Star Book 3

Here is another star book that I have been working on. This one features a front frame panel. The second layer is a layer that has a heart cutout. The final layer is a background from which a cut out heart is suspended.

Here is the opened book.

Here is the front view.

Star Book2

Here is my next Star Book. The front layer is simply a frame. The second layer is composed of a variety of vellum and thin papers so I could see how transparent the different media were. The back layer is a reverse folded panel with a hand cut heart. The purpose of the reverse folding is so I could put a battery operated tea light in place.

There is the view of the book without the tea light.



Here is the star book with the tea light illuminated and the lights turned out. The light gets projected through the cut out and onto the vellum.

Star Book 1

This is my newest bookbinding obsession--star books. Here is the latest addition to my arsenal. The star book.

The front layer is a peephole that looks onto the middle layer which has a cutout heart. I believe that I have finally found my niche.

Iron Craft 43

This week we were challenged to do a craft that we had never done or were afraid to do. There were so many projects that I could have done. First, I thought about trying knitting again. Nah. Started and stopped too many times. I then thought about doing a candlemaking project but I didn't want to go and buy some supplies. I also thought about doing a project with sculpey or shrinky dinks but I didn't want to go out and buy more materials. After last week's sewing project, I thought about sewing or possibly a block or two for a quilt.

I then thought about doing a paper quilt. I had seen books on the topic and thought that I would try one since it seemed right up my alley. The problem that I had was converting the quilt directions into paper directions. Unfortunately, sewing measurements require you cut larger pieces than needed to allow for seam allowances. With paper, you don't need seam allowances so nothing fit together. After about three hours of cutting, trimming and pasting, I came up with the above piece. While suitable for this week's project, I know that I could do better.

I decided to try a different approach. If I thickened the lines on the patterns that I was using, I could then cut out the outlines similar to a stained glass look. I could then piece together the interior pieces which would be guaranteed to fit. Here is the same pattern but with the "grout" lines intact. I went from a paper quilt to a paper mosaic.



Once the pieces are cut, you can then fill in the interior pieces. I chose a three color monochromatic palette. I alternated the pattern between light, medium and dark shades and then alternated the patterns in a 3 x 3 grid. I placed small strips of paper to act as borders.

P10K:Day 59

The last entry for catching up--Week Ending October 23, 2011

Monday
Sewing Project (2 hrs)
Blogging (1 hr)

Tuesday
Sewing Project (3 hrs)
Photography (1 hr)
Blogging (1 hr)

Wednesday
Star Book (1 hr)

Thursday
Butterfly Book (2 hr)

Friday
Blogging (1 hr)

Saturday
Inventory (4 hrs)

Sunday
Inventory (4 hrs)

Week total: 20 hrs
Cumulative total: 206 hrs

P10K:Day 52

Week Ending October 16, 2011

Monday
Blogging (2 hrs)
Paper Cuts (2 hrs)

Tuesday
Blogging (1 hr)
Paper Cuts (2 hrs)
Photography (1 hr)

Wednesday
Photography (1 hr)
Blogging (1 hr)

Thursday
Blogging (1 hr)

Friday
Star Book (1 hr)

Saturday
Class (6 hrs)

Sunday (6 hrs)

Week Total: 24 hours
Cumulative Total: 186 hrs

P10K:Day 45

OK, so I know that I am behind in my Project 10K posting but I will rectify that now.

Week ending October 9, 2011

Monday
Clear Day Poster (2 hrs)
Star Book (3 hrs)
Blogging (2 hrs)
Photography (1hr)

Tuesday
Star book (1 hr)
Angelo Book (2 hrs)
Blogging (1 hr)

Wednesday
Butterfly book (3 hrs)

Thursday
Blogging (1 hr)

Friday
Photography (2 hrs)

Saturday
Class (6 hrs)

Sunday
Class (6 hrs)

Week Total: 30 hrs
Cumulative Total: 162 hrs

Iron Craft 42

This week's challenge was to create a plushie based on an imaginery friend. I never really had an imaginery friend when I was growing up but one of the first TV shows that I remember growing up was the New Zoo Review. I was enamored with Henrietta the Hippo. I always loved owls so Charlie the Owl was also a favorite.

This week, I decided to make an homage to Charlie the Owl. I wanted to use to types of material and in support of my pledge not to buy any new material for these challenges, I donated two of my shirts to the cause.


I was going to use both fabrics but I just couldn't get them to work together so I decided to use the brown material. I also had to get my sewing machine and recover it from the cobwebs that had settled on it.

I didn't realize how rusty I had gotten with my sewing skills. It took me 30 minutes to remember how to thread the machine, another 40 minutes trying to wind bobbins and several failed attempts to get the tension and stitch length correct.



Here is the final result. While I completed the project in time, I will probably do this project over and ask for a mulligan. The project is simple and turned out OK but I know I can do better. Next time I won't wait until the last minute to do a sewing project.

Iron Craft 41

OK--I know, I know. I'm behind in my posts this week and it's all because of that stupid holiday. No, the holiday isn't stupid; it's simply the extra day off gives me more time to do stuff that I don't usually have time to do. So rather than rest and enjoy the extra day off--I fill the time up until the break of exhaustion overtakes me and then I need a day off from my extra day off. People who tell me they wish the day had extra hours in a day are simply crazy. I would cram more stuff in the extra hours and make myself even more tired than I already am.

This week's challenge for Iron Craft was Halloween. I knew it was coming and yet I was still unprepared. I hemmed and hawed over what to do. I was going to do a papier mache monster--didn't happen. I was going to do a big wall hanging--didn't happen. I was even going to paint a clear shower curtain with blood stains--but I couldn't find a cheap shower curtain, so--it didn't happen.

So, I fell back on an old mainstay--paper cuts. I did two paper cuts this week hoping that I would like at least one of them. I want to do an airbrush t-shirt for a Halloween party that I have coming up. These are the two designs that I finished for this week. I do like the mummy skull on the right. Both of these paper cuts are mounted on a hand dyed paper which gives it that withered look and I will then mount them on white paper and frame them for Halloween decorations in the future.

Iron Craft 40

This week we were challenged to make something out of a glass or container. I cheated a little bit and make something with glass rather than out of glass. Some might call it cheating--I call it using artistic license.

The title of this piece is "Pickled Garden." I cut a flower garland out of card stock and then wrapped it around some PVC pipe and glued it to the lid of a mason jar. There are three layers of garland and two different PVC pipes.

The first layer is wrapped on the inside circumference of the smaller pipe. The second layer is wrapped around the outside of the smaller pipe. The smaller pipe is then placed inside the larger PVC pipe. The last layer is wrapped on the outside of the larger PVC pipe.

(l) Pickled Garden

(r) detail of the lid

Blue Book

A friend of mine had a birthday recently. He was hosting a birthday party at his party where we had a grand old time. Thinking that I was doing something good, I brought him a couple of bottles of alcohol. Having done so, I thought that I was a good friend by bringing a bottle of liquor for the party and one for my friend as a gift.

Two weeks pass and I meet with my friends for Sunday dinner and I asked the birthday boy if he had a nice birthday and if he got everything he wanted. I was surprised when he said he didn't get the one gift that he really wanted. When I asked him what it was, he replied "I really wanted one of your journals." Well, color me surprised. Secondly, how in the hell was I supposed to know.

I put this book together to give to him as a belated birthday present. I hope that he likes it.

Star Book

This is another example of how instructions in a book are not specific enough to accurately complete the project. I have been doing some research on Star Books. The instructions in one book clearly stated that the difference in page size between layer one and layer two has to be one half of the difference in page size between the second and third layers. In other words, if the first layer has pages that are 1.5 inches and the second layer has pages that are 2 inches then the third layer has to have pages that are 3 inches in width. Theoretically, this is correct but unfortunately, what they don't tell you is that a 1.5 inch pages does not adequately allow for the book to open into a star. After a lot of trial and error, I realized that the second layer should be .75 inches wider than layer one. Also, the double rule of the second and third layer is then still applicable. In other words, if your first layer is 2.5 inches wide, the second layer should be 3.25 inches wide and then your third layer should be 4 inches wide.


(l)Lots of trial and error
(r) Even more trial and error

One important aspect of this project is the need to use lots of scrap (i.e., inexpensive paper). Because of the need to build several prototypes, it would be unfeasible to use your expensive paper on making models. I always make prototypes beging committing to a project.


Here is my paper pile for the protoypes. The orange and yellow paper was on sale for ten cents a sheet--perfect for prototypes.


(l) Here is the completed prototype.
(r) An aerial view of the prototype

Once the prototype is completed, you are free to experiment with other media. The above were make with cover weight paper. The prototype below was made with Duplex 110lb cardstock.


(l) Here is the detailed view of the duplex cardstock star book.
(r) An aerial view of the duplex cardstock star book.

P10K:Day 38

OK--I have to admit. I was a slug this week but it wasn't all my fault. I got a new phone on Monday and any extra time was spent learning about my new touch screen phone, programming, searching for new apps, buying said apps and being all together too cool to know what do about myself. And no--it isn't an I-phone.

Monday
0 hours

Tuesday
Blogging (1 hr)
Photography (2 hrs)

Wednesday
0 hours

Thursday
0 hours

Friday
Blogging (1 hr)

Saturday
Inventory (2 hrs)
Shopping (2 hrs)
Clear Day Poster (1 hr)
Star Book Research (1 hr)

Sunday
Blogging (1 hr)
Clear Day Poster (2 hrs)
Cleaning/Organizing ( 2 hrs)
Paper Box (2 hrs)
Star Book (2 hrs)

Week total - 18 hrs
Cumulative total - 132 hrs