How to book fold

You probably stumbled across a photo or two on social media or maybe you or a friend received a book fold as a gift and were intrigued to how it was done so started searching and found me YAY!

For me it was Pinterest. So many amazing book sculptures and I just had to know how they were done! Unfortunately in 2014 there wasn’t a lot of info around on them. Eventually I found the ONLY book folding group on Facebook at the time and it was so great to find others who were interested in learning how they were made and we all kind of figured it out together. Then came some pattern making software and the fun really began as we tested the limits of how much detail we could fit in a book just by folding it’s pages. The first pattern I made was the vintage sewing machine in the photo above, as at the time I had a sewing business so thought that would be cool. People loved the pattern so much they wanted to buy it! and that’s how All in the folds started.

The style we are covering here is the Measure, Mark and Fold style (MMF) which means you take a list of measurements, which are two per page, mark them on to the books pages and then fold to these marks. There’s no cutting involved in this method and there are only two marks per page.

For the cut and fold method, which is a little more time consuming and can be more challenging but gives the option for much more detail depending on the pattern take a look at the free Inspire cut & Fold pattern and video here

To get started with book folding I recommend practising with this free heart book folding pattern as you don’t need a big book so it will give you quick results and a boost to have a finished fold within an hour.

Tools you will need:

• a sharp pencil – I now use mechanical pencils as they’re less messy but a regular pencil is fine.
• Ruler – any ruler will do, the easier it is to line up zero with the edge of the page will make your marking more precise. There’s no need to buy an expensive t-rule, you can make your own easily with a coffee stirrer or lolly stick!
• a bone folder or something to help crease your folds like a store card.
• a hardback book with enough pages for your pattern.
• a pattern to follow – here’s a copy of the Beginners heart pattern

This video walks you through your first book fold. Once you have the basics you can then move on to more detailed patterns as the principle is the same.

If you have any questions after watching the video, let me know in the comments!

If you enjoy making the heart and would like to carry on with this craft there are more free practice patterns by logging in or becoming a subscriber!

or If you would like something in particular to make next then take a look in the shop!

Happy folding!
Jo x