The lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer are when I usually find a chance to puddle around in the studio, painting papers for later use in bookworks and whatnot. The hot dry summer heat is very conducive to this activity, allowing me to work in layers, adding letters, paste and inks to the paper and [...]
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I’m pleased that my first variant of Spelling Words will be on exhibit at three venues in the San Francisco Bay Area over the next several months. Opening today at the Book Club of California, a flourishing institute for bibliophiles in San Francisco since 1912, is the 39th annual members exhibit of the Hand Bookbinders [...]
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Most of us know this little rhyme, to wish upon the first star we see at night, and if we say it with all our heart, it will come true. We learn it as children. We remember it because it rhymes. We repeat it as adults, just in case it might really be true. This [...]
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Everyone these days bemoans the loss of spelling ability, as our screenagers spend more time in front of screens than with a book in their hands, and the internet is full of quite imaginative spelling. But there is one time when your spelling must be completely immaculate, and that is when coding a website. If [...]
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My last post about binding words inspired a calligrapher in England to create a painting with the words of my spell. She has written about her process on her blog, Spirit Whispers, and shared the self-doubt mixed with the thrill of creation. Having her borrow my words, and ask for permission to sell her resulting [...]
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The power of words, of rhyme and repetition, of simple wishes written by hand in a journal, or spoken aloud, or prayed in the heart over and over . . . these words are my wish, my spell, my prayer, my mantra: Dance the old ways Trust the knowing Mend and heal Energy flowing I [...]
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This weekend I’ve been gilding stars with platinum leaf, finishing out the deluxe books of my Star Spell edition. Gilding doesn’t always go the way I expect it to; there is a certain amount of serendipity to it. This time around it’s going well, and I’m fantasizing that maybe I’ve finally got a handle on [...]
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February 2 is the sabbat known as Imbolc, Candlemas, Brighid’s Day, and Groundhog Day here in the States. In Ireland, Brighid, also called Bride in honor of her aspect as the maiden goddess, is the bringer of poetry, smithcraft, and healing. In the wheel of the year, this is actually the first day of spring [...]
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Thanks to a couple of calligraphy friends, I feel inspired to begin 2009 with a wish, lettered in my journal: I wish for healing, for myself, for my dear ones, for my community, for my country and for our planet. First I saw a New Year’s greeting on the graphics board of my calligraphy listserv, [...]
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The Book Arts Jam at Foothill College yesterday was a buzzing hive of book arts activities and vendors. I am always amazed at the great variety of approaches to making books, many of which involve little or no text. But books can tell their stories structurally, or with images, with texture, with fabric, with acetate [...]
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