m familiar with, because I’m usually doodling on whatever is to hand, like those booklets they give you at awards ceremonies or weddings to let you know what order the proceedings will take.

Not all the sketchbooks in An Illustrated Life – one of the inspirations for Sketch Sunday – are full of drawings. Many are contain doodles. My doodle book has made me realise I may be getting a bit too precious about what I draw for Sketch Sunday. It reminds me that my weekly contribution doesn’t always have to be a work of art.