new book pictures

here's the promised pictures of the new belgian binding i've been working on. my first batch consisted of 10 books and as of last night, i have 2 left to bind.




i also am working on some simple packaging for my books. the small sleeve is a neutral color, since the books themselves are so bright and colorful. i ordered some japanese masking tape to add to the packaging and i'm really excited about it! if you haven't heard of japanese masking tape, take a look at this site. (it's mostly in japanese.) the tape is made by an 80+ year old japanese company that originally started producing fly paper. by popular customer demand, they created a ton of bright festive colored masking tape from japanese paper. it's a bit transparent and is apparently a favorite among artists. i'm looking forward to receiving my order soon! below is a pic of the current packaging idea. i am planning to put strips of colored tape behind the info sticker to make it pop!

sorry it's a little blurry - it was taken with my phone

thats all for now. if you have any comments or suggestions on the packaging, please feel free to tell me!

fall

this morning my car showed me that it was 49 degrees. ugh. a week ago, i was in 90+ degree weather. so as august slowly comes to a close, the outdoors is transitioning into the season of fall. which means, dreary, drizzly, rainy, cool & crisp weather. since i try to be optimistic, it also means warm sweaters, lots of hot lattes, and craft show season!

i worked on the secret belgian binding over the weekend and am pleased with how the books turned out. the books are 5.75" square - a good size for a bag, not too big for a purse. i'll get a few pictures up soon. i'm also going to work on another smaller size for this binding, partially because i would like the variation and partially due to the fact that i have a ton of paper left over from cutting down the book block that i can't use for my other books. and i hate wasting paper. i'm a paper pack rat. i save so many scraps, its getting a little ridiculous. but i always think "oh i can make something out of this!" and some pretty cool creations have come from it.

i'm also getting some books together for a new store that wants to sell my products! i got back in touch with my 4th grade teacher and learned that she now runs a store in her hometown. she really liked my work and wants to carry some of it in her shop. i'm SO thrilled! plus, it's wonderful to have reconnected with someone who had such a positive influence on me.

more soon :)

back from vacation

just got back from a whirlwind vacation to the east coast! what a great time! i met bff's family for the first time and they were amazing. everyone was so welcoming, straight forward, and full of life. normally i get pretty shy and quiet when it comes to crowds of people, but i was completely at ease.

the weather was phenomenal and the temperature hung around the 90's. i got a slight tan and managed to avoid getting sunburned. we hung around the pool about 98% of the time since it was so hot.

so every year around this time, a rib cook off takes place - and this is serious business. secret recipes and ingredients are guarded with fervor and cooking teams break out their creative side with props & t-shirts.


we didn't have a whole lot of time to prepare a theme and had an idea at the last possible second:


overall the trip was a complete success. things went better than i imagined - it was great to be accepted for who i am. i think the only drawback was that the trip was so short.

p.s. the puppy had fun at his best friends' house and got to play to his heart's content. i think he's bored being an only "child" now.

new binding and puppy time

over the weekend, i worked on a new book binding, called the secret belgian binding, to see if it would be something i'd like to incorporate into my ever growing inventory. it apparently was traced back to the 14th - 16th centuries and was lost in time for a few hundred years. it's awesome - a hard back book that opens flat, is decorative and interesting, and is sturdy! i made a mock-up just to see if i liked the binding & if my measurements were accurate, so i'll wait to post pictures until i make some with actual nice looking covers instead of just book board. i'll work on a handful of them this week and show you the results.

my puppy and i have been spending more time together outdoors this past week and it's been a lot of fun. i'm not very comfortable with him being off leash. i'll call him and he'll look at me, process the command, and then go the opposite direction. however, he is getting better and i am gaining confidence in him. all of the alone time is having a positive effect - he is listening to me better. a work in progress.

googly eyes