I have been experimenting with using recycled material for book covers. It all started with the vegetable containers we received with our Hello Fresh meals. The images on the boxes were so retro and pop art. They made lovely little books.
Since the containers are all different sizes, I have to determine the amount of pages and dimensions; then create spine and signature stitching cards.
Stab binding is an ancient method of book binding. It is often referred to as Japanese Stab Binding, though variations of this method are practiced in China and Korea. Basic 4 hole stab binding is a simple and economic way to bind many pages of paper together. You can also use complex stitching patterns and special papers to create beautiful books.
I decided to use this method to bind smallish paper scraps left over from other projects. I also experimented with using some Vintage postcards as covers. I used the Japanese Tortoise shell and Hemp leaf stab binding patterns.
Four of us went out to visit a friend who had recently moved to Montana. We stayed in a single story log Forest Service Cabin down the road. Like our previous cabin, this one had outdoor plumbing, but is entirely electricity (lights, stove and refrigerator). The homestead was built in the 1890s by a former slave and her common-law husband. This cabin and the one we had previously stayed in were restored by Forest Service volunteers.
The river was an easy walk across the field. We often saw Moose crossing the river near where we fished. We hiked and fished along the river most days. On this trip I caught and released my first Cutthroat Trout.
We also did some sight seeing in Missolua and Philipsburg.
The vegetable tanned leather is cut to the desired book cover size. The cut leather is placed on top a white expandable storage shelf that is inside a large plastic container. Using this setup I can dye two large book covers at a time.
Crushed ice is piled on top of the leather, covering all of the surface to about 1.5 inches deep. Various colors of Rite dye are sprinkled on top of the ice. I do this outside, so depending on the temperature, it takes 1 to 3 hours for the ice to totally melt.
As the ice melts the dye dissolves and runs down on to the leather. The colors mix making puddles of colors that, as more ice melt, drip of the edge of the leather into the plastic container. This process creates unpredictable swirls of mixtures of colors. I let the leather sit over night to dry.
Once the leather is dry I can add freehand ink drawings or stamps to the surface. The final step is to apply a sealant to the leather. Below are three finished books. I found a multi-colored skull button that is the perfect finishing touch.
A copy press is a small press that can be used to apply equal pressure for a variety of bookbinding purposes. A Copy press is similar to a nipping presses. Copy presses were used to make copies of freshly written documents. The fresh ink of the document was transferred to damp tissue paper using the pressure of the copy press. The copy printed on the tissue paper is the reverse of the original document. Tissue paper was used so the reader could read the through the paper.
I plan on using my copy press to compress book signatures and to print linocuts.
On nice thing about my small watercolor kit, it is super easy to travel with. That means I have it with me all the time. Ready to paint wherever I am. For example, the second night I was able to paint the below sunset while we were anchored off Abaco Island.
We spent a wonderful week sailing around the Bahamas. From Abaco Island we sailed to Green Turtle Cay, Fowl Cay National Park, Man-o-war Cay, and Elbow Cay. We anchored off shore or picked up a mooring bouy in the harbor. Each night we watched the sunset; and the following morning the sunrise.
We started by painting the wet sand, leaving the area of the girl’s reflection unpainted.
Then we painted the shadows on her clothes. I used a grey green color for the shadows of the skirt. It doesn’t look right now, but when red is painted on top the shadows will look right.
I then painted the girls skin:
When the painting was dry the masking was removed. Additional shadows were added to the oysters and mud. The brush used for the masking didn't have a fine tip so the feathers are a bit blunt, but I still was happy with how the painting turned out.
We first painted yellow where the marsh grass, trees and their reflections in the water are. After the yellow paint was completely dry we painted red on the sky and water.
After the red was completely dry we painted blue on parts of the sky, trees, marsh, and water. To darken the trees and make the deep shadows in the marsh I added more blue. It was amazing to see how well this technique worked.
Ironically, the spring high tide flooded the backyard and the streets around the house we stayed in.
After a wonderful breakfast we started working on the next exercise. An egret flying over the marsh. I started by painting the sky and water, the colors are reflections of each other. Then painted the shadows on the bird. The shadows have shades of color from the water (blue to purple) and sun (pink to yellow).
When the painting was dry, I masked the bird and painted the marsh, adding yellows and greens to develop depth and distinguish the dry areas of the marsh (yellow to brown) from the wet ones (shades of yellow green). This was done wet, letting the colors mix.
I masked part of the foreground of the marsh and continued to darken areas of the marsh and painted the distant trees. Once the painting was dry I removed the masking. The masked areas of the march now stand out as lighter colored grass blades. I completed painting the bird, and adding some final shadows to the marsh and tree line.
It took several passes to develop the shadows on the trees, grass and the reflection in the water.
