Sunrise or Sunset?
Do you ever draw a half circle on an horizon line and then wonder is it a sunrise or sunset? That’s exactly what I did for this month’s artist trading card. And when you print it out and color it, you will invariably decide whether it is, in fact, a sunrise or sunset. This begs the question…what do you enjoy more? A sunrise or sunset? A day of endless possibilities to look forward to or the quiet place of a sunset where you revel in all of your fulfilled tasks you completed for the day? Or maybe you enjoy both? I certainly enjoy both and from an artists’ perspective…each one has its own set of color schemes to excite, astonish and soak in every single time. No matter your preferences, it is fun to define moments in our lives, even those regular ordinary days with the rising or setting of the sun.
Aside from pondering sunrises and sunsets this month… I made and bound handmade books! I just love this new fun obsession and I cannot wait to fill these books with all sorts of ideas! The neat thing about this book making is the simplicity of it helps take away the fear of ruining a handmade book. All I need to do is make another one.
Take a look at the book making breakdown below:
Exploring Book Making
I can’t get over how fun and simple these little booklets are to make while also very sturdy and professionally made. Book making has always been a love of mine. It was the very first workshop I took after I finished my college classes and it’s an idea I have gone back to again and again over the years. There is so much to learn and study in book making and actually you can earn a Master’s degree in Book Arts and Printmaking. But for now, let’s just focus on a simplistic stitch and small batches of books.
The saddle stitch is the book binding stitch I focused on this month. I tried to make one book a day, but I did not meet my goal. That’s okay, I did make several and found it getting easier to stitch with each book I bound. Check out the books I made below.
A message about book making terms:
I have looked and looked for a solid book making online resource and have come up empty-handed which is pretty surprising. With that being said, I believe this stitch is a variation of the saddle stitch and may have a different name depending on the decorative nature. Here is the definition of saddle stitch from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary:
saddle stitch
1 of 2
noun
1
: a stitch made by placing the center of the fold (as of a magazine or pamphlet) across the saddle of the stitcher and driving wire staples through and clinching them on the inside
called also saddleback stitch, saddle-wire stitch
2
: an even or uneven running stitch usually set in from an edge that is used as a decorative trimming on clothing and leather articles.
I bound each book using variation of the saddle stitch. The interior paper ranged from toned brown paper, drawing paper and watercolor paper.
Here is a quick video:
Here is a time lapse video where I use waxed linen and a curved needle to stitch a small book.
Step by step instructions for this particular stitch binding.
How I choose the front of each book
In keeping with the idea of simplicity, I chose covers for my books that were already easily available to me. I either chose decorative papers I had on hand or card stock paper I use for many projects. Card stock paper is a wonderful resource which I keep handy both in my home studio and also in my art classroom. I found that using card stock paper for a cover was another chance to express myself and draw or add something unique for the cover. What was this book going to be about? How could I share something I create or add in a unique way on the cover of the book? Here are 2 covers in particular that encapsulate this idea.
This is a card stock cover that I bound together first, then I designed and drew the cover art onto. The book's title is “All My Little Worries”.
Recently, a dear friend sent me a post card and I loved it so much I felt it needed to be front and center of one of my books. I cut the postcard to size and sewed it onto the front cover of this book. Isn’t it lovely? Could this be a book about being brave?
How I choose the interior pages of each book
Don’t overthink this part. Regular copy paper or printer paper is just fine to use for the inside pages of your books. One thing to consider is your plan for your handmade books. What will you do with them? Make lists or journal your thoughts? Create your very own sketchbooks or small booklets to study color combinations? What about a quote book or drawing your favorite things? The possibilities are endless with what you can fill inside your own handmade books.
Plans for my handmade books range from drawing silly sketches or funny faces, making an alphabet book, drawing the flowers from my own garden and backyard, a scribble book, a book of patterns, a book of silly things I worry about and a book of all the jewelry I make. So many fun ideas!
Papers used for these books:
Drawing paper
Watercolor paper
Toned brown paper
Card stock paper
Other papers you could use:
Scrap paper
Lined notebook paper
Graph paper
Old sketchbook paper
Junk mail
Rice paper
Marker paper
Vellum
Newspaper
Typically I used 5 sheets per book. This means once I fold it, there is 10 pages inside each book for use.
Tools and supplies used
Here are the tools I used to create each book.
In March 2022 I shared an even more simplistic book making idea using a long arm stapler. You can read that post here. I even discussed how you don’t need to buy book binding supplies to create your own books. While I still stand by that, I wanted to share with you the supplies I did use were limited and not terribly costly. The new things I purchased were an awl, box cutter and corner cutter.
TOOL LIST
Box cutter
Waxed Linen (variety color pack purchased)
Ruler
Awl (for making the holes in the signature pages (interior pages)
Curved needle
Corner cutter (This tool rounds off corners of each book page)
What do you think of these small booklets? Would you create one yourself or find interest in buying one I create? I am pondering if this is another item I could make in small batches and sell to others? Currently I am trying out different size booklets and what would be the most sought after small book. Any ideas or suggestions - please leave in the comments below.
Shape of the Month:
Half Circle
I was so excited when I saw this month’s shape of the month. The half circle or semi circle is a great shape that can be a work horse for any creative work. Below I have shared several sketchbook pages I made recently where I only used 2 shapes; the square and half circle. In these sketchbook pages I was studying a few principles of design; balance, variety, rhythm, pattern. I was also trying to look more in depth at shape and color. But more than anything, I was trying to concentrate most on compositional layout and how the various colors or marks within the allotted 2 shapes shapes interact with each other in an organized way. One thing is for sure - the half circle is crucial in each page I made.
Coloring Page of the Month
The Half Circle
The shape of the month continues in this month’s coloring page. Is it a sunrise or sunset?
The inspiration photo is below:
Here is the photo reference for this month’s coloring page. I love my climbing rose bush and arbor!
Don’t forget this month’s artist trading card - you decide if it is a sunrise or sunset when you choose how to color it.
Summer is well on its way and I am excited for creative things to come. I am also looking forward to enjoying both sunrises and sunsets and the amazing color schemes that absolutely wow me every single time. This is inspiration for me and fills my bucket again and again. Also, taking a step away from the classroom for the summer and spending some time in the beginning of summer to reflect on my past year’s accomplishments and goals is always a great way to help align next steps and future plans.
No matter what your summer may hold, I wish you the very best of sunrises and sunsets and beautiful moments inbetween.
Stay creative out there~
Hannah