Little books that fit in an envelope

As I was preparing for the current Bookbinding Etsy Street Team book swap, I realized that I never shared photos from the last swap, probably because it occurred just as I was getting ready to move to Nashville. Despite the delay, the book I received from Laura of PrariePeasent is just too beautiful not to share. 

The pages of this lotus fold book were made from an old illustrated children's book about a clever mother bird protecting her children. Laura used her own handmade paper, which includes little bits of daffodil petals, for the covers. I love the sweet illustrations of the little birds, and how the ribbon that wraps around the book is reminiscent of a bird's nest. 

Interestingly enough, the book that I sent off for the swap to Katie, a bookbinder and graphic designer from Indianapolis, was made using the same origami-like construction as the book I received from Laura. The theme for this swap was to send something that "fits in an envelope,"so perhaps we both thought that these little folded books would be a good option.

The little book I made for the swap was part of a series of books made from vintage maps.  About a year ago my husband picked up a 1966 Britannica Wold Atlas for free on a trip to Baltimore. There's a place called Book Thing of Baltimore that gives away used books. But there's one catch: you can only take 150,000 free books per day, per person.

The atlas was packed with outdated, quirky data colorfully displayed on dozens of political and topographical maps from around the world. I decided to repurpose the pages of the atlas into a series of sculptural books featuring the vibrant map imagery (find them in my shop here). The books unfold in a malleable array of pages to reveal a random assortment of maps and graphics. When closed, the folds return to an orderly stack. 

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A pack rat's nest

I'm sure I've mentioned a few times that I'm a bit of a pack rat.  I save scraps of leather that are too small for book covers.  I find ways to make even the tiniest bits of paper useful.  And I even save pieces of leftover thread.

I hate the feeling of running out of thread just as I'm about to finish the binding of a Coptic journal or a Japanese stab bound photo album.  And it's so much easier to tie a final knot to complete a book when you have some extra thread to work with.  So I usually cut a bit more thread than I'll need when working on a more complex binding.  But as a result, I'm left with short -- but still potentially useful -- pieces of thread.  I've been saving these bits of thread for months in a colorful nest-like pile thinking they'd be perfect for sewing little pamphlet books, and this weekend I dove into my stash and made a bunch of new booklets.

Each of the books has a different decorative paper for the cover (all coming from my box full of leftover papers, of course).  You might recognize some of these papers from previous custom orders or books in my etsy shop.  These little books are perfectly pocket-sized, and small enough to fit inside an envelope to send to a friend as a little "just because" gift.  I'll be bringing all of these little pamphlet books with me to Athens, GA this weekend for the Athens Indie Craftstravaganzaa.  And soon I'll be selling them in my etsy shop in little color-coordinated bundles.  

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Leather food chain

My table at The Handmade Market on Saturday was right across the aisle from Noelle of oelle m. She had a beautiful booth display and was selling her paintings, handbags, and embroidered pillows. (You can see more examples of her work on flickr.) But her leather necklaces are what really caught my eye. 

After staring at these gorgeous necklaces for a few hours, it dawned on me that I might have some supplies that Noelle could use.  When I make my leather journals, I often have scraps of leather left over that I just can't use.  Oftentimes these pieces of leather or suede are fairly large, but if I can't cut a rectangle from them large enough to cover my pages the leather bits will just end up in my scrap pile.  (And as my husband will tell you, I have a hard time parting with my scraps.  I have several boxes, bowls, and bags filled with scraps of paper, fabric, and leather sitting around my studio just in case I find a use for them later.) 

So I offered to send Noelle my extra bits of leather, thinking it would be a win-win for us both.  She'd have some extra materials to make new necklaces, and I'd be able to clear out my studio and send my leather to a good home.  And as we were leaving the show, she generously gave me one of her necklaces (the prettiest one, too!) to thank me.

I absolutely love my new necklace, and I've been wearing it both yesterday and today.  I received several complements on it at work today, and I got to share the story about how I got the necklace with my co-workers.  I have all of my leather scraps packaged up to send to Noelle tomorrow, and I'm glad to know I have someone to send my extra pieces to as I continue to make more leather books. 

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Win a little leather book

My journals made from a pair of red suede pants have been incredibly popular online and at art shows, and now you have a chance to win one.

Elena, one of my good friends from high school, is hosting the giveaway on her fashion blog called caffeinerd. (PS- Elena got engaged last week to an ultra-talented photographer. Congratulations to them both!) You can enter the contest right here, now through Tuesday, December 7. To enter, just leave a comment on her blog mentioning your favorite item from my etsy shop. And for three extra chances to win, you can sign up for my newsletter, follow my blog, or become a fan on facebook. Good luck!

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Submit a map, win a book

I've teamed up with the Hand Drawn Map Association this month to give away five of my handmade books. Through the end of October you can win one, but there's a catch.

You've got to draw a map.

Whether it's driving directions scribbled on a sticky note, a fanciful imaginary place, or an artful illustration, the HDMA wants to collect your maps. Everyone who sends a map this month (by post, e-mail, or digital upload) will be entered into a drawing for my books. For submission details, visit the HDMA website.

A little about each book:

I've had an oversized 1966 Britannica World Atlas taking up space in my studio since winter, when my husband picked it up for free (with me in mind) at Book Thing of Baltimore. The atlas is packed with (outdated) data colorfully displayed on dozens of maps. A large portion of the book goes beyond political and topographical maps to show socio-economic trends.

For the covers of this small, Coptic-bound journal I chose a birth rate map. I was especially inspired by the colors, which I carried through to the binding and the varied progression of paper colors inside.

Off the bat, I knew I'd also have to put to good use the map key. As you can see above, it's clipped and tucked into the inside front cover.

The giveaway features two other binding styles, including these concertinas. I made the first from a Virginia map, my current state, and the other from a vintage Minneapolis/St. Paul map, where we lived before Virginia.

Other books made from the Minneapolis map have caught attention from art show shoppers because of their gray and pink color scheme. They don't make maps like this anymore!

There are several lakes featured on the Minneapolis book, including a fun discovery: Snail Lake.

The pages of these lotus books were made from the same World Atlas. When you "open" these books, they unfold into a malleable array of pages. When closed, the folds return to an orderly stack. One of the two lotus folds features various maps of Africa, both political and topographical. The other is made from an assortment.

My collaboration is one of the first the HDMA has done in recent months, but that's not to say that founder Kris Harzinski hasn't been busy. The HDMA recently published its first book, "From Here to There," showcasing dozens of maps collected in the past three years. You can find the book on Amazon.

As always, the HDMA has been collecting and posting numerous maps. They're easy to browse and share. To get started, check out these maps submitted by my husband.

Remember, the linenlaid&felt giveaway runs to the end of October, so look around for that map you drew the other day -- or sketch a fresh one -- and send them in for your chance to win.

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Swapping recycled books

I had such a great experience participating in the last book swap with the Bookbinding Esty Street Team in May, so I was really looking forward to the August swap. While the previous one had no theme, with this one we were challenged to create books using recycled or reclaimed materials. This post on the BEST blog shows a preview of all of the books made for this swap, and everyone seemed to find interesting objects (like maps, empty boxes, and seat belts) to transform into works of art



On Friday I received my new book from a bookbinder and printmaker in South Dakota. Camille Riner made this book from leftover pieces of her relief prints. She used a piece of an old handmade string paper relief print for the cover. The abaca in the cover sheet makes it strong, and the strings from the handmade paper peek out at the bottom. The interior pages of the double pamphlet section book are made from scraps of paper as well as other repurposed prints. I am absolutely thrilled with my newest addition to my collection of handmade books.



The book I created for the book swap is a small Italian long-stitch with a leather cover. The material used for the cover comes from a pair of red suede pants I found in an Athens, Georgia thrift store. (You can see some pictures of the pants in an earlier blog post.) The red leather strap that holds the book shut was part of a zig-zag pattern on the pants. The colored papers used for the guards are from a Neenah paper swatch book of their recycled papers, and the interior papers are recycled as well.



I have made a few other books from these red suede pants over the past few months, and they have all been fairly traditional. But for this book I wanted to use some different color combination and more graphic papers. I'm quite pleased with the contrast of the teal thread against the red book cover, and I like how it coordinates with the papers inside.



I recently ordered a custom stamp from fellow Etsy seller NoteTrunk that features my logo. I've just recently started to experiment with it, and this is the first book I've used it on to "sign" my work. I stamped my logo onto a scrap of paper, signed and dated below it, and then used the sewing machine to stitch the paper onto the last page of the book. I think this worked out really well and fit with the style of the book. What do you think of the stamp, and of the stitched addition to the last page? Should I turn this into my standard style for signing my books, or would it seem out of place in a more traditional book, like a wedding guest book?



I sent my book to BEST member SeaLemon of Phoenix, Arizona. Being a graphic designer and typography nerd myself, I am a huge fan of her Helvetica books. I enjoy her use of bold colors and patterns in her work, and I especially like her shop's logo. You can also check her out on facebook and twitter.

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Storefront shopping

As I mentioned earlier, my upcycled wine gift bags are currently for sale in downtown Waynesboro, VA at the River City Art and Wine Emporium. Tony and I stopped by over the weekend to take a few photos of the bags in the storefront window. Each bag is made from the sleeve of a men's dress shirt, and I tie on a matching gift tag with a ribbon. Each gift bag is one two of a kind!

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Flashback Friday: Italian newspaper book

On July 9, 2006, Italy won the World Cup and I was there for it. And by there, I mean that I watched the game on a large outdoor screen in a jam-packed piazza in Cortona, Italy. When Italy won, hundreds of people paraded through the streets, car horns honked all night long, and red wine literally rained on the crowd. The next day, I bought several newspapers to commemorate the event.

One of these newspapers was used to make a set of two books, one for me to keep and one as a gift for Tony. We're newspaper people. Always have been, always will be. We were both editors of our high school paper, as our relationship was just beginning. And now, ten years later, we once again work for the same newspaper. Tony is the city editor of The News Virginian, and I work as the production manager.



These books aren't archival and they're not perfect, but they're intended to be unique souvenirs from a summer spent binding books and watching "football." This gift sparked an interest in collecting international newspapers for Tony, and he's since had friends bring him papers from places like France, Brazil, Canada, and Jamaica.



The book itself is fairly simple. All of the newspaper pages were torn down to size by hand, which allowed for the rough edges of the pages. The covers were essentially a collage of different photos, headlines, and graphics that I found especially intriguing. The books were bound in the Coptic style.



Since I work at a newspaper and constantly have stacks of outdated newspapers at my disposal, I've been considering making more books similar to these. I'm planning to sell my books a few craft fairs in town throughout the upcoming year, and I thought some books made from the local newspaper could be pretty popular. I even saved all of the newspapers from our record-breaking snowstorms this winter for future bookmaking purposes.

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My upcycled shirtsleeve wine bags

There's a great little shop in downtown Waynesboro that features a rotating assortment of wine and beer (especially local varieties) and unique gifts. River City Art & Wine Emporium is one of my favorite shops, and is definitely a highlight of a slowly regenerating downtown. And every other Friday, they host a wine tasting that Tony and I usually try to attend.

Earlier this week, I stopped by to meet with the owner about selling some of my work in the shop. I couldn't be happier about her enthusiastic response. She wanted me to bring by some of my work right away because she's expecting a busy weekend (the city is hosting a fly fishing festival tomorrow). I currently have two handbound photo albums and five of my sewn wine bags for sale. The wine bags are made from upcycled shirtsleeves, and I made the coordinating gift tags from extra pieces of fabric from the shirts.

Upstairs in my studio, I have a stack of about 20 cut-off sleeves ready to be turned into wine bags. And I'm looking forward to another thrift store trip to sift through racks of men's dress shirts in hopes of finding some new gems. I'll also be posting photos soon of the albums I have for sale in the shop.

River City Art & Wine Emporium

407 West Main Street, Waynesboro, VA
540-943-6418
Tuesday - Saturday: 11 am - 6 pm

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Artist Feature: erinzam

A few weeks ago, my husband and I picked out a few items from erinzam's Etsy shop. I came across her work earlier this year, and I've had some of her handmade books on my wish list ever since. When our order arrived, it certainly did not disappoint.

We ordered a Geek Book, which is made from a vintage computer card and green bar computer paper and it ties shut with a button and string closure. We were even able to choose the eyelet color used for the closure, and I think the orange looks great with the blue and gray cover. We also picked out a Long Stitch Mini Tag Book, a little book made from a manila inventory tag.

I also have to mention how fantastic the packaging was for these books. Everything was so well coordinated. The address labels and receipt (complete with hand-written thank you note) were well designed, and matched the blue bubble wrap that ensured the safe arrival of my order from California to Virgina. A variety of assorted colorful stamps added a personal touch to the envelope. And best of all, she included a pin featuring one of her illustrations that was cleverly attached to a little tag. I honestly felt like I was opening a gift when this package arrived. I think that extra handmade touch is one of the best parts about ordering items from Etsy.

I will hold on to her business card that she included. I can definitely see myself coming back to order from her shop in the future. I also really like her books with chalkboard and egg carton covers.

erinzam

Website: erinzam.com
Blog: erinzam.com/blog
Bookbinding Etsy Shop: erinzam.etsy.com
Painting Etsy Shop: studioerinzam.etsy.com
DIY Etsy Shop: droplet.etsy.com
Her husband's Etsy Shop: benben.etsy.com
Flickr: flickr.com/photos/erinzam

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The perfect fit

I bought this pair of red leather pants at a thrift store in Athens, Georgia a few years ago. I never wore them, nor did I ever intend to. (Although Tony did try them on briefly and they fit surprisingly well.) Rather, I bought the pants to use as covers for Italian Long Stitch books. Now, years after the initial purchase, I am putting these pants to use.

I am making a series of books using pieces of the suede pants as the covers, and quite perfectly, the decorative leather strips seen in the first photo have become the ties that close the books. I've recently ordered some new book binding thread, so I am planning to make more of these mini leather books in different color schemes and using different papers for the interior pages.

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