Xmas 2015

Copyright

I hope you enjoy reading this blog and find inspiration and ideas from what you have seen here but I would ask you to please respect my copyright and not use my pictures for publishing as your own work, or for entry into challenges.

Thursday 26 February 2015

My “Book of Shadows”

While browsing You tube, I found a tutorial on making an antiqued book from scratch – and I also saw some replica book of shadows from the tv series Charmed.

I loved that series!   I resolved to have a go at this – albeit on a smaller scale -with the aim of populating it with recipes and remedies handwritten using my calligraphy pens.. 

So I sent off for the grey board for the covers and began.

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These are the materials I used – greyboard for the covers, with some faux leather a la Sheena Douglass for the cover, which I’d coloured green and run through the cut n boss.  The spine was made using half of the centre of a kitchen roll inner tube.  Because I am a muppet, I didn’t take pics as I went, so pretty much all I have is the finished article.  But hey, very pretty! 

I used my serif craft artist 2 software to create my triquatra for the front cover, and coloured it with promarkers then backed it onto black card and edged it with gold micron pen, before spraying with varnish spray.  I was really pleased with the way it turned out.

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The first time I covered the spine, I did it with more faux leather paper and swiftly learnt that it wasn’t going to work, because it split when I tried to close the book.  The trainer used fabric in the tutorial, and there was clearly a reason why!  I found some fabric, but when I had got it on the spine it was a bit pale for my taste. 

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I brooded about it for a couple of days and then toned it down using distress ink and gilding wax.  Result!!

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For the inside, I turned again to my trusty CA2 and printed off some suitable backing paper onto thin card and stuck it into the inside covers.

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I ordered my album posts and corner protectors online as I couldn’t source any in my local shops, but while I was waiting for them to be delivered decided it was now time to turn my attention to the papers. 

The original tutorial linked to a method of aging paper with tea – so I took some basic copy paper and dyed a batch with some nice Assam tea.  When they had dried, I rounded off the corners, and edged all around on both side with gathered twigs distress inks.  For the front sheet, I used CA2 and my laser printer to print off the wording Book of Shadows onto one of the dyed sheets.  I then ran the sheet through the foiling machine, foiling only the decorative Initial letters in gold.  A nice side effect was that the foiling machine melted the laser ink in the remaining letters, leaving them shiny!

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So, the finished book, in it’s box, and out of it.

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This is a close up of the corner protectors that I bought.

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And finally, a view of the inside with the album posts and paper sheets in place.

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