The cover to my 8" by 8" altered child board book. This all started with a piece of canvas I used as a worksheet piece of paper on my work table. When it became covered with paint I used bits and pieces of scrap text and fabric from other projects to glue or sew on it. I then added the fairy and girl images. Originally I was going to cut it up and make ATC's and 4 by 4's with it. However it seemed a shame to separate the little fairies so I made a book instead. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it.
This is the first page to my altered board book. I used some of the same ideas throughout this little book. First each spread has canvas collaged images that are beaded and sewn. Each page was prepped the same with gesso and dress patterns. I picked a color theme that was dictated by the canvas - pinks, yellow and oranges.
Page two, which is actually the center of my book, is again like all the other pages gesso, then a dress pattern tissue glued on with gel and then paint, paper, etc. On this page I needed some different texture so I went with dyed cheese clothe.
I dye the cheese clothe by mixing acrylic paint and water in one of those small plastic deli containers with a lid. Make sure you mix the paint well with water. Then, wet your cheese clothe, wring out and put in container. Put the lid on and give it a shake. Let sit for awhile then remove cheese clothe and squeeze out moisture and let dry. I dry it on paper towels. You can use remaining paint water to dye fabric, lace, or even paper towels.
On my little fairy girls I sewed the canvas an added the beads before I attached them to the book. The buttons were an after thought so they are just glued on with gel medium.
This is the last page of my board book. I used a vintage embroidered handkerchief that was badly stained in one corner. I soaked it in yellow ink and dried it to take the really white out of it. I then laid it crosswise across the center of the book so that I would get most of the embroidered part in the book. Also my center was a little tacky looking and this covered it up well. Again, I used canvas panels that I painted, collaged and sewed on.
This is Moses Harris's color wheel from 1766.
This is Ignaz Schiffermuller's color wheel 1775.
This is Goethe's color wheel from 1810.
A fiber glass splint is on my leg now. It is very interesting procedure. First they put a long toe less sock on you. Then they wrap your leg in felted gauze. It is cotton, very dense. I asked for an extra roll to do "something" arty with. Then they put the splint on. It is fiberglass covered with a padding. They wet the whole thing and then mold it to your foot and leg. It dries in a couple of minutes. It becomes very hard. Then they wrap the whole thing with a sticky ace bandage. Ta Da a splint. Depending on the swelling I might get a cast next week, if not a new splint.
I also got this really cool thing called a Dry Soc. It is this big blue rubbery sock that fits over my splint with a valve on it. You attach this hand pump and pump out all the air and you have a watertight sock that you can bathe, shower, or swim with. How cool is that? Plus you can use it over and over. The other really cool thing I got was a scooter thing with big wheels. It has a padded seat thingy and handle bars, it can make very tight turns and is thin so it fits in the hallway or bathroom. You put your knee on the seat and scoot around the house with it. So much better than crutches and really fast. I feel like that commercial Zoom Zoom Zoom. It is all exhausting but temporary.
Happy Birthday Sweetheart! You have brought much joy and excitement into our lives. I am very proud of you. I wish I could be with you today. My heart is there. We will visit soon!
Some of you who know me, know that I have a younger and very talented sister. She is a writer and has written over thirty published books. Fantasy and history are her thing. She has done some very amazing things. Well she just returned from California with a new book deal with Del Rey and Lucasbooks to be one of three authors writing a nine new Star Wars books series called Fate of the Jedi. These will be their first Star Wars hard cover books ever published.
This week I was a little late with the free images. So I decided to share a few of my favorite birds. Some of these birds I see almost daily. For instance the Red- Winged Blackbird, the sweet Tufted Titmouse and the Brown Thrasher. Others, like the Baltimore Oriole are only here for a short time before they fly away to nest and raise their young. I find that the simple things in life - like these birds enrich my life. I hope these images will enrich your art work.
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