alicia's final contributions to lisa s's book: labyrinth (part one)

i've finally finished miss lucky dip lisa's book, labyrinth. by the time you're done with this post though, you may hate me. ;)

front of my little bundle of pages, including a brass X i purchased from seth apter's etsy shop... i'm putting one in each of the five pulp books. (click the images to see enlarged versions.) what you're seeing is a little labyrinth book tied to the top of the bundle of pages:


here is the book all alone. if you would like to see the inside of the book and additional shots, you may do so on my blog HERE and HERE. in the spirit of labyrinths, i'm going to make viewing this a maze of potential fun (or probably annoyance).


once you open the top, you see this... a fabric/fiber collage with a paper collage, labyrinth and quote on top of it, and on the right, i just cheated. lisa mentioned that she liked a collage i recently did so i recreated a similar one for her book. maybe not a literal labyrinth, per se, but in my opinion nests are one of nature's many labyrinths.


detail of the quote/labyrinth page, stained and aged all purdy with hand made dyes (100% natural, of course) and coffee:


under the paper collage, a labyrinthy nesty bit (can you tell i went as nesty with her book as i did labyrinth?):

detail of the collage...


here is a peek at the back page...

if you want to see the rest, head on over to my blog: http://alteredbits.wordpress.com

(see, told you i was sending you through a maze...)

:)

Alicia's "The Museum of Forgotten Things" - Debrina's Contribution

Update:

The compartments and their tell-tale findings...

Well, if you know me well, you'll know I like to launch myself into any new project with speedy aplomb.  So, without further ado, let me introduce to you the start of the next instalment of Alicia's Pulp Redux book, The Museum of Forgotten Things. 

I've picked up where Alicia left off.  Hester, our main character, has shut herself away in her house after murdering her husband (this part of the story is Alicia's invention and is told so well by Alicia using various invented documents in her book - you'll see these in due time as you each get a turn at the book).  Thus, Hester's house, like her mind, has become something of a museum and a prison...there are things in it she'd rather forget but can't.  However, although Hester has become a recluse, this does not prevent her from taking many a secret lover!  So, although a part of Hester's life is lost forever (Paradise Lost) she has gained a new one - albeit tainted with grief and guilt but also coloured with secrets and passions.

Now a bit about what I've been up to.  Well, as you can see in the picture immediately above, I have made good use of an old Cigar box that I purloined from the Sanson market for only two bucks (!) this weekend.  Perfect!  It fits the format and size of Alicia's book perfectly.  I love the fact that it's Jamaican and that one of my favourite stories in the whole wide world is Jean Rhy's Wide Sargasso Sea.  Hester reminds me of the mad woman in the attic (Rhys' story is a spin on Jane Eyre - from the point of view of the first wife).  In Jane Eyre, the mad woman in the attic tries to burn down the house. In Alicia's story, Hester uses fire as a means of dispatch.  Of course, I'll say no more here, lest I give the whole story away!

The front of my page looks like this - I've used crackle paint (Ranger's Black Soot - thanks Alicia for sending me a bottle!) and a range of metallic paints.  Heavy duty watercolour paper was used to get a really awesome thick texture that I then took to with my red colouring pencil.  The result is pretty specky if I say so myself.  A secret hides under the door and the black void of the front cover will contain an illustration.

The book opens from right to left to reveal a hidden compartment.  The lid of my cigar box (the right flap) still needs work and I plan on putting a vignette on it. To the left is the lid of the compartment.  Let's open it up, shall we...

Crap photo this one, but it gives you an idea.  Little compartments will be carved out of the book I have placed in the compartment.  The book, as mentioned earlier, is Paradise Lost, though I'm still deciding about that.  I may yet just make a series of frames for the compartments.  Anyone got any tips on how to carve nice little boxes out of the book?

I'm really proud of this paper lining the box! I hand dyed it myself and I love the way it has come out all marbled like that.  This is the secret compartment area.  Like I said, I'm still undecided about how I'm going to frame the forgotten artifacts I have.  Nor have I gotten any closer to a solution as to how I'm going to allow book binding to happen, since the box opens right to left instead of left to right.  Give me time, I might do the whole book within a drawer thing yet.  Lisa S - that video you sent us needs to be up here.  I love the whole idea of a book within a drawer within a box thing!

Alicia's book arrives!  I open the box to find...

Now, just a quick little post about the receipt of Alicia's book in the post.  Here are the photos I took.  Hopefully I haven't conveyed some of the trembling excitement I experienced when opening the box.  If the shots are fuzzy or shaky looking, at least you know why! Lol!
 

I feel like Howard Carter as he opens Tutankhamun's Tomb!

What is this???

A book is revealed!

Is there a story contained within?

Ooooh, a couple of diary entries and an obituary. Hmmm....

More exciting reading...

The blank contents of my part of this wonderous book.  (Go to first picture of this posting to see what I've done so far...)

alicia's book: the museum of forgotten things

11/05 UPDATE:

i added new, thick pages (foam core) so there will be more room to play in. that's what the above page is made out of. will send along the ribbony stuff for the sticks. here are some side shots, even though the twigs aren't all cut.



sorry again for the crap photos. i'll really replace them soon but i got a couple emails wanting peeks so... here are some bad ones. ;)

i will be cured by tomorrow and will work on finishing pages and taking great photos (with the camera on the proper setting and with the room light on this time, haha).

p.s. i've used some goodies i've gotten from lisa j and debs. it felt sooo right!

10/21 UPDATE:

i'm pretty behind on updates, i think! since my last post, i have added some things to my book. i lined the outer cover with black handmade banana leaf paper (which the top piece will be affixed to once i'm done) and the inside with red velvet... kind of like a museum exhibit.


the pocket will be sewn into the back at the end in case anyone wants to sew on any sort of little trinket while they have it. a note from each participating artist and or other goodies will be placed in the pocket.

i've nearly completed the second page (the bone page is first, but i have to do that afterward -- you'll see why when you get it). basically, it's a story about a lady and her life. the passing of her husband, how he died, etc. it's a totally made up story but i had to research surnames and origins, first names/origins, fonts used in 1920s publications, etc. i wrote her obituary as well as a couple of diary pages and basically confessed her "forgotten" sin -- only she never really forgot. she almost never left her house for nearly 50 years, at least not until the last 2 or 3, and really had a sad life. that's why she looks so miserable. horrible photo, i know.

here is the back of the bundle of goodies:

all spread out (feel free to untie the twine when you get it to read everything -- quite a fascinating story, lol). even the peacock feature ties into the whole story.:

all of this will fit sweetly into a pocket i fashioned out of one of the fold-down pages. the pocket, of course, will be embellished and decorated to fit with the story of it all, but i haven't gotten that far yet.

i received an email today that my dick blick order finally shipped (only placed the damn order like 8 days ago) so i'll have my black patina for the front piece soon!

next steps: bone page, medical slide page and omg, i have no idea what i will do for the forth. how can anatomy fit into "forgotten"? (wait! i forgot i had a spleen!!)