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.

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.

SpringPop!

Posted on April 17, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 192/365

Today marks the start of the SpringPop Pop Up Shop & Maker Mart!

The show is located in beautiful downtown Burlington, right by the lake. Sprouts Press will have some items there: lots of styles of journals and sketchbooks large and small, some mini book necklaces, ex libris bookplates and bookbinding kits! There are so many talented artisans, artists and makers showcasing their work at this show, go and check it out if you’re able!

Where: 408 John St., Burlington, Ontario
When: April 17 *Opening: 6pm – 9pm, April 18: 10am – 6pm, April 19: 12pm – 5pm.

For more information, directions, etc, please go here.

Silkscreens and Thistles

Posted on April 9, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 184/365

You might have noticed that I’m trying to do a blog post on each of my items or series of items, to showcase their story and the process that goes into designing and crafting them.

Today I’m focusing on the Screenprinted Linen Pouches. There have been a few variations, this being what is currently available, and my favourite!

There are two images on these pouches: Queen Anne’s Lace and Thistles, both plants found in the countryside of southern Ontario. These are plants that I sketched on-site, on a beautiful sunny summer’s day (it really was that gorgeous of a day!).

Then I transferred my sketches to my silkscreen. I do this freehand, with a tracing technique, as opposed to photo based screenprinting. The result is that nothing in this process ever goes through a computer, it’s all analog.

After printing the fabric, linen of course, it’s heat-set and pre-washed. Then I cut the patterns and sew it into the lovely little pouches pictured!

After the zipper embellishments are added (hemp cord and wood beads) they’re ready for sale. The idea behind these little gems is to capture a moment and carry it with you, whether it’s a road trip, a special gift to a friend or that amazing sunny summer’s day. As always with Sprouts Press items: functional and beautiful!

To view all my screenprinted fabric items, go here.

Spring Time Collaboration

Posted on April 3, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 178/365

Introducing the Spring Gift Pack from Graven Feather:
I am so proud to announce that my Quick Notes notebooks in gold are a part of these gorgeous sets! They are curated by Graven Feather and showcase the work of a few local artisans and shops. (and did I mention how beautiful they are??)

Housed in handmade paper from Paperhouse Studio here in Toronto, Graven Feather printed on the reverse and hand crafted each folder. Inside you’ll find all sorts of goodies including one of my handbound gold notebooks, as pictured above.
Inside you’ll also find a pen from Articulations and several other printed goodies! (I’m not spilling the beans on the rest of the contents – you’ll just have to get your own to find out!) When secured shut (gorgeous!!) it’s the perfect place to keep your cherished ephemera and paper treasures. The Spring Gift Pack also makes the perfect gift for Mothers day or a special birthday or anyday!

Morsels of Spring

Posted on March 30, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 174/365

According to our calendars, spring is officially here. But in reality it’s not quite here yet! So I’m taking this time to stock up on these little book magnets. Or as I like to call them, morsels of spring!

Every part of these tiny books are offcuts from larger projects that I just can’t justify tossing. They’re papers I decorated by hand; paste papers, resist techniques, relief prints, and just washes of colour.
When bundled together in a set of 6, they’re quite cheerful! The idea is to make your own mini library, or share some with a friend!

To learn more and see them on Etsy, go here.

Use Your Journal No.5

Posted on March 26, 2015 by sproutspress

Day 170/365

Spring is in the air, the snow is melting/melted and many of us are eager to help welcome the new season.Usually, springtime means spring cleaning. Oh joy.

Today’s post is a mix of ‘Use Your Journal’ and spring cleaning, specifically; getting your books, journals and sketchbooks organized and accounted for! In a fun way, I promise!
My secret weapon to accomplish this, if you haven’t already guessed, is with Ex Libris bookplates.

Ex Libris bookplates are labels that go in the front cover of your books (journals, sketchbooks, novels, biographies, etc). Ex Libris is latin and roughly translates to ‘from the library of’. Therefore, when you write your name in the space provided on each bookplate, you are creating your own library! What’s more organized than a library!?

My Ex Libris bookplates are my own designs that I carve into lino blocks. Then I hand print each one onto self-adhesive paper, making it easy and convenient for you to label your beloved books. I’ve printed two different designs, each in a few different colours, you can read about my process here.

I’ve even got gold bookplates! They’re actually quite beautiful and classy, and make a great gift when tucked in the front of a special book for a friend. To recap, here are 3 steps to incorporate Ex Libris bookplates into your journalling, sketching and book-collecting lives, making it even more fun to use your journal!

1. Choose a selection of journals/sketchbooks/books to be labelled.

2. Write your name in the space provided on the bookplate. Some people also like to write the date they start the book.

2a. If you’re giving a special journal/book as a gift and want to put an ex libris bookplate in the front cover, you can write the recipient’s name and the date. You can also write the occasion for the gift, as a memento for life milestones or achievements.

3. Once you’ve written the info in the space provided on the bookplate, peel off the backing and adhere to the inside front cover of the book/journal/sketchbook. Repeat for all your most fancy and special books!

Have fun!