Thursday, March 7, 2013

Stamp-Carving, Painting, & Book Binding, Oh My!



Do you ever wake up thinking, "today I must (insert craft or art project.)" The other day I woke up thinking about carving rubber stamps. As soon as I had a free moment, I started digging through my supplies to find my lino cutter and anything to carve. If you've never tried cutting your own stamps, you've got to give it a whirl. You only need a lino cutting set (I buy the cheap Speedball version) and a piece of rubber (you can even use pink school erasers.) I find the process to be extremely soothing. There is just something about the feel of cutting into the rubber and then seeing your idea stamped out in black ink. Like so many creative techniques... I don't know why, it just feels good.


I happened to have a few erasers and one block of pink rubber, so I sat down and let the carving begin. 

I started by making some facial feature stamps. I thought it might be nice to stamp out some faces. I drew each shape onto the rubber with a pencil, then carved out the negative spaces.


New nose and mouth choices...


It is fun to see how many expressions you can make with only a few facial feature stamps.


Next I moved into what I call free-style carving. I just started carving some marks in the rubber without thinking about the end design. Some lines turned into easy-to-recognize designs, while other lines turned into interesting abstract shapes.




I used the free-style set to make some new papers. I  started by coating old dictionary pages with gesso and a watery layer of acrylic paint.



 Once dry, I added a layer of deli paper to each side using matte liquid medium as the adhesive.


Next, I stamped away using Staz-on ink to prevent any kind of smudging or smearing. I coated the stamped layer with another layer of matte medium. 

 
I ended up having a lovely stack of papers. 


I decided to bind them together into a little book. I bound my book using the detailed method I learned through an online course called The Mixed Media Variety Hour through The Land of Lost Luggage with Julie Prichard. In Julie's lesson, she shows you how to create signatures (smaller bound booklets) that you sew together to create a fully bound book. I started by creating three signatures using about 6 papers each.


I then sewed the signatures together and bound the edge with a scrap from an old canvas painting disaster.



I made a few alterations with my version, mainly because I did not follow the instructions carefully (shocker.)
Now I want to make more books. The book-binding experience is actually much easier than I thought it would be. And even if you mess up a little... well, it is a "hand-bound" book, so the imperfections are somewhat endearing. 


Are you a stamp carver? What do you like to carve?


16 comments:

  1. Love where you show the lovely stack of papers-the arrows page is really great!

    I carve a little. I have no feeling in my hands, so it's challenging, but I also find it really relaxing.

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    1. Thank you Lelainia. It sounds like carving would indeed be challenging for you, but I love it that you do it anyway and still find it relaxing. I do too!

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  2. Pages of lips, love it. I really like that first nose, has so much presence. xox

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    1. Thanks Corrine! I want to play around more with the faces!

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  3. Lovely - I like organic shapes and have tried lettering...want to do more of that.

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    1. Thanks Lynette. I have done a little lettering, but really should buck up and carve an entire set of letters so that I can use them more often to spell out different words and phrases. I've done short phrases on individual stamps, but then I rarely use them. Must make more!

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  4. Oh what fun you've had Jenny!! Fantastic carvings-I especially love the idea of carving out separate facial features. I got hooked after taking Julie fei fan Balzer's online stamp carving class. Your book is a great way to showcase your carvings.

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    1. Thanks Linda. I know you are a carving addict too. So much fun!

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  5. Ok, now I was to become a stamp carver. I would never have imagined it would be so easy to do! Yours turned out beautifully. I love them all! Way to go.

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    1. yes, Loulou... you need to try this. I think you would love it and would use it with your card-making and other cool craft projects!

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  6. I am very curious why you added deli paper. Was it to reinforce the old book papers? Also what is the size of your book?

    Love the stamps... the papers... the book!

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    1. Thank you very much! I'm so glad you stopped by. Great question. I added the deli paper for a few reasons, but the main reason is... I just like how it looks! I like my papers to be a little trashy, so the filmy softness of the deli paper makes it feel layered and softer to me. The benefits of the deli paper are that 1)it does indeed reinforce the old papers and 2)it is gentler on my pens when I write on it. Sometimes the gesso and acrylic paint make the writing surface a little scratchy for the Pitt pens I use to write. I think they wear out faster (and they are expensive!)The deli paper is nice and smooth.

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    2. I have learned a valuable lesson.

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  7. Hi Jenny! I am so happy to see you followed through and made a book out of your papers! Great idea...looking forward to seeing your next book too...come back any time!

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    1. Thanks Julie. I'm so glad I know how to make them now!

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  8. I really enjoyed looking at your way cool stamps! Makes me want to get out those supplies that are buried...but I'm in the middle of learning my friend's computerized machine so I can quilt a baby quilt for her. Next week though!

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