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You may already know that I have a fondness for advent calendar. I think I get it from my mom. As a child I remember her sewing together a large snowman advent calendar with pouches – inside each pouch was a felt ornament. Oh, how I loved it! She would also treat us to those store-bought advent calendars with a chocolate behind each door. Unfortunately I had to take turns opening the little doors with my little brothers.
Where am I going with this? Whipup has just posted a list of 30 of the best advent calendars – some of them are really gorgeous, yet so simple to make! I’m feeling very inspired at the moment…
Here’s a sampling of some advent calendars I’ve made in the past – I guess you won’t be shocked that they’re in book form!
This one is tiny, but chunky – the pockets are 2″ x 2″ and each one contains a tag. It seemed like a great idea at the time, but this book ended up taking about 8 hours to make! Between folding of the pockets, punching holes in each one, binding 24 signatures, gluing the pockets, then gluing the embellishments on each pocket…by the end of it, I was SO DONE.
This is a larger one – I made one for my mom last year (actually, today is her birthday – Happy Birthday, Mom!) and in each pocket I included a tag with “Merry Christmas” in a different language.
Do you have a great advent calendar you’d like to share? Please do!
I stayed home all weekend nursing a nasty cold, which meant I had lots of time on my hands. Perhaps too much.
As a result, I watched all 9 episodes of glee. Within 24 hours. Oh, but what joy! [Will I burn in hell if I admit that Sue Sylvester is my favourite character? The gems that come out of her mouth are shocking - but so, so hilarious!] For days, all I’ve wanted to do is sing and dance to Journey and REO Speedwagon… is that wrong?
Being sick also allowed me to make these beauties (while watching the aforementioned tv program):
Chunky books made from beer coasters! Can I tell you just how much I love these books?!!
I also spent time playing at Rollip (a fantastic site recommended by the lovely Shanley). It allows you to transform your digital photos into Polaroids – how freaking cool is that? For example:
BEFORE: Me and my *imaginary* boyfriend Jim Cuddy at the Jackson-Triggs Winery this summer (notice what he’s holding in his hand – one of my LP journals!).
AFTER: Again, how cool is this?!! [I actually prefer this photo to the original one.] I could easily spend hours and hours on this site…
This weekend I also discovered an amazing online magazine: Modern Handmade Child
If you’re into living simply, handmade gifts, crafting, and stunning photography and design, this magazine is for you. The Winter issue is chock-full of ideas and projects to try – and they’re not all centered around kids, as the title would imply. I am childless and have found so many items that appeal to my crafty, inner child…
Hope you’re enjoying your week so far – happy Monday!
Last night I had the most amazing opportunity to see The Canadian Songbook: A Tribute to Neil Young’s Live at Massey Hall, as part of the Luminato Festival. It was a recreation of Young’s 1971 concert by an impressive roster of talent, including Colin James, Holly Cole, Jason Collett, Cowboy Junkies, Issa [formerly Jane Siberry], Stevie Jackson [of Belle & Sebastian fame), Colin Linden, Steven Page [of Barenaked Ladies fame], Carole Pope, Sarah Slean, and many others…
Interspersed between songs were stories about Neil Young, his life, the recording of the famed 1971 concert, and so much more. What impressed me the most, I think, was that by the ripe old age of 24, he had already written such gems as Old Man, Heart of Gold, Ohio, and The Needle and the Damage Done. Makes everyone else look like a slacker. Hmph.
It was a fabulous night with fabulous entertainment. Well worth the price, even though my seat was partially obstructed by enormous speakers! I’m simply grateful for having gotten tickets in the first place…
If you weren’t able to enjoy this concert in person, it will be broadcast on CBC Radio 2 on June 29 & July 6. Check it out!
More Greece updates to come later, but for now:
A crappy photo of my latest project – an LP journal made for a friend who is graduating from law school (did I mention she’s really, really smart?). I didn’t want to give her a standard, lawyer-ly graduation gift (briefcase, pen, etc.), and when she mentioned that she used to carry around a HAIR album from apartment to apartment until she finally got rid of it (before she met me), bells went off in my head. Voilà!
I normally make an effort to take better photos of my work, but it’s late and I don’t have access to natural sunlight at this moment. Meh.
This past weekend I went to see Little Ashes (with above-mentioned friend) – I’d never hear of it, but quite enjoyed it. It’s the story of Salvator Dalì and Federico Garcìa Lorca’s friendship and eventual love affair. Dalì is played by Robert Pattinson of Twilight fame. This role was certainly risky for a teen idol (there is almost-full-frontal nudity as well as several homo-erotic scenes), but I do have to commend Pattinson for taking a chance and going out on a limb. Good job!
I’ve made a mental note to explore the works of Dalì and Lorca in greater detail – I really don’t know much about either of them and am now quite curious…
Oh dear…as if I needed another project to add to my already too long to-do list…sigh.
I have tons of album covers laying around the apartment, since I mostly only use the vinyl records to make my LP journals.
I just came across this brilliant project – I wish I’d thought of this first!
Found at Paper and Stitch
I was saddened to hear about the passing of comedian Harvey Korman last week. I used to love watching the Carol Burnett Show and its incredibly talented cast of characters. Whenever Harvey was teamed up with Tim Conway, you knew you were in for a good laugh. I searched YouTube and found this gem:
I could spend hours watching all the videos from the Carol Burnett Show – even 30 or 40 years later, they are as timless and funny as ever!
In more creative news…
Now that I’m fully recovered from the crazy super-bug I caught a few weeks ago, I’ve been spending lots of time at my craft table. I’ll be moving into a new loft later this month and will need to decorate the new place. Since my budget is limited at the moment, I decided to create a decor element of my own. I introduce you to my new friend Audrey:
The photo on the right shows the image that I used to create the canvas painting. I’m thrilled with how she turned out, and I can definitely see myself making more of these in the future!
I’ve also been making books, books, books for sale at nathalie-roze & co. Of course, I forgot to take photos of the dozen or so LP journals I made before delivering them, but they included Steve Miller Band, Eric Clapton, Rolling Stones, BTO, and more. I found out that one of my David Bowie LP journals will be used as a guest book at a gallery in Scarborough. They’re showing an exhibit on LP cover art (including the Bowie cover I used to make the journal) so it’s a perfect match!
I did remember to take a photo of this journal I made for a swap – the theme was the Muppets and I absolutely love this book. I wish I could keep it!
As a change from making books all day, I started making these a few months ago. I have to admit, they’ve become a bit of an obsession. I loooooove how they add a touch of class to just about anything:
(I’m also loving the macro feature on my camera!)
Today I plan to plug away and make more books for sale, but I’m not sure how far I’ll get with the heat. It’ll be close to 40 Celcius this afternoon with the humidity factor, and it’s already hot and sticky. Ouch. I may need to take a few ice cream and cooler breaks in between the book making…
Happy crafting!
Since I don’t have any more new creations to show off, I thought I’d share some blogs that have been making my smile during the craziness of late:
Confessions of a Pioneer Woman - Recently came across this blog. Pioneer Woman is a city girl who fell in love with a cowboy and now lives on a ranch in the middle of nowhere. This woman has an amazing sense of humour, can tell a great story and takes breathtaking photographs.
The Pioneer Woman Cooks! – And if it wasn’t enough, her recipes (and her instructions) are to die for…
Creative Organizing - This blog pleases the anal-retentive me that is constantly re-organizing my supplies. Although you could never tell by the state of my craft room. Sigh.
iHanna – This Swedish girl is so upbeat and creative, and she’ll try just about anything crafty. I love her outlook on life, even through the difficult periods. A very colourful blog.
Toronto Craft Alert – So I can keep abreast of everything that I don’t have time to enjoy at the moment…
Of course, I read so many other blogs, but these are just a few to get you started on the path to enlightened creativity.
Do you have particular blogs you like to read when you’re tired / uninspired / grouchy? Please share!
I can hear the wind howling just outside the window – boy, am I ever glad I’m indoors… I’ve been constantly on the road for the past few weeks, planning and implementing events as part of my day job. Quite frankly, I’m exhausted, and it’s only going to get worse in the next few weeks, with eight (yes, 8!) more events before the end of February.
Last weekend was my birthday, and unfortunately I was too tired to truly enjoy it. I had travelled extensively during that week, and was still trying to recover from the jetlag of the European trip. I still enjoyed my birthday (B. and I spent the whole day wandering stores and shopping malls, something we hadn’t done since forever), although I didn’t have any energy to do much of anything.
So today, after driving B. to the airport early this morning (he’s on his way to Mexico, lucky man!), I spent the day indulging myself. After watching several of Suzi Blu’s videos for inspiration, I did some sketching, something I hadn’t done in ages. If you’re ever stuck in a rut, visit Suzi Blu – she’ll set you on the path to artistic nirvana.
After that, I worked on a handmade photo album I’m making as a thank-you gift. I hope it turns out all right; I have a clear vision in my head of what I want it to be…
A long nap, followed by a long, hot shower, helped restore my energy enough that I could start work on my latest obsession: Scherenschnitte. What is scherenschnitte, you ask?
Scherenschnitte is the Swiss/German art of papercutting. I discovered this beautiful artform during my trip to Switzerland in December. While I vaguely recalled having seen photos of these papercuttings in the past, I had never really paid them any attention, until I saw a few hanging in a cafe in Gstaad. The intricacy and delicacy of these pieces was absolutely stunning. This is what I’m talking about. A few days later, I bought these scherenschnitte cuttings at a tiny street market in Gstaad:
Of course, the photos don’t do the pieces justice (I really suck at taking photos). The pieces are quite small, approximately 3″X3″, because that’s all I could afford! Everything in Switzerland is expensive, and artwork is no exception…
Upon my return to Canada, I vowed to learn more about scherenschnitte, and researched it extensively on the Internet. It’s funny how when you open your eyes to something, kismet intervenes. As I explained earlier, I had never paid any attention to papercuttings until this recent trip. All of a sudden, I kept seeing papercuttings everywhere:
- Victoria Magazine has an article in their January/February 2008 edition on paper artistry
- While browsing the aisles of an Indigo bookstore last week, I came across this book and immediately bought it (although my book has a different cover)
- Yesterday, while visiting the Craft Magazine blog, I came across the work of Kako Ueda, an amazing papercutting artist
A few days ago, I even attempted my first ever papercutting piece:
The pattern was taken from the book I recently bought, and I’m quite happy with the results… Feeling confident, today I chose another pattern from the same book, a much larger and more complex pattern this time. I spent a great amount of time copying the pattern on tracing paper. The only paper that I had on hand large enough for this particular pattern was a roll of kraft paper. Unfortunately I discovered that kraft paper doesn’t cut so easily and I was really struggling with the detail work. I soon gave up because I was tiring very quickly and was afraid I was either going to ruin the piece or hurt myself seriously with the craft knife… I may pick it up again when I’m not so tired and cranky…
I spent the rest of the day playing on my new laptop (which B. bought for me a few days ago!), watching t.v., eating pizza and taking a relaxing bubble bath. It was a day of complete, but necessary, indulgence…
Looks like I’ll be spending part of the Christmas holidays somewhere very special this year: Switzerland!!!
B has been commissioned to work on a project there for five weeks, and I’ll be joining him in late December. When checking out his schedule, we discovered he would be working in Gstaad at that time. Here’s what I found out about Gstaad on a tourism website:
GSTAAD – twinned expertly with Cannes – is an odd place. You’d think, from the high profile of its name, that it would be some kind of glittering Geneva-in-the-Alps, a fantastically expensive mountain paradise. Yet although its instant name recognition may effortlessly attract Europe’s royal households, celebrities galore and countless lesser hangers-on, Gstaad is in fact just a one-street village, a rather charming, attractively located place full of restored weathered-wood chalets – even if there is an overabundance of jewellery shops and furriers. Nonetheless, its high-roller status makes it a village like no other. If you fancy being snubbed by the world’s richest people, come here for Christmas week, scene of a heady round of sparkling soirées and lavish banquet-style dinner parties all but barred to ordinary mortals.
Glossy magazines may advertise the town as some kind of winter wonderland, but St Moritz steals its luxury-class thunder on this score: Gstaad is really more of a place to spend the odd ten grand renting a hillside chalet and sipping champagne around town than it is somewhere you can get stuck into any serious skiing. Where Gstaad really enters into its own, prosaically enough, is as a centre from which to hike the little-known Saanenland during the summer months.
Source: switzerland.isyours.com
Not quite sure what to make of this, considering that I wasn’t planning on sipping all that much champagne around town…
More encouragingly, I’ll be heading over to Zermatt for a day or two. This travelogue has me very excited about the place – imagine seeing the famous Matterhorn! Woo hoo!
Spending way too much time online looking for Christmas projects and not enough time catching up on my sleep after a rough week (I organized three out-of-town events this week alone)… Planning on spending what’s left of today catching up on some commissions for handmade books and finishing my Christmas cards… Sometimes I wonder if I’m insane to insist on making my own cards and gifts when I barely have a moment to myself, but I can’t help it – Christmas has this effect on me….
Here are a few projects to inspire you, should you have some free time this weekend:
Happy Crafting!!!
Fall makes me giddy. It brings renewed energy, bursts of creativity, and good moods. I have been making books all afternoon. A cranberry-scented candle burns in the corner of the room as I sip lemon & ginger-flavoured tea while wearing one of my new sweaters from simons. Could life be any better? Not really, except for the fact that B is in Mexico at the moment, building an inukshuk in the sweltering heat (*snicker*). He’ll be back in 5 days though, and all will be right again.
Two weeks ago, B and I visited the McMichael Canadian Collection in Kleinburg. David Ruben, who also happens to be B’s first cousin, invited us as he was one of the artists-in-residence that weekend. Another artist-in-residence was Kenojuak Ashevak, one of Canada’s most famous Inuit artists. Her print The Enchanted Owl is her most-recognized piece of art; it was made into a stamp by Canada Post a number of years ago.
I was honoured for the opportunity to meet Kenojuak; considering her age (80), it’s surprising she still travelled all the way from Cape Dorset. Here is a photo B took of David and Kenojuak – isn’t she just adorable?
***
Ack! I was going to post some of my recent projects, but wordpress won’t let me… I’ll be back later to try again.
It continues to be unbearably hot and humid here in Toronto – I haven’t even looked at my paper or projects this week. I can’t even bear the thought of doing anything more than lying on the sofa in front of a fan or sleeping in our cool basement.
That doesn’t mean I haven’t been thinking about projects and ideas – there are many stirring around in my little blonde head… I just can’t execute any of them because of the heat…
Since I still don’t have anything to show off to you, here is a little inspiration – hopefully it’s not as hot in your neck of the woods and you might just get something accomplished:
- Cardboard Folding - in case you’re in need of cheap furniture
- Magazine Box Tutorial – should you want a box made of magazines
- Book Sculptures - what to do with all those old library books you forgot to return
- One Little Word - for all those scrapbookers and art journallers (like me) looking for one-word inspiration
- Jennifer Collier’s shoes – because a woman can never have too many shoes
Enjoy – I’ll be back as soon as the weather cooperates!
I can’t believe it’s August in less than two hours! What the heck happened to July???
I’ve had the very best intentions for the past several evenings, but Mother Nature has put a damper on my plans. I was going to make tons and tons of books to build up my inventory, because I know I won’t have much time to devote to my bookbinding projects come Fall. But it’s been so bloody hot and humid here for the past few days (and it’s only going to get worse), I have no patience or energy for anything. I’ve been either sitting at the computer or on the sofa, trying to move as little as possible.
So I don’t have any new projects to show off. However I’d like to take a moment to thank several cool bloggers who have written about the Papermusings blog in the past month:
- Jotterblog (who has been extremely generous in promoting my blog and projects, thus making me blush profusely…)
- Wedding Bee
- Lil Something
Now just as soon as the weather cooperates again, I plan on becoming a bookbinding maniac again! I’m especially looking forward to the long weekend coming up for an extra day of crafting.
Keep cool!
Here is an interesting video shot at a recent artists’ book exhibit in France. The pictures are a bit fuzzy, but there are many interesting books to see. I can only dream of one day exhibiting my humble books in such a grand building! Enjoy…
I don’t know how I ever managed to resist making star books for so long. I had always considered them “artist books”, whereas I felt my books were more “artsy books”. And yes, there is a difference.
But once I tried making one star book, I was hooked.
Here are my latest creations:
Small Fortune Star Book
Large Pink & Purple Star Book
And my favourite to date, made with a new line of Basic Grey papers:
I can see this last one becoming an advent calendar or a super duper Christmas ornament/gift/album.
If you’re in Toronto, I’ll be teaching how to make these projects at Urban Scrapyard later this week. Check out the Events and Workshops page for more details.
In addition to the books, I also worked on finishing one of B’s carvings. He had to leave in a rush (I think HE’s the one who should read “Getting Things Done” by David Allen, not me!), so I was delegated the task of water sanding, washing, heating, waxing and polishing this polar bear carving. Guess what I did Friday night and Saturday morning???
Bear Carving in the Sanding Bin
Finished Bear
I received an interesting question from bookarat, who asks:
What I wonder – how can you use starbooks? Are they just beautiful book objects, or can you use them for journaling or album purposes?
Although they are beautiful book objects to be admired, I’ve also seen them used very creatively. Check out this link:
I love how she cut through the layers of paper and integrated photos…now that I think of it, this looks very much like the book I attempted to make without the instructions! Had I taken a few more moments to do proper research, I could have saved time and headaches (and paper)! As I said in my earlier post, I never learn…
I got the instructions for my first star book (from a few posts ago) from a book called “Books with Girth” by Cherryl Moote. She made an absolutely amazing star book with cutouts and calligraphy. Check out this page - the book in question is called “Nursery Rhyme Silhouette Star Book” and it’s about 3/4 of the way down the page. I don’t event want to think about the amount of patience required for making this book…
So as you see, star books can be used like any other scrapbook or journal – you can add pockets, embellishments, journalling, photos, anything really!
There have been a few Papermusings sightings in the blogosphere…
- Lee Kottner’s blog
- TJ Book Arts
- Craft Tutorials Blog (In the links section, under “Box”)
- Whipup
- WordPress’ Growing Blogs (I’m #33!)
Thanks to everyone who has mentioned my blog – I’m really flattered!
In the case of the Craft Tutorials Blog and Whipup sites, I had submitted my accordion box tutorial for consideration and was thrilled when they accepted it!
I haven’t been posting as much as I should – I’ve been working on a commissioned book… Photos to come soon…
I mentioned earlier that my new job has taken the wind out of me – not only am I adjusting to a different routine than what I’d become used to, but my schedule is pretty crazy – aside from one out-of-town event I worked at on Monday, I have four more events between now and May 7, three of which are out-of-town… I love the job, but it’s completely drained me already! Hopefully things will slow down a bit in a few weeks…
All this means I haven’t had the energy to produce much this past week. I did manage to make two LP books, with plans to make more when I’m not as exhausted (I don’t like playing with sharp knives when I’m tired).
Yesterday I hit the mother lode when I visited my local thrift shop – I found several LPs of each of the Beatles, The Who, Led Zeppelin, and David Bowie! I couldn’t believe my luck – I’ll now have lots to choose from for my next LP books…
But best of all, I found a Stan Rogers CD! Here’s the folk-lovin’ Maritimer in me coming out! This particular CD contains Forty-Five Years, one of my favourite Stan Rogers songs. Incredible to think he was just 23 years old when he wrote it… For those who don’t know Stan Rogers, he was a folk singer from Ontario who lived in Nova Scotia for many years. His most famous song (one every Maritimer knows by heart) is Barrett’s Privateers – go to any Irish pub in Canada and you’re sure to hear it! Unfortunately Stan died at the ripe old age of 33 when the plane he was travelling on caught on fire in 1983. The smoke was so thick that no one could find their way out, so he used his booming voice to help direct passengers off the plane. He later died of smoke inhalation.
If you go to this website and click on the large red “iStan music player” icon, you can actually listen to a few of his songs, including Forty-Five Years. Be sure to listen to Northwest Passage while you’re there…
In all honesty, I must admit that until 10 years ago, I had no clue who Stan Rogers was. You see, I grew up in a part of New Brunswick that doesn’t much listen to traditional Celtic/Maritime music. Growing up on the U.S. border, we were mostly influenced by American pop culture. I got to know Stan’s music in 1997 when I had the most awesome summer job travelling across Eastern Canada with the beautiful schooner Bluenose II (the same ship that’s on our dime). I spent an entire summer travelling with sailors from Nova Scotia, so I couldn’t help but become immersed in Stan’s music (and Maritime music in general). Good times gone by much too quickly…
