Book Art

Mixed media, layered, slow-stitched, with text, twig and fabric sketching, antler and paper wasp bits, all come together as collaged clusters that tell a unique story.

My forest backyard called out the color palette of pine needle duff, lichens, moss and spruce needle greens. This is my summer studio and place of peace and where fluting veery and fox shows up sometimes with feather gifts!

My “Just Because” book, Wood Notes! This 6 x 5 x 3" , 8 page fabric book was dyed with acrylics, alcohol inks and 1920 Putnam’s ecru dye for fibers and fabrics.

Cover: Twigs that wren stuffed in my clothespin bag, found dropped deer antler button I cut, and antique Peace pin are parts of my book story. There is dyed vintage lace and wool with eco-printed note papers tucked within secret pockets!

Thank you to artist Susan Taylor Brown for the fab J. B. idea! I loved making this and love the feel and chunky squish of this book.

Artist Naturalist Journal & Field Bag $685

See the Journal's Flip Through of pages here:

Handmade mark-making tools of feathers, fibers, and cattail reed. Altered canvas and leather vintage knife roll bag, this repurposed bag holds the three-ring bound Artist Naturalist Journal. The interactive sketchbook celebrates the early artist explorers who chronicled North America and invites the owner to share in that natural world discovery.

Pockets in the bag hold a vintage Bingo card watercolor palette with three colors, a pine needle brush, and mussel shell water dish for painting in the field. The book itself has miniature notebooks for field notes, specimen cards, poetry prompt shaker card, and more! Plenty of journaling space in creative hand-carved stamped pages, "feathers", and heavy pastel and charcoal and watercolor paper for sketches.

The Artist Naturalist Journal is collaged with sketches of old and call the artist to record and preserve their observations. The nature artist journey begins!

Description and book specs:

36 pages, 2.5" x 11" x 8 1/4", with 42" beaded, stitched, dyed cloth book tie closure. FRONT COVER: (outer) collaged with pen nib in collector display card (inner) magnetic writing board. BACK COVER: (inner) lithograph hand-pulled print collage, "Specimen" collecting case FIELD BAG POCKET contents: BINGO 3 color palette (burnt sienna, blue, and moonglow), white pine bundle brush, cedar pencil, and mussel shell water dish. FIELD BAG TOOL POCKET: Cattail stick tools, brush, yarn mop brush, turkey feather, feather brush.

CLUSTERS: 3 slow-stitched, vintage stamps and buttons on distressed cloth EXTRAS: 4 - Matchbook note books 4 - Mini Flip notebooks 2 - Altered card notebooks with belly band 1 - Accordion FLORA book 1 - Altered original art graphite drawing on builder paper holds double pocket folder 6 - Pressed, dried specimens (in pockets) 1 - Magnifier card 2 - "Feather" writing papers 1 - "Tweet" bird sketch writing envelope 4 - Antique "Game of Authors" game cards

Tan charcoal drawing paper Pastel drawing paper Coffee-stained sketch paper 2 - Watercolor paper waterfall notebooks Journal writing pages, hand-carved stamps 1 - LARGE paper clip 1, vintage papers sewn in "Camp" notebook 3 - Watercolor paper stamped POST CARDS 2 -

Specimen BOOKMARKS 1 - Poetry SHAKER card 1 - Small BEADED DANGLE mussel shell on chain for water Alcohol dyed 3" binder rings. Stitched pockets and pages, handmade page reinforcements. Hand-carved stamps: crow, turtle, lily pad, mushroom, toad, fish, feather. The book may be displayed standing upright or stored in canvas "field bag". The bag strap is sturdy canvas with leather closure straps.

Book of Light & Shadow $795

YouTube Walk-Through of Book of Light & Shadows

This Book of Light & Shadow celebrates the hero's journey of the self in three book-tabbed stages. This book's bones is an 1880s photograph album and contains several of the photos that came with it.

The book stores on an easel that has a new collaged box with drawer. the drawer front is the original celluloid and brass drawer pull. The book was gutted due to heavy damage and aging. Velvet powdered off, celluloid cracked, and the phot pages aged and worn. But the photos are in lovely condition. I did keep original elements, the closure, and some pieces of binding, celluloid bits, and the usable photo pages to use in this combining the old with the new. The chain closure has a an embossed vintage dog with the cover lady's hand image beckoning one to open the book. Let's go!

Book specs: The book is 9 x 11.5 x 3.5", brass easel, and wooden drawer filled with goodies! Three signatures in a blind spine. Approximately 86 pages (some tiny ones, too)

Extras: Magical drawer items include a handmade 24 card mixed media collaged Runic Forest Oracle deck on vintage game cards. A pendulum and scrying mirror and a protection spell bottled charm. The book spine holds a driftwood, Lake Michigan polished wand with paper beads and charm and a small willow/jute broom that can be used as a brush for paint or ink.

I jumped into stripping the book down to the wood covers, giving new shimmery cloth pocket spine with vintage buttons and reattached the storing bar in back. Then the fun began!

Creating and collaging pages from my eco-dye and prints. Each page spoke as to where and what goes next. Vintage fabrics, laces, beads and more embellish the cabinet cards within. Seven original cabinet cards and two photos.

More goodies! The book contents: pockets, tucks, vintage game cards, buttons, along with pieces of binding and cover bits. There is a poppet doll with notes and thread tucked into the front cover pocket, a pocket dancing witchy doll in the back cover pocket. Plenty, plenty, plenty of writing and journaling space!

And more! There are 16 tiny notebooks (one as a tea bag!) a large paper clip, decorated paper clips, birch strips for earthy notes, mini Ouija board with my art on it and mini Rook planchette, card 13! Letters, feathers, 3 botanical postcards, 3 plant lore cards, potion labels, 1 stereocard, an eco-dyed Blessings card, and 1 poetry shaker with writing prompt "I Remember."