Erinzam News

One of the best parts of teaching is learning new things! Below is a new technique that I learned from a student for how to accurately create evenly spaced holes. This template is for the 4-Hole Japanese Stab Binding.

1. Draw a line 3/8″ in from the spine, parallel to the spine (from top to bottom). Along this vertical line, mark the top hole 5/8″ from the head and the bottom hole 5/8″ from the tail. Draw a line through each mark, parallel to the top and bottom of the template (from left to right).

2. How many holes do you want to add? In this case we want to add 2 holes between our top and bottom holes. If we add 2 holes, that will make 3 gaps, or spaces, between the top and bottom holes.

Start with the number of spaces (3), and look for a multiple of that number on your ruler (i.e. 6, 9, 12, 15…). You can use either inches or centimeters. Choose a multiple of 3 that will touch both the top and the bottom line at the same time. In this example, I chose 12 cm.

Touch the end of the ruler at zero to the top line and hold it in place. At the same time, touch your chosen multiple (i.e. 12 cm) to the bottom line. Make two evenly spaced marks along the ruler. I made one mark at 4 cm and another mark at 8 cm.

3. Move the ruler over an inch or more to the right. Touch the end of the ruler at zero to the top line and hold it in place. At the same time, touch your chosen multiple (i.e. 12 cm) to the bottom line. Make two more evenly spaced marks along the ruler (i.e. at 4 cm and at 8 cm).

4. Draw a line between the two marks made toward the top. These are the marks that I made at 4 cm. Draw a line between the two marks made toward the bottom. These are the marks that I made at 8 cm.

You now have two evenly spaced holes between your top and bottom holes!