Mothers Day Gift Collection No.2

Posted on April 28, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 203/365

A couple of weeks ago I put together a collection of items for Moms who love to draw and sketch. With Mother’s day just around the corner, I’ve got another group of items perfect for the mom who loves to read books, collect books, make books and everything in between!I’ve tailored this collection to inspire people who love books, but might not necessarily write or draw in them. This is a group of items for the book lover, the collector and the art appreciator.

From the top left, clockwise:
Starburst Journal in Garden Sage: Sage colored bookcloth adorns the spine and showcases the spine stitching, with green and brown floral covers. Makes a perfect garden journal or outdoor adventure album. More details.

Mini Book Necklace: A cute little handbound journal made from reclaimed leather! Opens and you can write in it, keeping your ideas and dreams close to your heart. More details.

DIY Bookbinding Kit: For the person who already has everything; give them a new skill! Beginner kit teaches the basics of bookbinding and comes with everything you need: materials, tools and step-by-step instructions. Various colours available. More details.

Red Florentine Starburst Journal: A lively and bold journal perfect for recipes, special memories or someone who loves the colour red! (any fellow leos out there?) Because the spine is wide, there’s enough room to adhere papers to the pages, like some photos or recipe cards in your grandmother’s handwriting. More details.

Queen Anne’s Lace on Linen: A perfect catch-all, coin purse or beach pouch. Hand drawn images of thistles are screenprinted onto brown linen. More details.

Ex Libris Bookplates in Green: For the book collector! A stylish way to label your books and build your library. Hand printed in various colours and self-adhesive, comes in a set of 4. More details.

The Studio on a Monday

Posted on April 27, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 202/365

Today has been all about organizing and tidying up after a busy weekend full of shows. This is not exciting and doesn’t lend itself well to photos. So instead, I’ll just share this photo above, from last week in the studio.

This is one of the finishing touches I put on my hand-dyed Indigo Journals, the reclaimed leather closure. I measure, cut and punch each one individually. As with many trades and crafts, the rule is always to measure twice, cut once!

See you at the Leslieville Flea

Posted on April 26, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 201/365

Today I’m vending at the Leslieville Flea. It’s the last indoor show of the year, in the Fermenting Cellar at the Distillery District here in Toronto.

I’ll be here all day with my handbound journals, bookbinding kits, book jewelry and hand printed fabric items. Stop by and say Hi!

For more information, check out the show website, go here.

Spending the day with other Wayzgeese!

Posted on April 25, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 200/365

It’s the Wayzgoose Annual Book Arts Fair!

Today I’m in Grimsby celebrating my craft with other like-minded folks and selling my wares at the Wayzgoose. If you’re looking for a scenic day trip, an escape from the city or just something crafty and inspiration to do, head over to the Grimsby Public Art Gallery.

When: Saturday April 25, 9am – 5pm
Where: Grimsby Public Art Gallery, 18 Carnegie Lane, Grimsby Ontario.

For more information about the show and the gallery, check out their website here.

Learn with me

Posted on April 24, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 199/365

I’m pleased to share an upcoming workshop I’ll be teaching in Burlington, Ontario: Book Arts 103.

When: Saturday May 9, 1pm – 4pm
Where: Burlington Public Libary, Brant Hills Branch. 2255 Brant Street, Burlington

Spend the afternoon learning basic of bookbinding techniques and the tools of the trade. Learn to make a soft cover book using the longstitch technique. Students will leave with a finished project!

For more information and to register, please go here.

An Artists Book

Posted on April 23, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 198/365

A couple of days ago I wrote a post about my feature in Uppercase magazine. Today I’m going to talk about the piece that made it happen, an artist’s book titled “O2”.

O2 is an artist’s book about oxygen. While it is not in-depth, scientifically, it is colourful, enjoyable and beautiful.This project started as a drawing study of the beautiful cell formations of oxygen-producing organisms and their structures. This triggered a curiosity about their function and history, which in turn led to the creation of this artists’ book from accumulated images and information.

This piece is also a labour of love, created entirely by hand. All the paper is my own handmade paper, made exclusively for this project. All images are my own, which I transferred and hand relief-printed. I also wrote all the text, based on my research, which I then screenprinted. And finally, I hand bound each book, completing this project and turning the prints into an art object, an artist’s book.

Hand printed in a limited edition of 9 books, there are only a couple of copies left. To read more, see them in my Etsy shop here.

Wordless Wednesday 22.04.15

Posted on April 22, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 197/365

Uppercase

Posted on April 21, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 196/365

Exciting news!!

A couple of days ago the latest issue of Uppercase magazine arrived in the mail. It’s the printmaking issue and I’ve been waiting for it for a while now. Wondering why? Take a look at that photo above!! That’s page 85 folks, 85!! Woot woot! I’m honoured to be featured in this magazine, and a little over the top excited about it! (okay, maybe totally over the top excited about it!)

Anyone who’s read Uppercase knows what I mean, it’s a really fantastic magazine. And if you haven’t read it (or even just held a copy in your hands) you really should! I’ve been inspired by past issues on numerous occasions. I keep all my old issues and refer to them regularly for advice, prompts and to look up featured artists whose work I love. I mean, the slogan is: For the creative and curious. Perfection. It’s an informative, insightful, inspiring and beautiful publication, go check it out!

The Wayzgoose Annual Book Arts Fair

Posted on April 20, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 195/365

It’s the best time of the year; time for the Wayzgoose!! I’m not even going to try and hide the fact that this is my most favourite show of the year, anyone who’s attended will understand.

This is an annual gathering of bookbinders, book artists, papermakers, printmakers, paper marblers, and anyone who makes things to do with these things. We all get together for the day to show our work, engage in shop talk and be inspired! It’s the best.

Traditionally a Wayzgoose is a feast held by a printing house for it’s employees. Today the Wayzgoose is a day-long fair, plus a gorgeous letterpress printed poster (like the one above by Graven Feather, of course!). And it’s also when the Wayzgoose anthology comes out, which is bound in a limited edition of 115 copies each year, with signatures from the vendors of the fair and local printmakers. Like I said, it’s pretty incredible! Check it out if you can, details below.

When: Saturday April 25, 9am – 5pm
Where: Grimsby Public Art Gallery, 18 Carnegie Lane, Grimsby, Ontario.

For more information, please visit the gallery’s site here.

The Studio On a Sunday

Posted on April 19, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 194/365

DSC_0716 - Version 2

It’s paper-dying time! Believe it or not, I used all my hand-dyed paper from the last session! This batch focused on shades of indigo, as opposed to last time where I also used greens and browns.

Huge thanks to everyone that showed so much enthusiasm for journals with this unique and one of a kind cover! Stay tuned for more indigo journals!!