Rivets, eyelets, and similar fasteners have always fascinated me, and seemed like the kind of thing you would need complicated pinching tools to install. It turns out that all you need is a tiny “anvil” (really just a metal disc with a depression in it) and a “punch” (a tiny metal rod with the yin to the anvil’s yang). It takes some practice to get a nice join; once you master it, though, it’s very, very pleasing.
I used my newfound skill to make a coptic-stitched book this afternoon, installing six eyelets in each of the covers:
