March Misc

Pirate Journals

It is no secret that I love books, journals, and pirates. It is not enough that I enjoy book making, I am also skilled at book buying! Here are some great options for all your piratin', pluderin', and journlin' needs.

1. This adorably stitched journal comes in other colors, so look through the shop for more.
2. Repurposed vintage book with fantastic cover.
3. Hand tooled leather journal here.
4. Gotta love a book made from a repurposed beer box.
5. Another lovely vintage book, perfect for display or to be rebound into a visual journal.
6. Super fun and dimensional, this would make a great Captains log.
7.Yummy handprinted leather books in many designs and can also be personalized.
8. Clean, simple, letterpressed goodness.
9. This leather Jolly Roger journal comes in 3 sizes 8x10, 6x9, and 5x6.

Be sure to check out the individual sites for more colors and options. If you need some artful inspiration as to how to use your new pirate journal, then check out The Pirates Code booklet by Juliana Coles for great pirate journal exercises. The Captain's Blog is a great place to get inspired as well!

Altered States

I'm currently signed up for Juliana Coles' online class, Altered States. First we choose a book and then go through a process of adding various tabs to connect us with our books, make it our own, but mostly it's just a lot of fun. I took this class when it debuted and had so much fun prepping the journal and started the assignments but didn't finish. So I'm back for more. I thought I would just work in my earlier book, but the the tabs were so fun I had to make another. This book really isn't anything special, I obsessed over which one to use, and then found this one at the library and just love the size, 7" x 9 3/4". It just felt right. There was no imagery to be attached too, only these cool, bold, retro chapter numbers. When adding tabs today I realized that there are 34 chapters, which is also my age. If I had known this before I would have probably tried to keep all the numbers and plan it out to make it perfect. It's so much better this way. But now my book feels potent, and I guess Juliana was right, I chose it, or it chose me for a reason.

I somehow whittled down a rather large collection of tags, tabs, papers, and misc crap to what you see here. Old crusty things mixed with bright shiny things. But my favorite just may be the old box of 4th of july poppers. There are plenty more bits and bobs in this book that will be fun to share once I get to journaling in it!

Happy Christmas!

I hope you all are having an extraordinary holiday, and are spending today with someone you love. This is a gift I made for my Mom, who always makes Christmas such a warm and rich time for me. I used a vintage ledger and rebound it with papers she would love; festive and traditional patterns, bits of flocked papers, vintagy ephemera, and then finished it off with velvet backed ribbon. There is nothing I love more than making gifts for people. Searching out just the right this or that which reminds me of them. I truly love watching someone open a gift that was made special for them and getting to experience their reaction. It is a priceless moment. Cheers to all my family and friends who support me and my creative dreams. Many thanks!

New Journals

Here is a brand new stash of journals recently made for vending at Journalfest. I am headed to Port Townsend, WA in a few weeks to take classes and sell some of my handmade books and mixed media pieces. The covers of these books are made of various papers, stitched together and filled with a signature of watercolor paper. Perfect for sketching or visual journaling.

I did it!

I have been back from Artfest for at least a couple or more weeks, but am finally making time to post about it. It was a fantastic experience, spent with great friends from all over the place. I look forward to these times to reunite with Artfest friends and also members of my Pirate Brethren (you know who you are)! It always goes by so fast, and I was still prepping to vend at Artfest for the first time, so I missed out on some activities, and hanging out with people as much as I would have liked. This was my first time selling my wares and it was just fantastic. Thank you all for the support before and during the show, buying my goods, and all the encouraging words. It was great to have people ask if I was teaching, and if they could buy my stuff online. All in due time! Many of you asked if I have an ETSY site, which I do plan on getting up and running, so please check back. It will have the same types of items, handmade artist journals, repurposed books, hand printed goodies, mixed media art, and reproductions of my journal pages. In other good news, I will be vending again at Journalfest this fall, so if you are going, please check out what I have to offer! I have a passion for visual journaling, and a lot of what I do and make reflects that. More to come... eye opening classes that I took at Artfest!

Back from Journalfest!

Iv'e been back from Journalfest for about a week now, and I am still basking in 3 full days of play in my journals and time spent with new and old friends. I took two days of workshops with my friend, Juliana Coles, and as usual, it did not disappoint. My first class was Expressive Drawing which was outstanding. I love to draw, and it was great to learn new techniques and ways to incorporate them into my regular journal pages.

The next class was mapping Me with Orly Avineri. This class was wonderful and relaxed, and it was a joy to turn off my brain and just take it one step at a time. I loved the guided format, not knowing the end result, but trusting that each step would get me there.

Finally came Juliana's Book of the Night class, which she is also offering online! It was so much fun working on black backgrounds and using all my spooky images. To top it all off was the journaling/masquerade party. It was a fantastic time of costumes and music and playing in our books! I am missing everyone and am so happy that I had the opportunity to sign up at the very last minute.

P.S: Thanks Susan for some of the photos I poached to post here!

Inside the journals

Here are a few inside shots of the Greek journal pages. The books are a combo of 90 lb watercolor paper and sewn scraps of ephemera. A 50/50 mix, so there is space to paint, draw, write and collects bits of things. The bottom image is a patterned transparency over an engraving of the goddess Athena.

Getting ready for Greece!

Can you imagine how excited I am, knowing that I am headed back to Greece very soon. My soul home. Needless to say, journals are needed for the trip. And if you know me, you know that I had to make something special for it. Since my mom is going on this amazing journey with me, and since my husband is turning 40 while we are there, journals were made for all!

Chad's is the grey book with a little Japanese influence. Mine has the oversized pattern with the periwinkle ribbon. Any my mom's is the light blue one with gorgeous coral ribbon. All books were made under the influence of many set-in-Greece films and Mary Ann Moss's online class, Remains of the Day. If you don't know this already, and you should, she is a rockstar. Always inventing new, industrious ways of making things, and making them fun and beautiful along the way. I am quite sure we will do these books justice on our journey. More to come!

Painted Journal

Here is a little book of loveliness. The pages are painted using a technique from LK Ludwig. So simple, yet so fun and the results are so rich. The binding is simple, but satisfying. All in all, the piece looks complex, while having been deceptively easy and tremendously fun to make.