A Book a Day? What's Up With That?


Hi, and welcome to this year-long project. So what's this all about and how did it happen, you might ask. In mid 2007, artist Noah Scalin decided to make a skull out of anything he could find, every day for a year. It stretched him in ways he never imagined, as an artist, a writer and a person. His experience turned into a blog that went viral, and then a book.

Others have picked up on the idea: 365 Hearts, 365 Masks, 365 Bears drawn on a cellphone, 365 paper napkin mustaches.
I wanted to play, too, and I chose books. I love books, I know a bit about making books (thanks to my talented book-maker sister, Marilyn Worrix), and they're broad enough in definition to give me a lot of creative leeway.

The whole point is not really the books. The idea is to stretch myself in many ways as an artist and a person, to set up a discipline, stick with it and see what that teaches me.

I hope you'll join with me and follow along on the journey chronicled here, and let me know what you think.

Monday, July 25, 2011

Book 180 - A Simple Lotería Pocket Notebook - Japanese Stab Binding

This is a really simple little book, a Japanese stab bound notebook. At about 3 1/2x4 1/2', it's a nice size for a pocket or purse.

I realized recently how much money I've already spent on this challenge in materials, so I set myself a special challenge today: to see if I could make a book for literally pennies in materials.The lotería cards were cut from one big card from a set I bought in the open market while I was in Mexico. I think the whole set cost about $3, which means the part I used is worth about 15 cents. The pages are cut from brown painter's masking paper. It's t hin and slightly shiny on one side. I bought it at a paint store, in a roll 9" wide by 180' long for about $1.50 For the pages, I used about 15' off the roll, sot he paper cost me about 13 cents. The two feet or so of blue hemp cord was about 5 cents and the 6 beads were 1/2 cent each.

Total cost of this book in materials = 36 cents. So I guess I managed to meet that challenge.





2 comments:

  1. You certainly kept the cost down--LOL!
    Say, how is that painter's paper to actually write on? Especially that shiny side?

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  2. I always love loteria. You certainly worked with materials you already have. And actually you have been good about that all along.

    I am three days into the ink sketching. First day was several sketches of library program with Chinese dancers. Yesterday I was interupted early in a sketch, but grabbed a small bowl with a fish on it at home before bedtime. this evening I watched the President speak on the computer and sketched a recognizable portrait of him during it. Three for 3. Whoopee.

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