Craftside

Super Cool Special Mega Giveaway of 50 "Bulking Dummies" and 3 of our "LAB" series books

As the title of today's post says, we have 50 Bulking Dummies to give away!

One each to 50 people who leave a comment in today's post by Thursday Midnight EST, June 24, 2010.

And 3 special winners will receive a copy of

Print and Stamp Lab: 52 Ideas for Handmade, Upcycled Print Tool

or

Drawing Lab for Mixed-Media Artists,

or

Collage Lab: Experiments, Investigations, and Exploratory Projects

along with a bulking dummy.

Let me explain what bulking dummies are. When a book is in development, a sample is made with the paper in the size, finish type (matte or shiny) and hard or soft cover before it's printed so the designers can get a feel for the book. They are all different and could, as you can see, contain writing or be an actual printed cover with the inside blank. As Forrest Gump said, "Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get."

These will make cool journals, and just think, you are recycling!

We do try to be "green" here at Craftside.

Now on to today's question that will get you in the running for one of these babies:

Do you use "Apps" ?

On an iPad?

On another platform?

Do you already use some kind of craft app?

Would you like a craft app? What kind?

Or any app-related comment will do! Really!

2 out of the 3 books that you are entered to win I haven't posted about. I will share with you an inside peek into one of them, Drawing Lab for Mixed-Media Artists, now.

Pop on back to the links for inside peeks into Collage Lab and the third, Print and Stamp Lab: 52 Ideas for Handmade, Upcycled Print Tools will be included in an upcoming post!

Drawing Lab for Mixed-Media Artists
52 Creative Exercises to Make Drawing Fun
By

Carla Sonheim

Carla Sonheim is an artist and creativity workshop instructor known for her fun and innovative projects and techniques designed to help adult students recover a more spontaneous, playful approach to creating. Her innovative ideas are now collected and elaborated on in this unique volume. Carla offers a year's worth of assignments, projects, ideas, and techniques that will introduce more creativity and nonsense into your art and life. Drawing Lab for Mixed-Media Artists offers readers a fun way to learn and gain expertise in drawing through experimentation and play. There is no right or wrong result, yet, the readers gain new skills and confidence, allowing them to take their work to a new level.

Carla Sonheim is a painter, illustrator, and popular workshop instructor at art retreats such as Artfest, Art & Soul. She has been called a "gifted facilitator" and loves to help adult students recover a more child-like play approach to creating. Carla's "Girls" paintings are in showcased in numerous galleries nationwide, as well as in private and corporate collections around the world. www.carlasonheim.etsy.com,  www.carlasonheim.wordpress.com

Drum roll.....

Inside peek:

As Carla says on these pages, we were originally taught not to draw in our books... boy how things change!

Click on the pages to enlarge and read about Lab 49 and how to draw illuminated pages.

To see some inside pages of Collage Lab click here.

Collage Lab:

Experiments, Investigations, and Exploratory Projects

By

Bee Shay

Collage Lab offers artists and crafters a fun and experimental approach to making art. The book is organized into 52 different labs which may, but don't need to be explored on a weekly basis. The labs can be worked in any order, so that readers can flip around to learn a new mixed-media technique or be inspired by a particular collage theme or application.

The underlying message of this book is that artists can and should learn and gain expertise through experimentation and play. There is no right or wrong result for a given exercise, yet, readers will gain skills and confidence in collage techniques, allowing them to take their work to a new level.

Collage Lab is illustrated with brilliant full-color images and multiple examples of each exercise, offers a visual, non-linear approach to learning art techniques, and reinforces a fun and fearless approach to making art.

Bee Shay is a print maker, collage and mixed media artist, and longtime instructor. She has contributed to magazines, including the Artistic Stenciler and Somerset Studio. Her work has also been featured in several Quarry Books including:True Vision ,Collaborative Art Journals and Shared Visions in Mixed Media, The Creative Entrepreneur, and Re-Bound. Bee lives with her husband in the Philadelphia area and is mother of three beautiful souls. When she's not inciting the muse in her students or working in her barn studio she lovingly calls her nest, she can be found roaming outside seeking the wonders of the natural world for inspiration.

Print and Stamp Lab:
52 Ideas for Handmade, Upcycled Print Tools
By

Traci Bunkers

Artist and popular workshop instructor Traci Bunkers can turn just about anything into an interesting stamp, printing block, or tool. In this book, she shows readers how to see overlooked, everyday objects in a new way, and how to "MacGyver" them into easy to use printing blocks and tools. Readers learn to create 52 print blocks and stamp tools, all from inexpensive, ordinary, and unexpected materials--string, spools, bandages, flip flops, ear plugs, rubber bands, school erasers, and a slew of other repurposed and upcycled items. The book also shows how to use those simple tools to make gorgeous, multi-layered prints and patterns that can be used to enhance journal covers, stationery, fabrics, accessories, and more.

Traci Bunkers is a passionate and quirky self-employed mixed-media and fiber artist living in Lawrence, Kansas. Through her one-woman business Bonkers Handmade Originals, she sells her nifty creations such as hand-dyed spinning fibers and yarns, original rubber stamps, handmade books, kits and original artwork. She also creates an artzine called Tub Legs, designs knitwear, and is a knitting, spinning, and crochet technical editor. She has been teaching workshops across the US since the early 90s and her visual journal pages, artwork, and knit designs have been published in numerous books and magazines. To learn more about her work, visit her web site at www.TraciBunkers.com

How to make Coffee Filter Pockets from the cool new book: Self-made Stationery by Kazumi Udagawa

I "heart" this new book so much!

Self-made Stationery:

Handmade Goods Designed By Me

By

Kazumi Udagawa

Stationery and other paper products have become not only valuable necessities, but also fashionable goods for artists, designers, students, and all enthusiasts who love paper. Self-made Stationery presents a wonderful array of unique and attractive design ideas for creating your own special stationery and paper products. This book is filled with many photographs and step-by-step illustrations that will guide you in making your stationery crafts. You will be surprised by how your creative skills can be enhanced.

Kazumi Udagawa (Japan) graduated from Musashino Art University in Tokyo. As a designer, she has worked for a sundry goods maker and focused on product planning and development to start up a goods store. Currently, she is a designer for various home products, supplies, and design projects. She also creates illustrations for books and magazines.

Check out this fun way to make a pocket out of a coffee filter:

I love making pockets in my altered book so I thought I would try this coffee filter pocket technique. 

 

I didn't have the same type of coffee filter but I thought the type I did have I could make work, just in a bit of a different way. So you get the technique from the book, and here's how I made mine:

I folded the filter in half lining up the edges and then in half the opposite way but about an inch off center.

Then I trimmed the top layer smaller then the second layer.

I trimmed the third layer just a bit taller then the second layer.

 
 All that was left to do was ink the edges and staple the coffee filter pocket into my altered book. As you can see, the first one I made on the left I folded with all the edges matching and didn't trim them.
 
 

I was in the mood to make some ATCs to put into my sassy new pockets. I have been collecting translation dictionaries so I thought that I would cut out some words and play with them.

Here are 3 I came up with.

 

I cut out definitions of different words in different languages and glued them onto a plain piece of paper. Then I used the Autumn Leaves Scribbles Hearts and Starswith a variety of the Stampology inks to add a bit of design and texture.

I love trying out new techniques and just "playing."

Holiday Goodness Giveaway Time!

Here's how it works:

• We ask a question each weekday.
• You leave your answer in the comments section each day to the question (and you can enter each day!).
• We will randomly pick a winner each day to send a free book to!

Today is DAY 9 of 19!

Question:

What is your favorite paper? Scrapbook, newspaper, construction, tissue, tracing?

My answer:

Washi paper for origami is one of my faves; the other is paper packaging. I love graphics and often times, whether it's vintage or new, the quality of the paper has a great quality to it. I think it's the same thing that makes me like remaking cloths. A garment also has the construction and findings details that add more to its design possibilities rather than just yardage.

Be sure to read the comments of others; maybe you can pick up a good idea, a new place to find your inspiration, or just a good giggle!