a zine is born

I was surfing youtube earlier this evening in search of tutorials for making little pendant books. I missed out on the swap, but there's no rule says I can't make one. The seed has been planted but nothing has come to fruition on that front just yet. Leaves have sprouted on that plant though. There's a tiny book block drying under the ceramic tiles on the shelf in the hallway. Cover is made. End papers ready. Just waiting till tomorrow to put it all together. I want that page block good and dry! I sewed it together while talking to T on the phone earlier in the evening.
I came across this tutorial to make an instant book. One sheet of paper, a book with space on eight pages. I have done five sheets of paper since I got out of bed at 2 this afternoon. It is now almost 4 am the next day.
Here is the proto type for the zine. My first attempt. I started the zine round about 10pm or so.



I just grabbed a sheet of book text out the box on the shelf beside my desk and folded it as the video said. My book is a bit smaller than an ATC for this page, but bigger than the next ones. This page of text came from the book Our Game, that I have altered extensively. This was the last one in that box so I needed some other text pages.
 
I really am green with envy of all the love in the air in February. 8 February is a day I no longer celebrate, but remember every year with a bit of sadness. Love drifted to another realm leaving me on my own to fend. Love is everywhere and I do feel a great deal of it in my life, but that special love of Valentine's fame, that love escapes me. So I envy you all the intimacy of love. I am as green as a toad!
 
I could have used copy paper, junk mail, brown paper bag, any ol' kind of paper my heart desired. I wanted text because there is something quite pleasing to my muse to color over words. I've no clue what the heck this story on the following pages is about. I didn't read the text.
 
There's another swap over at AFA that deals with zines. I believe that is where I found the link to the video actually. I haven't joined that swap. Probably won't because my zine doesn't adhere to the rules in that swap. But I love the idea of a zine!
 
Why the LOVE 'ZINE? Why not? Everybody needs a little love. We all know of it. I must admit that not all of these designs are my ideas. I troll google images for inspiration. The color pallet is my own. I started off sticking to a few colors for the first page then it progressed to a whole pile of markers by the last one. That last page has a color on it that none of the other pages has.

I trolled quoteland.com for love quotes that seemed appropriate.

Each is a little zine in its own right, but all go together to form a whole as well.

I still have 2 sheets folded for two more issues for volume 1.

We ventured into tatoo art somehow and these emerged. I love the little heart with wings!

I was wrong. There are two colors on this last page that are not on any of the other pages. For the first person who can tell me correctly which two colors those are, I will send you your own zine based on anything you want. Just leave me a comment with a way to get ahold of you in case you have guessed correctly.

These pages make impressive scans but this is what your little book will look like when it is folded.

You don't even need a pair of scissors to make this instant book!

I am going to sew all issues of volume 1 together into a little book. I've got a digital file of each page and can make copies of it so the original will end up on my own bookshelf with the rest of the little books I collect.

I'll be back soon with pictures of the little book in the making. It will have a jump ring so it can be worn as a necklace if one would so choose. I'm still working on what kind of closure it will have. It needs one though.

You all be good to one another. Spread some love around this month....do it on a grander scale than normal! Peace, friends!

831

books, clay and atcs

Hello People!

I'm clipping right along with the herd on the 365 Project. I am so thankful it includes all kinds of art this year!!!

I'm now done playing with paper and string for a bit. I need to find some more string to finish sewing together the laptop bag. I'm thinking some candlewicking thread I have will do the job, just need to drag it all out from the corner in the cutting room and get busy on it. Perhaps there will be a finished laptop bag the next time I make a post....

For now the cutting, folding, linking and sewing of magazine pages has come to a stand still. It remains in the corner atop the basket of glue in the cutting room. The candlewicking yarn sits on the chair beside me awaiting the needle's company.

This is the Blue Bird of Happiness graph paper journal I made in exchange for some book cloth. The covers are made from some sort of fiber board that I believe was once the back of  photo frames. I covered it with torn text from a book I destroyed when I culled the shelves back before Thanksgiving. The bird is done in acrylics atop the book pages. The inside and out of the back cover has layer of blue acrylic as well. It had graph paper and kid's writing paper for its 100 or so pages. It is, if memory serves me correctly, 8 x 5.5 inches. I sent it off to Canada this afternoon. Sewn together with orange embroidery thread in the coptic stitch.

I've been on book making spree. Owl book is made from the cover of a children's reading textbook from 1949. I painted them a shiny green with acrylics and assembled the owl out of construction paper before putting on details with a sharpie. I'ts sealed with Modge Podge. It has about 70 plain copy paper pages. Sewn together in the coptic stitch with orange embroidery thread.

I sewed the page block in this book a few weeks ago. I've no idea what that stitch is called...it produces a nice little book binding though. There are 10 signatures of manilla paper....100 pages. It's sewn with regular sewing thread and glued together and taped and and...it makes a great little book! It is the cover of this one that was giving me so much trouble. There were three attempts to make the cover before this one came about. It ended up being an old checker board covered in blue construction paper. It begs to be embellished.

I dragged out the polymer clay to finish a chunky page (which we have no picture of! I sent it on its journey this afternoon....dang!). I needed a charm for the danglies and it's always better to make a few things with polymer clay than to drag it all out and make only one thing.

They all started out as a lump of plain white sculpey. I left them in the oven a tad too long is why they are the color some of them are. I sent the hearts and the skull off with a package this afternoon. The smallest coffee cup went out with the chunky page we haven't a picture of. The other coffee mug will end up as a chunky charm somewhere down the line.

I needed to draw.

Norman

ATC

markers on cardstock

Dinner

ATC

markers on cardstock

Strawberry

ATC

markers on cardstock

Doctor Blue

ATC

markers on cardstock

That's all for today. Be good to one another!

Peace

831

Art and Some Chatter...

I've been cutting, folding, intertwining and sewing magazine papers. I saw those purses made out of candy and chip wrappers. Why not magazine paper as well? I have yet to make a bag out of this 'fabric' but that is in the works. This technique is terribly time consuming!

woven paper waster basket

The bottom of the container is a disk of magazine pages folded into sticks and then coiled, held together with hot glue. This one is about 13 inches tall by 11 inches in diameter.

printed circuit sheet wallets

these are made from the printed circuit sheets found in a keyboard. They're held together with clear packing tape. Very fun and easy to make! I knew I wanted to save those sheets long before I found a use for them!

I'm still looking for other things to make out of them. Dead keyboards are a dime a dozen! Dead keyboards also give keys. I have yet to figure out what to do with those but something will eventually present itself!

Blue Man

ATC

markers on cardstock

Parasol

ATC

markers on cardstock

she's not the prettiest belle at the ball!

Poker

ATC

markers on cardstock

There will be more art another day!

I'm right on schedule with the 365 Project so that's going well!

You all be good to one another!

Peace

831

weaving, ATCs, a chunky page in the making and some chatter as usual

hey everyone!

More art to show for my efforts. I really need to get busy on those bowls and finish them. They aren't very interesting at the moment! Big deal they're made from 45s! Purple bowls aren't all that cool!

The muse has been in attendance, that's for sure! And we are quite fond of our markers in this marathon drawing period.

There are two ATCs sitting on the desk that you won't get to see till the next post. That's how busy we've been with the markers.

Enjoy the show!

Morning Coffee

4x4 in drawing

markers on cardstock

This isn't really a chunky page yet...it's just a piece of thin cardstock with a drawing on it! One day it will graduate to Chunky Page status.

H

Altered Key

I forgot to show you this one with the last post. Or I may be losing my mind again it IS in the last post....either way...here it is. It's much nicer in person! This one too hangs on my fridge!

Sal

ATC

markers on cardstock

Sal is drawn from a photograph I found with a news article about a cat in Boston who was called to jury duty. Sal's owners listed him on thier census forms as a family pet but he got a jury summons just this past week or so....the courts don't seem to care if Sal is a cat or not...he is to show up in court! His owner says if that mess isn't straightened out by the time he is to show up in court, he will do just that! This picture really looks little like the photograph, but I am pleased with it nonetheless! Sal will be heading to California in a few days.

Magazine Paper Weaving

6 inches by 10 inches

Do you remember the paper chains you made when you were in high school? The ones made from gum wrappers? That's what this is. Magazine paper cut to a rectangle 4.5 inches by 2 inches and then folded and interlocked with one another. then it's sewn together to form a mat anysize you desire! I first seen the technique when I ran across some purses made of it. I couldn't find a tutorial to teach me how to sew the chains together until the other day I ran across this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iApNE_g8E8&feature=related

This is part 2 but if you already know how to fold and link the chains this is the one you want. If you don't know how to fold and link paper chains, then watch the first video. I don't recall just how well this girl teaches one to do that, so if she doesn't do it for you, then search around on youtube, there are many videos over there on this technique.

I cut my magazine pages from magazine that had similar weight papers. I used the guillotine cutter. Folding the links is a very boring, mindless task. One can easily fold them without having to pay attention too much. I watched many many episodes of Chicago Hope and a number of documentaries on hulu while folding the links. The results are quite impressive. And quite heavy considering they're nothing more than paper and string.!  You'll need to make a special needle for this sewing. An old plastic card, credit card sort, a pair of scissors and something to make a hole large enough for your thread, in the end of your new needle. Cut the credit card just under half an inch wide, taper one end of the slice you've cut from the short end of the credit card and put a hole in the opposite end. Thread your needle and you are ready to sew together a mat of paper chain! If your needle is too wide, trim a bit off.

It is very easy to learn and to do. It is a very time consuming project though, I will warn you that!

Rainy Day

ATC

markers on cardstock

People seem to be creeping into my art at the moment. I need practice on people so this is a good thing! I'm OK with this one. It's by no means perfect but it was fun to draw and I learned that yellow coats are ugly! The more folks in the crowd I draw, the more they'll actually start looking like folks!

Jack

ATC

markers on cardstock

I like how the middle of the pillow turned out....Jack ain't such a great looking cat! Hey, he's traveling on though! I forget just where he's going...Oklahoma? Florida? Not sure...could be Oregon! Someone fell in love and off he's going to join them!

That's all I got today people!

I'll be starting another Books I've Read list. I have yet to read any books completely through this year. I didn't make my goal of 50 for last year either! That's the goal again this year....50. Third year for it must be charm, yes? I didn't hit in 2009 either. I'm working on the first book.

Go get your hugs! Call someone you've not talked to for a long time!

Be good to one another! It matters!

Peace, my friends!

831

keys, flames of tape, an update, coffee and perhaps a bit of chatter---

I've been arting!

 I made these keys shortly before Christmas. The dog magnet is my personal favorite. It now hangs on my refrigerator. I gave a bunch of these to my family for Christmas.

Each of them has a key with the magnet attached to it. You can't see the key on a few of them, but it's there.

flamingo is a button. the gemstones are polished stones of varying varieties. dog is a charm, dog tile is from a Scrabble Sentence game. little wooden clothespin.

I had fun acquiring the magnets. I went out to the burnt house and got a basketful of Brook clip magnets and took them to the garage. I stuck them to the vise by the magnet on the backside and whacked em with the hammer. The biggest damn hammer I could find! One or two whacks was all it took and that magnet popped right out of there! Some of the clips had more than one magnet. I crushed a few of the first magnets cause I was a little heavy handed with the hammer. Didn't know I was that strong! lol....I smashed, in two sessions, round about 60 magents. Still have a case and half at least. That's about 750 of them. No need to go buy magnets for the keys with a supply of strong little magnets just sitting there hold one another together in that box. Have you priced magnets lately?

disk is fabric paper with rusty washers around the outer edge, satin tassel...fish is fabric paper, lizard a button, wooden star, gemstones

flower is printed heavy chipboard, leaves are ironed easter grass....tiny gears from an electronic of some kind, copper wire, fabric paper...this one hangs on my fridge too.

blue one is a wooden disk with gemstones and glitter paint with fabric for her dress, bit of lace and another gemstone. 

the other two just have gemstones...

Lola being nosey. She's after that swiss roll there by the markers.

This cat was a holy terror a few nights ago!

She goes a bit stir crazy when she can't go outside for a few days. It snowed. Snowed a bit...four - five inches or so. It was cold! COLD! She didn't need to be outside.

She made a mess of a cup of pens, pencils and things of that nature by trying to jump up on a skinny little shelf. Pens, cup ...all on the floor, scattered! Then later she dragged out a bunch of ribbons and such out the drawer I left open a few inches....holy terror!

She did get a bite or two of that swiss roll. She's got a sweet tooth.

I made this duct tape wallet since the last post. It was surprisingly easy to make! Took me about an hour, maybe! I always forget to look at the clock when I start a project. I get halfway through it and wonder how long I've been at it...didn't take terribly long though.

I gave it to my nephew. He was thrilled with it. Especially the flames!

On the to-do list is a wallet made from the printed circut boards from keyboards. Should be interesting. Nephew thought the idea very cool!

I did a bit of drawing today. I got up at 4 am, made coffee in my new coffe pot for the first time and got busy making the charm on the chunky book down the line here. Then I drew the pictures. All day I've been drawing when I haven't been driving down the road or eating or playing a game or two of collapse.

The muse was PRESENT!

A Green Cap

ATC

18 Jan 2011

markers on cardstock

avocado

ATC

18 Jan 2011

markers on cardstock

Bird Watching

ATC

18 Jan 2011

markers on cardstock

Horse Joanne

ATC

18 Jan 2011

markers on cardstock

Red Hat Bird #2

ATC

markers on cardstock

This was the first ATC of the morning. I was putting black marker  along the edge of the card of #1 and the marker slipped off the edge and put a black streak across #1's beak....dang! had to redraw this orange guy so he could journey to Finland along with his damaged twin. The first guy was much cuter in my thinking.

The little cup at the end of the string is made of polymer clay and the blue is marker. I made a fish along with the cup while my morning coffee was brewing and drew out the picture while they were baking. This is a chunky page, 4x4 inches.

I haven't taken a picture of the fish as of yet. It needs painted before it's finished.

I broke my crop-a-dile a week or so ago. I should have known better than to think it would ACTUALLY punch a hole in the handle of that spoon. I gave it all I had and the spoon went one way while the chunk of pot metal from the tool went another. Brother glued it back together with JB Weld and let it set for three or four days. I used it on this chunky page this morning to punch those holes for the rivets. I won't be trying to punch holes in spoons anytime soon with it, but it works great still on chipboard.

That crop-a-dile would have been a much sturdier tool had it been made of steel instead of potmetal. Granted, it's pretty strong and it does have its limits, but it would have handled that spoon handle easily had the body of the tool been made of steel...like pliers and hammers .....it was a mighty pricey tool to be made from potmetal.

I was in a funk last week. I was arting, just not functioning any other way. It was sad. I'm glad it's gone on its merry way cause I couldn't take that much 'joy' on a daily basis for long!  I just did not have a lick of energy and I did not give a shit. Plain and simple. I did a lot of paper folding while watching every episode of Chicago Hope that hulu would let me watch! I think there were like 26 of them...I watched a couple lifetime movies too. I folded hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of magazine papers cut to 2x4.5 inches to make paper chains. I learned how to sew them together to make containers. I have no pictures yet. I'll do show and tell soon though.

The water pipes froze on Friday afternoon and didn't thaw till Sunday afternoon. That debaucle didn't help my frame of mind at all. There was a thick blanket of snow on the ground. It's only a thin, patchy layer now!

That snow did little to change the art bundle I hung out in the pear tree. The twine seems to be holding up fine. Course it's only been out there since the 6th I think. It got wet...it rained last night again. The pages in the bundle that are exposed don't seem too affected with it as of yet. Next week I'll take a picture of it.

And I'll do another show and tell.

In the mean time....you all be good to one another. Flash those smiles! Give out some hugs, collect a few.

Keep it real. Keep it simple.

Peace, my friends

831

A week and a day into the new year already

Hello Readers!

It has been awhile since I showed up on the blog! Life got in the way! That's not a bad thing by the way, usually means I'm actually living life!

I have been busy with artwork so far this year!

The 365 Project is in full swing with a few changes to the 'rules'. There really aren't many rules in the first place though! This year instead of only ATCs it's been expanded to include any kind of art! This pleases me no end! I do love some variety in the art making department as witnessed by the following photos of the art produced since the last post. Some of the art done since then isn't shown though cause I buried it in the files for last year and I really don't feel like going hunting for it at the moment!

So, enjoy what I haven't buried yet!

4x6x4 inch lidded box

I spent the last two weeks of 2010 rolling magazine pages into those sticks! Not a hard job, but it is taxing on the hands! The box itself is made from a game board, taped together with packing tape and then it's covered with sticks made from magazine pages cut to the proper length with scissors. I'm not sure this one is quite done even though I have used it for the 365 Project for 3 January. It does need a knob for the lid and I'm thinking I might paint it a solid color instead of leaving it as is.

I'm also planning a tutorial for this particular project sometime this year.

If I can figure out how to do video...there will be a video tute. If the video doesn't work out (and I really would not hold my breath for it!) then it will be a picture tute. Pictures I can do without much trouble!

Art Bundle #1

I hung this bundle of goodness out in the pear tree on the 6th of January (today is the 9th). It will stay there till six weeks is up. Need to write on the wall calendar what day that will be! I'm hoping the green jute twine holding it in the tree will hold out to the elements that long. Might have to go out there and wire it to the tree branch if the jute starts to look a bit peaked.

And you're asking yourself: Well, OK, but what the hell is it for?

The premise is to put a bunch of art fodder out in the elements and let Mother Nature alter them a bit so you can use them in your own art! In that bundle are a bunch of book pages from my book purging, a little book of Christmas quotes that I tore in half before putting in the bundle, and a bunch of other paper goods and the like. I wrapped it all up with the jute twine and put it in an onion bag to hold it all together.

Once it has 'brewed' for the allotted time, I'll do something with the stuff in the bundle. There will be a post about that when it comes time.

Art Bundle is for 5 January in the 365 Project.

Blue Ballerina Paper Doll

I found this template on the interwebs, printed it off on the printer, cut it out of cardstock and prettied it up with markers. I made three of these.

Purple Ballerina Paper Doll

I think I put the blue ballerina's feet on backwards. Not shown is the Pink Ballerina Paper Doll used for 1 January in the 365 Project. I buried her in last year's files cause she was made on the 31st of Dec.

I'm fairly certain there will be more paper dolls done in 2011.

Pins and Needles

ATC

Not a pretty ATC by any stretch of the imagination but it does pretty much say what my left hand has been feeling like for weeks!

Coca Cola Book

Linda's birthday present! Sure hope she doesn't read this blog! Her birthday isn't till the 24th!

Book is made from a game board for the covers. I cut up two Coke cans for the front and back covers and attached the cans with metal foil tape. The book block is a new endeavor for me. Never sewed a book quite like this one before. It has manilla drawing paper for pages, 72 of them. It is 6x4.5 inches. I think my sister will like it quite well!

I made her a couple of Coca Cola bottle cap kids on Christmas Day. Didn't get their pictures though.

There will be more little books made in 2011 as well.

This is for 6 January for 365 Project

Harmony with the Fishes

ATC

markers on cardstock

Littleton Monster

ATC

markers on cardstock

I stole this idea from a rubber stamped ATC I saw somewhere on the interwebs. The girl who made that ATC lives in Littleton, therefore its title!

Mr. Einstein

ATC

markers on cardstock

I seem to fall to portraits when nothing else wants to come out of me. I do think the more portraits I draw, the better at them I will get.

Orange

ATC

markers on cardstock

The old standby....fishes!

Purple Eye

ATC

markers on cardstock

This one is for 7 January for 365 Project

I discovered the day I drew this one that PURPLE is the color associated with the Epilepsy Foundation (or something like that....). I like the color purple and probably will do many more pieces of art with my purple markers!

Ugly Blue Bird

ATC

markers on cardstock

This is indeed an ugly blue bird! This one was drawn way back in November but was scanned with the rest of these in this post.

Wyzatta Monster

ATC

markers on cardstock

I stole this idea from the interwebs as well. I don't remember exactly where I found the critter...he was drawn by someone who lives in Wayzatta, Michigan (? Not sure the state.) but I spelled it wrong on the back of the card when I signed it so he's now the Wyzatta Monster instead!

Some people would say that stealing ideas is wrong! I say it's not wrong! I don't sell those ideas, I only use them to practice my drawing skills. and if you could see the originals next to mine, you'd say I need all the practice I can get!

Love is foolish

Chunky Page

This one started out as a chipboard base upon which I glued handmade paper and wrote out the text. The word LOVE is chipboard letters colored with sharpie and then painted with irredescent glitter paint. The danglies are rounds and a heart cut from a 45rpm record tied to black hemp cord. On the back (which I did not scan) is a large teardrop shaped black stone and my information.

This one is for 9 January for 365 Project.

Still cranking out the Tree of Life Pendants. This one was made on the 8th of January while waiting for pizza to cook. My sister invited me to supper and I needed to make her a hook for the Tree of Life pendant I gave to her for Christmas, so I took my wire supplies to her house to do that. The circle was already made for this TOL and the wires were attached, all I had to do was add the beads and tie them off.

This is for 8 January for 365 Project.

Here we have a few things I've completed since the beginning of the year. Starting at the left hand top corner is the tree of life you just read about. Along the top shelf are three magnets. The star was made by my Daughter-in-law, the other two by me. On the shelf atop the plastic bowl is a 45rpm record that was made into a bowl by putting it in a 250degree oven for a few minutes to soften it up and then formed inside a metal bowl. Those were fun to make! On the right hand side you see a stack of them...I made six in all. Atop the orange tin in the middle of the shelf is a floppy disk book covered with silver foil tape and copper foil tape. It has about 45 pages of lots of different papers; vellum, graph paper, copier paper, ect.

I have other things done already but not scanned yet. You'll get to see those in the next post!

All is well in my world, thankfully! The fibro is kicking my butt royally these days but I am still alive and kicking so I won't complain too loudly!

Remember to smile and be good to one another!

Peace

831

End of 2010 is Upon Us~!

three minutes left in the old year..... here's to a better 2011....
make it so!