"When we all think alike, then no one is thinking."
— Walter Lippman

Friday, September 25, 2009

The Elephant Book

Sometimes I get really attached to a book I have been working on. That's the case with this one.
The cover graphics make me laugh.... Jumbo galloping full speed into a candy store, head down, on a mission. I know how he feels.
The brown leather spine is made from a recycled leather coat. I really hate to buy new leather when there is so much out there to 'harvest'. One less item for the land fill, and I can get quite a few nice spines from one coat. Of course the deconstruction and cutting creates a great mess on the studio floor, but it's all part of the experience.




6 comments:

andrea creates said...

That's really nice.It's a good idea to use the coats too :)

pamelahuntington said...

Wonderful...love these charming old
books!

Chrystal S said...

Very nice! I also like your idea of using coats for the leather spines. The book is wonderful!

Ann Renee Lighter said...

Thanks for all the nice comments!

Sharon Parker said...

Your exposed stitching is such a nice touch, Ann. I do get fascinated by some of your techniques -- it looks like you stitched two signatures simultaneously, going back and forth between them to form the x's. That's got to be a bit tricky, to keep everything even and so tidy. And I love the way you repurpose materials; it always makes something more appealing to know that something destined for the landfill has found a new arty life!

Ann Renee Lighter said...

The exposed 'Harlequin Stitch' does involve going back and forth between 2 signatures at a time. Getting started is a bit tricky, holding everything in place. I have never found 'official' instructions, so a few years ago I just determined to figure it out on my own. It's my favorite binding technique now.

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