My First Hand Made Book

I am doing a class online and this is the first book I have done..it is a bookbinding class. It is taught by Mary Ann Moss and her blog is Dispatch From LA..it is in my favourites..and it is one of my favourites..she is funny and open and relaxed and I really love reading her stuff. She talks about being a 'guerilla bookbinder' not a perfect bookbinder as she is not into perfection but lots of creativity. Having said that I think her books are well made but the colour and fun come across more than the structure I suppose...Anyway if you have a look at her blog you will see what I mean.

The fabric strips on the binding could be decorated a bit more and I wasn't quite sure how long to make them...so I will possibly add some more paraphernalia as time goes by.

Some of the pages waiting to be collaged etc. I'm going to use this one as a travel journal beginning next week when we fly to Melbourne for a week for the PGA...thats golf!! not tennis as a friend thought..haha..didn't tell Don...

I have always loved books...ever since I was little..I grew up with no tv but lots of reading and for a long time books were sacred and I wouldn't turn down page corners or write in them or damage them but now I use them in all sorts of art projects....I use the covers as I have here, and the insides as I have here also...I needed quite sturdy paper for this so some old picture books and coffee table books helped out with that...Trudes you might recognize some of them...

I really really loved doing this and have plans for MORE MORE MORE....I can plan them around the size I want and the purpose I want them for eg this one is small enough to put in my bag and carry around so I can sketch in it and write on the go..and it has plenty of pages to cover a holiday..