Paper Engineering

At PBI, I also had a class with Carol Barton, doing paper engineering...otherwise known as pop-up and moveable books. Carol is, of course, the queen of pop-ups. Carol has some books about making pop-ups, The Pocket Paper Engineer Volumes 1, 2, and 3.

We spent our time making about a million different pop-up structures (ok, I'm exaggerating, but only a little bit). We started with the basics, like little pop-up squares and triangles that are very common and often used in cards and accordion books, etc. and we worked our way through all their variations, moved on to more elaborate props and platforms that can be built up higher and higher, and even did a few 3-D shapes by the end of it.

My favorite of the single shapes, the star (good thing I wrote "star" on this sample so I'd know what it was...)


Also really enjoyed making these little accordions...


And a sample of combining different shapes and structures...


Carol was a great teacher, be sure to grab any chance of taking a class with her. And thank you, Carol, for helping me find my gate at the airport as I rushed to catch my flight!

Book Doctor

So I'm at PBI (although my luggage took the scenic route and arrived two days later than I did). One of the classes I have been taking is book repair with Ann Frellsen. The focus has been on quick treatments for damaged books, so that they will withstand continued use (in other words, not for rare or ancient books requiring specailized detailed treatments).

We used Japanese tissue to repair holes in pages and to reattach a page that has been cut out. We also did tipping in of pages, endpaper replacement, spine replacement, end cap reinforcement, and all sorts of other things in between. She was very good at showing us what needed to be done for each of the books we were working on since they are all different and some required treatments that others did not. These are not very exciting things to photograph since the finished work is not very obvious - or it shouldn't be very obvious!

One book that I worked on was this lovely orange book.
[Edit May 30]
The most obvious problem with this book was the dirt as it had been stored in a very dusty area for a long time. The photos I had here originally didn't really convey the magnitude of the cleaning that was involved so I've removed those in favor of this one that just shows a closer view. The front cover (on the right) and part of the spine have been cleaned. There were some little pen marks, scratches, and stains that didn't change, but the overall dirt layer has been removed. The back cover (left) hasn't been cleaned. Click on the photo to make it bigger if you want to see more detail.


[end Edit]

Also with this book, I reinforced the head cap, cleaned old adhesive from the textblock spine then re-rounded and backed it. The hinges of the case were weak, so they were reinforced and then new endpapers were attached and the whole thing was put back together.
Pretty exciting, eh?

Another book for PBI

Each year at PBI, there is an auction to raise money for scholarships. I've made a journal for the auction, specifically an OxBow-theme journal, since that's where PBI is being hosted this year.


The last time I went to OxBow, I brought home a booklet about the college which included some photos of the campus. I tore the photos from the booklet and tore a few strips from a Michigan map showing the Saugatuck region, and pieced them together on the covers. The endpapers are hand-marbled by me, and there is a folder pocket sewn into the textblock, made from the OxBow booklet as well. Also includes the bookmark, made from an OxBow information card.

Next week it's PBI

Next week I'll be going to Michigan for Paper and Book Intensive. I'll be taking classes from John Townsend, Carol Barton, and Ann Frellsen. I'm super excited about it and can't wait to share my work and experiences on my blog in the coming weeks.

I made myself a journal to take with me this year. The cover is Suminagashi marbling that I made at PBI in 2008. The pages are a mixture of papers, most of which were acquired at PBI in 2008 and 2009. There are also folders and envelopes sewn into the text block.

Flip Books on a rainy afternoon

My kid came home from school today with a little kit for making a flip book. I don't think he was prepared for my level of excitement. It was, in fact, touted as a "cartoon creator" and the packaging and instruction sheet never used the term flip book. I suppose, a cartoon creator kit sounds more exciting to 6-year-olds! I showed him a flip book that I got from Green Chair Press and then we attempted to make a few of our own. So now we have a stick-man who drops his hat and picks it up, and a rocket circling Saturn. When I have time, I'll definitely want to try a more refined flip book someday!

Mixed Paper Journals

The only thing better than writing in a handmade journal with mixed papers, is making a journal with mixed papers. I love making these because it gives me a chance to sort and fondle my hoard of paper. These small leather journals are each made with an assortment of papers including different kinds of lined paper, decorative papers, handmade paper, some marbled papers, various colours of plain paper, and even a few maps and illustrated pages from an old story book.

The Illustrated Accordion

The Illustrated Accordion is an exhibit at the Kalamazoo Book Arts Center Gallery in Kalamazoo, Michigan (kalbookarts.org). The exhibit will open May 6th, continuing until May 27th. I have a miniature accordion, titled "Piano Generations" that is part of this exhibit.

All the work in this exhibit has been photographed and can be viewed on Flickr. But be sure to check it out "in real life" if you happen to be in Michigan!

"Piano Generations" is a limited edition artist's book, hand-marbled paper on the covers, ink jet printed piano keys, family snapshots in pockets. Limited edition of 10.

Halifax Crafters Spring market - this weekend!

For my local readers in Halifax NS and nearby, this is going to be a fabulous Spring market - if you're in the mood for a little/lot handmade goodness this weekend. I'll be there with my work!

Happy Earth Day

So I've really blown my New Year's Resolution this month but let me get back on track today, celebrating Earth Day, with some journals I made using all recycled and repurposed materials. These are hardcovers, each with an exposed spine and chain stitch binding.


The paper for the pages in these journals is 100% recycled. The board used for the covers is all scrap board that would have been destined for land fill: chip board, eska board, and some pressed cardboard from the back of a large sketchbook. The decorative papers on the covers are pictures torn from magazines. Each cover image is created by combining two different pictures that were torn into strips. Click the photo to make it bigger if you want a better look at the images.

Suminagashi marbling this time

Yesterday, I pulled out my supplies for doing Suminagashi marbling. A very different experience than Ebru marbling, and very different results too. I really should practice this more often - I haven't tried it for a long time. So rather than paint and carageenan size, Suminagashi uses ink and water. There is not a lot of information about Japanese marbling available, but there is a book by Anne Chambers that you might be able to get if you are looking for detailed information.


A couple of the results -

What to do during Earth Hour?

Our household participated in Earth Hour today by turning off all the lights, computers, and TVs between 8:30 and 9:30pm. What to do, when you would rather be bookbinding? I planned ahead, made sure that my solar-powered book light was charged, and spent the hour reading some Szirmai.


This book light is a handy gadget - check it out on Useful Things. (The bendy wire can be argumentative but the light is good and stays charged for a full earth hour and more.)

Happy Earth Hour! What did you do during earth hour?

Some new marbled papers

A few of my favorites from my last marbling session. A bird wing pattern: A waved chevron: Spanish wave on stones: The thistle pattern:

A new travel journal

I finally finished this book for myself. It's my 2010 travel journal. As I've explained before, my travel journals are made after the fact - rather than during my travels as most people would do it. Some previous examples of my personal travel journals are here and here.

We didn't make any big trips last year, just a bunch of small road trips, camping, etc. All the papers that I collected from those little trips, tickets, maps, etc are incorporated. Some maps and brochures were folded to make folders and the smaller items are tucked into the folders. The front cover has a small clear plastic container embedded and it contains a shell and some dried wild rose petals, which we collected at a campground. I used a sheet of my marbled paper on the front cover - a favorite that I had been saving.

Marbling a bouqet pattern

I just spent a few days doing some marbling so I took some pictures of the different steps for making the bouquet pattern - which is one of my favorite patterns when it turns out well. There are actually four different patterns created in the process. These photos are taken of the paint floating on the carageenan size, so the colours look strange, but hopefully you can get an idea of what's happening. Click on the pictures to see them larger.

First, the stone pattern.


Then a gel git (or git gel... the jury is out on which is the best way to say that).


Then it becomes a Nonpareil.


And finally the nonpareil is transformed into the bouquet.


Here it is, printed and rinsed and drying in the sink.


And after it has dried completely.


All for the love of a single sheet of paper!

Something Odd

Rats, I have broken my resolution already - which was to post on my blog at least once per week. I will try to make up for it at some point! I made an odd little accordion book from a feather mask - this is part of a February challenge with the Trans Canada Etsy Team - the theme being "something odd". Visit the TCET blog and vote for your favorite odd item!