gift set!

we had so many people to thank for helping with our wedding and we wanted to give gifts that were personal & heartfelt. and me being so picky probably didn't help the gift choosing process...so, naturally, i decided to make the gifts.

for our parents, i made photo album box sets in our wedding colors - red & aqua! my parents set had aqua bookcloth & blue unryu paper inside the box. the unryu paper was SO amazing to work with - has lots of inclusions of threads & felt like fabric! hubby's parents set had fire engine red bookcloth & tomato red unryu paper inside the box. we gave hubby's parents their set during the rehearsal dinner, so i unfortunately didn't get pictures of it...

box cover

inside of box

box with album inside

box & album covers

the sets turned out beautifully - probably the most difficult sets i've done yet because they were so large (9" x 12") and the materials were much more challenging than past projects. hope you enjoyed the photos!

box sets

back in february, i had a meeting with a nice couple who was getting married, the mother of the bride, & a friend of their family. they wanted to photo album & box sets for the wedding photos. the bride & groom picked out paper & materials based on their wedding colors and the mother of the bride chose drastically different, but complimentary colors for her set. here are the results....enjoy!

bride & groom's set

box and matching photo album

gold inside of box

inside of box with photo album

mother of the bride's set

tangerine & gray bookcloth box & photo album

dark orange inside of box covered in gray lace

inside of box with album

website update!

i finally got around to updating the Tama Press website! i had oodles of pictures that i'm still working through - a lot of work cropping and adjusting some lighting in photoshop. i would love to learn to take pictures that need NO EDITING WHATSOEVER. that would be rad.

there are lots of new books - all different kinds - japanese stab, secret belgian, address, blanket stitch, and more! in addition, i also posted pics of some small boxes i made here. they have a lid that flips open with partitions on the inside for your treasures.



the traditional photo album section is up here. these were matching sets of an album & box i made for shows.


please visit the website and look for the little "new!" signs under the photos.

book binder's dream shop

i was searching for a source for some italian photo albums i use, since my regular vendor will be out of stock for quite some time, which means i'm now seriously considering binding my own albums. i originally started using these text blocks (which is just the inside of the album, no covers or anything) because they save me a lot of time (which means $$) and i can pass that on to my customers. but since i hate it when shops are out of stock and i don't like being dependent on someone else for this type of thing, i'm going to figure out how to make one of these beauties. in the meantime, i have to hunt down supplies, crunch some numbers, and make some prototypes....

as i was searching for some other options, i came across a website called Talas - and was thrilled!! this shop is a book binder's dream!! there are tons of options for book cloth & other supplies, lots of specialty items & equipment, not to mention their prices are comparable or even cheaper than my current suppliers. OMG. i am desperately restraining myself from buying everything i see on the site. i will do the responsible thing and order a couple of sample books before splurging on massive quantities of supplies.

if you have any interest in book binding, this is the place to go.

custom orders

just the other day, i was contacted for a couple of custom orders! i'm so pleased that people are looking me up after the craft show season.

the first order will be to repair a beloved cookbook. i've never done any repairs on books before (and i told the customer this) and she sweetly told me that she knew i didn't have experience in this type of work but she has faith in my abilities after seeing my books at the shows. how awesome is that?? so i'll be picking up the book at the end of the week to take a look at it and get a handle on what exactly the project entails. maybe i'll do a before & after photo shoot for it!

the second order will be a custom made dvd holder. i've only done a similar project once for a cd holder, but this will be quite a bit more intense. i had a zillion questions for the customer and now have some more details & direction for the project. oooo i can't wait to get started on this!

this weekend i'll get to work on finishing a photo album & box set order, get my studio cleaned up, and dive into a whole new round of orders...not to mention attempt to get my etsy store up and running. wish me luck!

custom orders

finished my second round of custom orders yesterday! two small address books & one large address book, plus a photo album with a box, which is still in process. the box set is my last custom order of the year and it's turning out quite nice so far. i'm using a japanese paper with hues of green & gold, for the covers of the box and the album:

thanks to papermojo for the pic

then the inside will have two different neutral colors of mulberry paper with a tissue lace layer flecked with silver & gold over that. it'll be gorgeous!

i'm looking forward to get this last order done so i can do some serious cleaning. my studio looks like a bomb of paper exploded inside of it. and the mess has flooded into my office (aka storage room of random boxes). one of my goals is to have the studio & office organized and in working order by the new year. which includes moving the art stuff that has also invaded the living room. and kitchen table.

wish me luck! i'm going to need it.

crafts weekend at the museum, part 2

for once, i actually remembered to bring bff's real camera to the show (with a full battery). here are some photos of my space:

from left to right...all 14 feet of table

from right to left (there was a wall a few yards in front of the tables so i couldn't get a straight on shot)

card stand (thanks to mom's garden) and linoleum block printed card sets - created from my drawings

2 box sets with matching photo albums, lined journals, small handmade boxes

guest books, address books, secret belgian binding books

secret belgian binding books, post bound photo albums, blanket stitch books

japanese stab binding books in 3 different sizes

it's pleasant to look back at these show pictures & realize "WOW i made a lot of stuff!" the two big treasures from this show were the box sets i made. i honestly thought that people would look at them and go "ooooh" and then i'd take them home at the end of the show. to my surprise & delight, they both sold! in addition to that, i had a custom order for another set! i'll post some photos of those sets soon.

custom gift box & album

i just finished up a custom photo album & matching monogrammed box and it turned out great! it is a 30 page photo album (landscape orientation) that will be given as a baby gift. the majority of the paper and book cloth had one of my favorite shades of blue. here are the results:

box cover with hand carved linoleum block printed "C"

photo album (pool bookcloth & plum blossom chiyogami)

inside of photo album - glassine cover pages so photos don't stick

box & album together

photo album & inside of box

time is really flying by and i've been busy working away on the inventory for the upcoming bad girls of the north show, november 6 & 7. 18 days left and 45 books to go, along with about 300 cards to print. whew.

here's the puppy, talking back as usual :) i didn't teach him that.

website update

yay the website is updated! so here's a quick run down of the new stuff:

- josephine's website is now listed on the contact page.
- the book pages has lots of new pictures!
- check out the new blanket stitch books
- small, medium & large japanese stab binding books
- post bound photo album pics are finally up!

medium japanese stab binding books!

large japanese stab binding books!

enjoy the updated website!

new book pictures!

i'm about halfway through editing book photos for the website. whew. here's a few collages of the new books:

small books 3.5" x 5" - perfect size for a purse!

blanket stitch books 5.5" x 8.5" - open flat for writing & drawing

and last but not least: post bound photo albums!

i'm SO happy with how this last batch of albums turned out. i'm using new book cloth and i love it! it's easy to work with and comes in tons of bright, cheerful colors.

back to work!