“Handmade gifts are the most meaningful.” I’ve been preaching this to my kids every Christmas morning since the days when they gave glitter-covered popsicle stick sculptures and finger-paint originals. Believing my own words, each Christmas I fondly place handmade gifts under the tree. My first journal was lovingly made for my daughter, an aspiring novelist. I enjoyed making hers so much that I decided to make one for my son. He's hardly an avid writer, but loves to hike and camp. In his journal, he keeps a log of his adventures. The following year I started making journals as gifts for friends. By autumn of 2011, my daughter and a girlfriend had convinced me to open this shop.

I love the idea of a book being read and having a great life. Then, it comes into my shop to be prepared for another life. That's when it is reborn as your own creation. Because my books are handcrafted as one-of-a-kind works of art, I love that anything you imagine or draw on the pages will take on a special aura. It’s also comforting to know that it’s not necessary to write anything inside. They are pretty just standing on a bookshelf!

Now, I admit….not all our family Christmas gifts are handmade – I’m not THAT good. On Christmas of 2011, a Kindle Fire made its way into our home. It’s arrival got me thinking about the hardbacks I have been recreating. Maybe there is more to Hardback Heaven than I realize. As the written word becomes more of a rarity, perhaps it is necessary to have a place where the good books can go.