Friday, September 6, 2013

Pages of Autumn

The feeling of fall is in the air in NYC. The days are less humid and the nights are cooler. Autumn is by far my favorite season and I was inspired by the colors of the season to create my newest mini-book


For the book pages, I zeroed in on a stack of paper towels that I had saved from a workshop I taught earlier this year. They were the paper towels I used to wipe off paint and were shaded in a beautiful fall palette.


I learned a tip from Leslie Marsh regarding painted paper towels. If you add two layers of matte medium to the surface, letting the first layer dry before adding the second, the surface texture of the paper towel changes to an almost fabric-like feel and it protects it from tearing.

For the book cover, I found the perfect scrap of mossy green handmade paper with leaf inclusions.


Ready to make the book, I realized that I did not want to create a typical, linear-shaped book. Cut to (pun intended) Spellbinders Labels Thirty-Three die set. I chose that largest die and easily cut my first piece of paper towel.


Folding it in half to create a single folio, I realized that the shape resembled an upside-down bell.


I cut two more pages from the same die template, folded them in half, and stacked them together to form a single signature.


Now onto the cover. Using the same die, I cut the moss green paper into the same shape. At the same time, I cut more paper towel using a smaller die from the same set.


I folded both pieces and glued the smaller piece on to the larger for some compositional layering. I shaded the edges of the smaller paper with a rough line from a pencil.


I inserted the paper towel signature into the cover and sewed them all together with a simple three-hole pamphlet stitch using brown waxed linen thread and a needle. 


To complete the cover, I added a bead, an image that I cut from Spellbinders Ephemera Papers One from their Media Mixage line, and a small, found washer. It wouldn't be me without some rust!










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Supply List

Spellbinders Paper Art Supplies:

MMM-001 SpellbindersTM Artisan X-plorer
S5-187 SpellbindersTM Nestabilities® Labels Thirty-Three
MP1-001 SpellbindersTM Media Mixage Ephemera Paper One

Other: handmade paper, hand painted paper towel (acrylic paint, matte medium, paint brush), pencil, adhesive, waxed linen thread, sewing needle, scissor, bead

20 comments:

PocketSize said...

That is too cute! I love your cool early Fall colors. And the shape is great, love that you thought of using that die.

MadBirdDesignsUK said...

Love the paper towels, but "Darling" (I am being English here) you are missing a trick get out your sewing machine and stitch them as well!!! Yet another craft skill you have to learn!

Anonymous said...

That tiny bit of rust just makes the whole thing complete. Like the cherry on top! Sweet fall surprise. xox

Kathryn Dyche said...

Smiling.

Lynn Cohen said...

Sweet came to mind, hope that's okay with you. It is! Love the paper towel use. And the paper with leaves included. Just beautiful. And you are anything but rusty! ;-)

Sue Marrazzo Fine Art said...

OOOH...the palette is wonderful...
NICE work, as always Seth!

Please look at my blog:
www.suemarrazzo,blogspot.com
THANKS!

elle said...

Great tip for the old towels. Thanks for that link. This book is another great idea.

Leslie said...

Nice work, Seth! Thanks for the link. And, yes! What MadBirdDesigns said: you can sew on them too!

Hastypearl said...

Your tutorials are always great. Easy to follow.
I have paper towels that are going to get treated, first thing tomorrow. Great tip:)
Laura

lynne h said...

smiling, seth... : )

xoxo

sukipoet said...

sweet

Mickie said...

Adorable! Nice tip on the towels, gonna try that, goodness knows I use lots of them!

Brian Kasstle said...

I like the paper towels idea. The butterfly reminds me of "Silence of the Lambs"

Parabolic Muse said...

I absolutely love painted paper towel art! It is so much like fabric when finished and sealed. And painted magazine pages are like leather after treatment. It's so cool what some acrylic medium does!

Darsie Bruno said...

love love love this! I've done something similar with baby wipes, but now I have to get out the paper towels! As always, Seth, your work captivates me!

Unknown said...

Seth, this is such a great project. I love this, because it also eliminates trash! Way to go!

Karenliz Henderson said...

Beautiful as always. Thanks for the tip on the paper towels. I'm going to try it on my very large pile.

Becca Feeken said...

Oh Seth, this is amazing!!

froebelsternchen said...

great use of papertowel Seth..as I love the artful low budget art supplies way - I am fascinated as always!

Chantal Vandenberg said...

Looks great!!