Happy March! The countdown to Seaside Sessions 2023 is at three weeks, it’s time to show you the results of the planning, experiments, missteps and successes on the road to creating the finished product for my Studio Session on Wednesday, March 22: An Embellished Hinged Wooden Book Box.
The box measures approximately 7 1/2” x 9 1/2”. I’ve used paints and inks as the background colors (more on my initial error doing this below), with adhered paste papers and marbled papers to the front, inside, and back.
Front of book box with paste paper and marbled paper design
Designing
To showcase the variety of paste papers and marbled papers I’d made, I decided to use geometric shapes which ‘spoke to’ each other. After figuring out the design on paper, I chose my favorite papers to use for each shape. As you can see, I made some changes to the front design (at right). To ensure a proper fit, I traced the shapes before cutting the papers, and adjusted sizes as necessary.
Once the papers were cut and dry fitted on the box, I removed them, and painted the front and back cover background colors. I learned the hard way that using heavy body acrylic paint was NOT a good idea, because it prevented the box from closing properly! In my Studio Session, we’ll use thinned acrylic or inks. Valuable lesson learned (which is why I always ‘test drive’ a project before presenting it). I also painted the hinges with alcohol inks to lessen their shine which was distractingly prominent. After all painted surfaces were dry, I used matte medium to adhere the shapes to each cover. The inside is a full sheet of paste paper which I love because it’s blue paste paint on black paper (we’ll do this in our session too!).
I chose the book box as a vessel which can be used as a keepsake of our time together, and as an added bonus, it can house the project Penny has planned! We can’t wait to see how Our Creative Explorers will personalize their book boxes with their own designs, and after the retreat, we’ll share their work here on the blog.
Until next time,
Michelle
