Friday 7 August 2015

Out and About

Who am I (#1)?

That I'm having more time to myself is being reflected in the creative work I'm producing, both from quantity and quality perspectives.

Bloomin' #1

It's not that I've just got a bunch of different pieces in various stages scattered about -- although that's true too -- but it's how I feel when I'm working on them, how quickly some of them are coming together, and how good they make me feel inside as they head towards completion.

But they aren't all perfect: I ripped one knitting piece out a few weeks ago, and then began again with a different yarn for one section, which I like much better than the first one I selected, but after knitting about a foot of it, I've found myself thinking that it can be better and I'm close to ripping it out again.

Spring in summer #3

Other pieces have almost made themselves though: after binding only three books in the past four-and-a-half years (two OK, one, um, not-so-much), I committed to creating a blank journal as a silent auction prize: I've been moving closer to going back to that expressive process for awhile, and needed motivation. Some things, like creating the signatures, were easy, with my hands moving competently, but it took me three tries (and a lot of extra bookboard) to get a set of covers that I'm happy with.

That being said, carving out the insides to accommodate the gluing of the strips of folded paper for the two ends of the Japanese box closure that will hold the Coptic-sewn binding was a piece of cake, as was making the cornstarch paste that I mixed with PVA, and gluing the papers onto the covers, which I did this morning. I need to wait until the covers are dry before piercing holes and sewing, which will give me a chance to go back and work on a couple of other projects over the next few days, as well as take a class.

Fresh-picked

I've been cooking and freezing more things on "kitchen" days, so that "studio" days are relatively uninterrupted but I still get a good, hearty, nutritious meal at the end of a productive adventure.

Sun goes down

And, amazingly, I've managed to get out of town twice in the last month, if only for a few hours, where most of these photographs for today's post were shot. That's helped my mood when I've returned as well: it's been quite enjoyable!

Books for Sale

The shop is currently empty.