Coptic Stitch

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• Step 1

  Begin by entering the rightmost sewing station (1)
  of your first signature from the outside of the spine. Draw the thread to the inside of the signature, leaving a 6- to 12-inch (15.2 to 30.5 cm) tail on the outside.

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  Step 2

  Draw the thread to sewing station 2 and exit.

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  Step 3

  Reenter sewing station 2 and pull the thread until
  a small loop forms on the outside spine of the signa- ture. Guide the needle into the next station (3) from the inside, using care not to pull the loop out of the previous signature. Continue to the next station.
  (In this example, the next station is the center one, sewing station 3.) If you have a cover to fasten, pull the thread to the outside of the center station and around the outside of the center cover hole.

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  Step 4

  Loop around the cover hole twice. Tighten the threads and reenter into the center station of the signature.

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  Step 5

  Continue to the next station and make a loop on the outside of the signature like you did in step 3. At the leftmost station, direct link into the next signature and pull the thread semi-taut.

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  Step 6

  Guide the needle out of the next sewing station and through the adjacent loop of the previous signature.

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  Step 7

  Carefully pull the thread of the previous signature tight until the loop disappears. Pull the thread of the second signature taut until the linking stitch is tight.

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  Step 8

  Guide the thread back into the station it just came out of and through the center station in the second signature. Pull the needle to the outside of the book. Wrap once around the link between the first signature and the cover.

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  Step 9

  And return the needle to the center station of the second signature.

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  Step 10

  Continue to the next sewing station from inside
  the second signature, and link through the previous signature’s loop.

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  Step 11

  Again tighten the loop by pulling the thread of
  the first signature toward the bottom until the loop disappears. Tighten the thread of the second signature and reenter through the hole.

• Step 12

  At station 1, link to the previous signature using a square knot.

• Step 13

  Continue adding signatures by linking the newest stations to the previous one with a Coptic stitch around the adjacent link at each station (J). Link the bottom and top stations of the signatures together using a true kettle stitch.

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  Step 14

  In the final signature, link the center station to the previous signature first, then guide the needle through the recently made Coptic stitch and pull the thread taut.

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  Step 15

  Place the remaining cover on the text block.

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  Step 16

  Guide the needle around the cover spine and into the center cover hole.

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  Step 17

  Pull it through to wrap the thread around the cover spine. Loop the thread around the cover spine again and pull the thread taut.

• Step 18

  Guide the needle back into the middle station of the signature.

• Step 19

  Continue the binding with a regular Coptic stitch in the next station, just like before.

• Step 20

  Complete the binding of the text block by linking the top of the signatures with a true kettle stitch.

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