Wednesday, July 13, 2016

In the studio

The Connecticut chapter of Surface Design Association (SDA) met last week for our monthly gathering/summer party to share ideas, ask for suggestions, tell about upcoming exhibitions, etc. Anita Balkun shared Esther K. Smith's How to MAKE BOOKS.


The book is wonderful, beginning with the textured cover. 


Helpful diagrams are found throughout. 


This morning, while my not-so-little urchins were still asleep, I decided to try a few of Esther's instructions for making accordion books from one sheet of paper.


After folding and refolding per the diagrams, I turned the sheet over to begin cutting. The spiral is more visible this way.


The last step is folding this way and that to transform one sheet of paper into a funky accordion. The corners create a V in one place and an M in another which break the traditional accordion shape. I'm eager to try this again with more folds...and with paint on both sides of the paper. Stay tuned!

6 comments:

  1. What a great book.. Looks like even those of us who are all thumbs might be able to follow along... 😉

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Funny. I know exactly what you mean though. Enjoy!

      Delete
  2. Your little book looks terrific! I also love the marks you made.
    I just finished my first Japanese stab binding book which holds together all pages with instructions of my last online workshop. So I'm now ready to try something new. Thank you for sharing your wonderful work and for inspiring me.
    Sending you kind greetings from the EU.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Elenor! I love accordion books and had never imagined that a whole book could be made from one continuous page of paper . Definitely food for thought.

      Funny that you mentioned Japanese stab binding as that's what I'll be moving on to in a few days. Need to ready some paper first. Enjoy!

      Delete
  3. I took my first bookbinding class with Esther Smith and I recommend her books to everyone! She is a great teacher and this book gives you SO much to play with and learn from. There are variations galore too!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. What a treat to have taken a class with Esther Smith! It must have been as fun as it was instructional given how easy and enjoyable, yet knowledge-filled this book is. Enjoy!

      Delete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...