Day 97/365
It’s that time of year when folks who live in places like Ontario dream of warm places with beaches and palm trees. Did you know that Sprouts Press makes custom travel journals?
I hand-stitch the covers to depict a cityscape of your destination, making it a perfect keepsake when you return!
Usually I put watercolour paper inside, to encourage creativity when travelling, but if writing’s your thing you just prefer thinner paper, I’m happy to help.
Day 96/365
Today in the studio it’s all about Valentines Day! Many shades of pink, red and white are floating around here, all in the name of books of course.
A sneak peek at some new designs for a series of Star Cross’d Lovers Book Ornaments.
With inside pages from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, of course. 
Keep your eyes peeled for these to be released in my Etsy shop next week!
Day 95/365
This is one of the books from the ‘Journeys in Winter’ series, from a couple years back. When winter in Toronto was more mud and gravel than snow. It was a bit disappointing for me as I do love some winter sports, but I didn’t mind the milder temperatures (mostly it hovered around 0 degrees celsius, give or take).
There were several books in the series, and I have a few left. They are based on the idea of combining printmaking, painting and bookbinding, which I’ve discussed here. But I also really like the structure of the book; a matchbox! 
The binding is a Japanese Hemp Leaf binding, which is great for single sheet pages.
You can see from a side view just little snippets of the page papers: maps, graph, lined, blank and colours! It really is a great little book for a winter journey!
Since I hand paint/print the covers, every book is different. Even the front and back covers are different on the same book.
Day 94/365
As you may have noticed from my previous post, I’m on a bit of a hand-lettering and calligraphy kick these days. I’m also enjoying the idea of a few posts that promote journalling, sketching and using journals in general. When I first had this idea I immediately pulled my quotes journal from the bookshelf, and decided to share a few of my favourite pages. 
I will admit that this is a big step for me, I don’t usually share the contents of my journals and sketchbooks. But these are just quick, pretty little notes that I jotted down in less than 10 minutes. And that’s the idea, you can do it too! 
You can find quotes all over the place: online, via a ‘quotes’ app (there are many!), at the library, etc. Sometimes the best are snippets of conversations overheard in passing, or by looking at groupings of book titles on shelves to see if they form a sentence. It’s also fun to pick up a book and open it to a random page and see what you get, like a box of chocolates! (Well, maybe not quite like chocolates, but you get the idea) 
Fun pens and markers are also a welcome addition. A bit of colour or shading can give your page just the right tone.
If you want to try this yourself here are a couple of tips:
-Choose a quote that isn’t too long, make sure it fits on the page and that there’s room for a border to be drawn around it.
-Make sure to jot down the author of the quote so you can give credit and search for more inspiring words by that person.
-You can put a ground of colour down first with markers (as in the last photo above), and then write your quote on top.
-Feel free to use a simple, minimalist border or to get more creative and swirly. Really whatever you feel like is what goes!
-Don’t try to make it too perfect, this is meant to be a quick exercise that is fun and enjoyable!
Do you have any other tips for quick quote-taking? Have fun!
Day 93/365
It’s a book smorgasbord! A smorgasbook, if you will!
Take a look some of the lovely handbound books that have found new homes over the last few months. Maybe one of them is now yours? I’d love to hear your favourite journalling topics and techniques!
Day 92/365
Day 91/365
As I look to possible shows for 2015, I found my folder of show posters from 2014.
I thought a collage of some of the best were in order, as a tip to new sellers for great shows/markets to participate in. But it’s also a shameless display of the poster-making talent found in Toronto! I especially like the hand-lettered poster for the Toronto Etsy Street Team’s Springtime Marketplace. (I know, I know, I’m on a hand-lettering and calligraphy kick lately). I also love the letterpress printed poster for the Wayzgoose in Grimsby!
While I missed the OCAD Book Arts Fair this year, the student-produced, hand-printed poster is usually a showstopper. Check out the previous years posters below.
Poster from 2012:
Poster from 2013:
Day 90/365
Today has been all about dusting off my old calligraphy stuff. It’s old in age, but new again to me! I’m starting pretty much from scratch, with some great titles from the library to inspire and guide me. I will admit that I actually dusted this stuff off during my OOAK prep as a way to find peace and calm amidst the chaos and stress. But it was short-lived and pretty much just the act of putting paper to pen. Now I’m focusing on my skills and the creative possibilities of hand lettering.
I’m hoping to use this as a springboard to more posts about growing skills to use your journals and sketchbooks. So, follow along and learn with me, I promise it’ll be fun!
Day 88/365
After the conclusion of a large project, or the close of a busy holiday season I often find myself searching for what’s next. Obviously I’ve got all the ‘business’ things to keep the left side of my brain busy these days. But what about the next steps for the creativity that drives Sprouts Press, what will the next collection of journals be? What function will they serve or what questions will they answer, if any? Will they just be pretty objects that also happen to be books or something else?
I’ve found myself circling around a few topics and activities over the last couple of weeks that seem to be influencing these decisions. While I’m not going to share what they are, (yet, sorry!) I’d love to tell you how I reached them, with the hope that other kindred spirits are also on this type of quest and might find it useful. 
So, this is what I do:
1. Go to the library. Take the library bag. Spend around 2/3 of the time in the non-fiction section and 1/3 in the fiction section. I like to choose books that are a combination of inspiring and instructional, and books on things that I’ve never tried before (ie. traditional Norwegian knitting!! So beautiful!). And while I probably won’t actually learn traditional Norwegian knitting, I will certainly enjoy the craftsmanship and detail of the pieces in the book.
Gather enough books to max out your library card. Seriously. (It doesn’t cost anything, unless you don’t return them on time. I *may* have done this once or twice). While it’s nice to know exactly what you want to look at, it’s so great to just wander the stacks and see what pops out, what titles catch your eye.
2. Drink tea in the sunshine. This one requires a bit more patience, for me anyways. To find a sunny window and really enjoy a cup of my favourite tea while not thinking about anything else, just the tea. I will be honest, it’s rare that I can do this for an entire cup of tea. Usually it’s just half the cup, then I get sidetracked/eager to look at my library books. I still enjoy the tea, but more in a gulping look-at-that-awesome-piece-of-artwork kind of way. In the summertime this is an outdoor/backyard/cafe patio activity!
3. Tidy up the workspace. I’ve said this before, but a tidy workspace really is so inviting when starting a new project. Everything is easily found and nothing needs to be moved out of the way to clear another corner of the desk. I suppose it’s the same idea with a journal; the blank page is uncluttered and prepped for your ideas and creativity.
On days when I do these things in the morning, I find the rest of the day just flies by with me working away and before I know it, it’s time to start dinner. I get completely lost in designing or creating or researching, and I love it! Give it a try and let me know how it goes.
Day 87/365
It’s the last day of Sprouts Press’ boxing week sale!! Now’s the time to scoop that journal you’ve been eyeing and use it to start 2015 right! You have until midnight tonight.
In other news, I would normally share my new year’s resolutions now, being the first *real* day of the new year (the 1st is a holiday, but the 2nd is for real). But I cannot as they are all surprises, so you must wait! I’m done with the boring, mundane and expected resolutions. I figure they should just happen all the time anyways.
Hope everyone’s new year has started off on a stellar note!
Sprouts Press 