Purchase a 1/8" double sided Glowforge proof grade 12"x19.5" sheet of Walnut, Cherry or Maple plywood. Do not attempt to use thicker wood as it will not allow the book to close properly and may cause the spine to break (www.glowforge.com) **Prepare your settings for the wood. this book cover will barley fit on one of these wood boards so be carful to frame it accurately  This Project will become your mother’s favorite family heirloom. It will hold all of Mom’s favorite family recipes to be passed down from generation to generation. The recipe pages can be Printed out or hand written and put in the book, or you can send Mom a PDF document that can be filled out on her computer and printed then added to the recipe book (purchase on etsy or make your own). She can even add a photo of the finished dish. It will take some knowledge of general crafting to complete this project but don’t worry, I will guide you step by step with detailed instruction and photographs. If you are good at design you can engrave one of Mom’s handwritten recipes on the back cover instead of the Family recipe provided. If your not design savvy, there are designers on ETSY that can convert a handwritten recipe into a svg for engraving for you. I hope you enjoy making this project as much as I enjoyed creating it. 

Coat front and rear inside cover with smooth even coats of mod podge (I use the Matte) Being careful to stop the mod podge application where the binder cut edge begins) let the mod podge dry to where it is not tacky to the touch but not not completely dry (see photos) then place the paper to the front and back inside covers one at a time. Place a sheet of parchment paper over the decorative paper and iron gently with a low-med hot iron (no Steam). Move the iron quickly till the glue is heated and the paper has been applied. check it frequently for proper adherence. Tip: you shouldn't get any wrinkles with this method of mod podge by letting the glue nearly dry before applying the paper and using an iron to smooth the paper out. 

To finish the paper you want to sand along the edges with 120 grit sand paper or sanding sponge.Sand along the edge first, then sand from the edge outward to remove any paper extending over the edge of the book cover. (see photos) 

The next step is to attach the 3 ring letter sized binder hardware to the inside spine of the book cover. the screw post holes were cut during the cutting process and should match up perfectly with the binder hardware. The Chicago screws should come with the binder replacement hardware; but if not you will have to purchase them individually from Amazon. Open Back Chicago Screws: I used the 6mm size, you will need 4 of them. These are used to attach the 3 ring binder and the leather closure to the wood book cover. 

Push the post side of the screw up through the post hole, I always use a rubber O-ring or two between the screw post and the binder hardware so the binder hardware is nice and snug and the metal binder does not wiggle or rub against the wood during opening and closing of the binder. (see photos). Next, place the metal binder hole over the post and O-Ring and put the screw head into the post and tighten. I hold the post side of the screw with pliers to keep it from turning while tightening. (if anyone has a better method to keep the post from turning let me know!!)

Now for final step in completing your recipe book cover you will need to attach the cut leather closure to the wood book cover by using 2 Chicago screws (Amazon) and one ¾" magnetic snap assembly (Amazon or Hobby Lobby). See photos for the size and brands I used. 

First place the top side of the leather closure to the outward side of the rear book cover. (see photos) match the post holes up with the round holes on the leather closure. Push a post through the leather and the wood cover attach 1-2 O-rings per screw on the wood side the screw in the top screw and tighten.  

 Here is a you tube link on how to attach a magnetic snap if you have never used one before.  keep in mind we are using wood instead of material and the holes for attaching to the wood have already been placed and cut when we cut the book cover and leather closure. 

Next we will attach the male end of the magnetic snap by pushing the metal prongs through the under side of the leather closure. (See Photo) Then apply a metal washer over the prongs and bend the prongs INWARD over the washer as shown in the attached photo.

Next, you will need that scrap piece of matching wood to cut the snap spacer and cover for the male snap that we just attached. Remember, Black is for engraving and red lines are for cutting. Use the same settings we used for the engraving and cutting of the book cover. Once cut, place the wood ring spacer over the male metal washer and glue it to the leather, hold it in place or use a clip to keep it in place till dried. See Photos for placement reference. (I use Starbond CA Glue and have never had any issues). 

Next, glue the engraved snap cover to the top of the spacer. (the cover and spacer are used the hide where the snap is folded over the leather closure).

The final step is to attach the female end of the snap to the front cover. Simply, just push the metal prongs of the female snap through the slats cut on the front of the book cover then apply the remaining snap washer over the prongs and bend the prongs inward to secure the snap. No need to cover these prongs as they are not visible to the outside of the book. It's a lot of steps but not really difficult with the pattern provided. 

The final step is to find a recipe card/page file that suits your needs. If the book is for yourself buy or create a PDF that you can fill in on your computer and print out your recipes to put in the book. If it's for a gift or custom order I usually print out 60 sheets of recipe templates as shown in the attached photos and put them in the book. I also give them a usb with a pdf of a recipe page blank they use on their computer.

These make perfect gifts, and I've had a lot of sales and compliments with it as well. I hope you enjoy making them.