Sunday I visited Castle in the Air on 4th Street for a class to make mini books. It was a wonderful experience and my teacher Alice was very helpful. First we painted with acrylics onto the paper stock that we would be using to make the covers. We learned different kinds of techniques for achieving unique results. I was pleased with the way my painting came out despite the fact that my previous dabbling in painting looks like it was made by an eight-year-old. For the most part I tried to be more simple because when using acrylics a little paint can go a long way. When the paper was dry we cut it out using templates for the filler pages of these mini creations. It was a tough decision because they had huge assortment of paper, but I selected neutral colors for the most part with all different textures. Finally we sewed the inner pages into the cover to complete the cuteness.

Also throughout the making of the paper books, we covered, bound, and sewed together an even tinier book. It gave me a new appreciation for the meticulous work that goes into book binding. I am sure that it is a bit easier when working with normal size proportions but just as much love and attention to detail is necessary. I was geeking out on what I had produced that day. For the most part all of the pieces looked elegant and not too crafty. I am not certain what I am going to do with all of them now but I am sure that they will find good homes by Christmas. Also, I will take some photos of the books and post them in my gallery soon. It is my intention to have an album dedicated to my school work and other art there as well as photography.

I love working more hands on and creating things by cutting and pasting. Since I have been focusing more on Computer Arts I have missed this aspect of the creative process. This class was a fun way to get my fix and learn some new techniques. In the spring semester I am registered for printmaking and am looking forward to it immensely. I am not sure why it is a foundation course for my major but I think that it will be a nice balance to my other classes.