Popular Library Mail Art

September 22nd, 2007

From Lezbag, via CraftyPod:

I send and receive mail art and I especially like birds. Send mail art to: lezbag, 11412 NE Siskiyou St., Portland, OR 97220, USA; email: lezbag at yahoo.com. NEW MAIL ART CALL Multnomah County Library is sponsoring a Mail Art Exhibit. Theme: Library; Deadline: 30 November 2007; Size: Postcard; Technique: any. Popular Library Mail Art, Multnomah County Central Library, 801 SW 10th Ave, Portland, OR 97204 USA. The exhibit will be displayed in Central Library, Portland, Oregon, USA in January 2008. Documentation to be determined.

This may be the perfect opportunity to address some of the retired card catalog cards from Cartalog.
mail art

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For the Ephemeral Mailbox Museum

September 22nd, 2007

For the Ephemeral Mailbox Museum

Originally uploaded by Elaine with Grey Cats.

A quick doodle last night, with the text “Heading home from her morning walk in the hills/she noticed something wrong… well simply different in the tree.” UPDATE: Bah! The orientation of the card is wrong for the call!

I have to admit, i don’t like the pens i bought very much. I’m not sure what possessed me to buy a pack of 12 highlighters. (Bright shiny!) The “summer” color sharpies don’t appeal to me that much either.

I think this is my first use of the Buk stamp*, and the brown ink seemed to work nicely. My rather generic blue ink pad seems to have dried out. I should verify that it’s the only one before replacing.

Anyhow, mail art, first in a bit of a long while, i think. Off it goes to The Ephemeral Mailbox Museum.

I also note that i’ve been using my little glue-to book extensively, stuffing it with the ephemera i’d usually collect and then stuff in bits and places. It seems a much more liberating way to deal with the archiving and documenting instinct.

* The Buk (Charles Bukowski) portrait was produced by Ready-Made Rubber, P O Box, Downieville, CA, 95936 I believe the art is by Rick Geary.

mail art, glue-to books

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Incoming Mail

September 21st, 2007

(Happy me, i just bought some interesting cardstock almost perfect for postcards)

Incoming Mail
Media: mail art postcards
Size: 6″ x 4″ or smaller – must be vertically oriented.
Documentation: a full color zine will be created following the show with the art postcards sent in and some other items from the show, and every participant will receive one!
Photos of the exhibit sent before the zine is published. Please include your postal address.
Info: msfilms@hotmail.com
Deadline to be received: October 2, 2007

The Ephemeral Mailbox Museum
c/o Morgan Lane Gallery
1603 Morgan Lane
Austin, TX 78704 USA

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Crochet strap for necktie strip project

September 9th, 2007

Crochet strap

Originally uploaded by Elaine with Grey Cats.

I have a long stalled project that required neckties — and so i have a remarkable stash of neckties available to me without risking the needs of the long stalled project.

I had an idea of crocheting a computer bag using neckties as a significant part of the structure and material. First, i’d need to make a test bag, and this strap is the beginning of the test bag.

It’s 28″ long, single crochet six stiches wide, then a long single crochet stitch edge, then little loops of five chains long slip stitched (roughly) every three stitches. The goal is to use this as the “base chain” for a much more bulky crochet of fabric strips from neck ties on the same carrier yarn. There are 72 loops on each side.

Most of the stitching has been done during landings and take offs, with a little bit while watching DVDs and during Meeting for Business. Yarn: Royale Classic Crochet Thread, size 10, Coats & Clark, Color 0486 (NAvy), 350 yds.

crochet

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Glue-to Books*

September 9th, 2007

Nature book, first entry

Originally uploaded by Elaine with Grey Cats.

Several weekends ago i went on a bit of a binge and managed to make three small hand bound booklets. They are not fine exemplars of the bookbinding arts, in part because i made up the binding techniques as i went along.

I’m not sure that real books put so much structural importance on end papers, although i could be wrong. I vaguely remember seeing a technique like this on line, but i can’t find it now!

Just as with the end papers, the signatures are held together with what i shall call “signature end papers.” The most important thing to me was that i could then glue lots of stuff inside and the binding would be forgiving and accept all the stuff. Mission seems accomplished.

One of the books, though, was bound by carefully stapling over a curling ribbon. This is sort of like sewing the signatures to book tape, but not. Still, it’s a cute little orange book.

Eventually, i will do this right, but sometimes it’s more fun to just play around with what little knowledge one has.

I like playing with fire, too.

*”Glue-to books” are a term learned from Live Journaler “Art Journaling”, who seems to have coined the phrase.

bookbinding

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PSA: Any wool crochet or knitting in progress that you could donate?

September 5th, 2007

Afghans for Afghans is undertaking a Youth Campaign in response to a request from Church World Service to fill 80 cartons with knitted and crocheted items to be air-shipped to Kabul at their expense. Blankets, hats, mittens, socks, sweaters and vests for young people aged 7 – 14 years will be distributed at children’s rehabilitation and health centers in Kabul and Bamiyan. These centers treat children who have been traumatized psychologically and physically by years of war and poverty. Church World Service has a long history of service in the region and works in partnership with Afghan organizations.

Deadline for the Youth Campaign is October 12 at the SF AFSC office which serves as the Collection Center. Address: Afghans for Afghans, c/o AFSC Collection Center, 65 Ninth St, SF 94303. Items must be made of 100% wool or other animal fiber to provide maximum warmth in harsh weather. Read about general guidelines and details at

http://www.afghansforafghans.org.

This is a precious opportunity to create a lovingly made gift for a child.

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Tenthmonth Challenge: ArtSoMoFo

September 4th, 2007

Thanks to LiveJournal’s new “consumer” use of OpenID, i feel i can “join” a community there (although apparently i can only “watch” and comment by LJ’s definition.) The community — and challenge — is artsomofo: a challenge to “art something” every day in October. The past ten days or so, i’ve been plowing through all the ephemera and scraps i’ve been collecting as part of a “discover my desk, oh, and there must be a floor, too” activities. now that the workspace is available — using it seems like a good next step. I’m a little intimidated by the posting requirement. It seems documenting creations can take as long as the creative act itself. And i have to admit that the prep i’ll do in Ninthmonth is not preparing art surfaces so much as trying to catch up on filing.

Still, a challenge!

For the curious, here’s my new LJ profile.
ArtSoMoFo

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A new resource: my mind map

August 28th, 2007

I’ve been using Mind Maps for a while to capture short notes, URLs, links to other files. It came to me that a mind map would be the best way to start organizing projects that come to mind, projects which i half start, and so on. It can slowly grow with time, and i can export from the FreeMind mind map file to a html version periodically. The file is mounted on my mirrored .Mac iDisk, so it’s always available to me on my laptop and mirrored to an internet available location no future effort on my part. I don’t know how interesting or useful anyone else will find it, but at the very least i’ll be able to point others to collections of links i might find, like this evening’s exploration of button making.

Create Mind Map

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Teapot handle — not quite a year

August 20th, 2007

Teapot handle repaired

Originally uploaded by Elaine with Grey Cats.

This morning, a colleague was complementing the pot while i filled it with water for tea. (Regrettably, not quite boiling, but i manage.) I had noticed that the wire handle had been stretching over the past months, and just as i was explaining how the previous bamboo handle had finally worn out i felt a sudden sag. It seems the wire inside the green plastic coating finally gave out but the plastic managed to only stretch. No catastrophe, but it’s time for a new handle design.

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My new darling

July 29th, 2007

Oncidium Sharry Baby ‘Sweet Fragrance’

Originally uploaded by Elaine with Grey Cats.

Oncidium Sharry Baby ‘Sweet Fragrance’

This big beautiful orchid was at the Blossoming Orchid Nursery stall at the Mountain View Farmer’s Market today will a “smell me” tag taped to a leaf. So i did, and, despite my congestion a wonderful vanilla scent greeted my nose. I spent some more time looking at the wonderful selection, but returned to this specimen. It’s a large plant, overflowing it’s small pot with one spike in bloom, one with buds, and one just starting up. The grower and i talked for a while about the plant. He doesn’t recommending dividing it because it needs to be big to bloom, he suggests that it needs to be repotted. Apparently the hybrid needs six years to get to blooming size, so they don’t sell many. The black spots on the leaves are due to the temperature changes in the green house, not a disease. I should fertilize it weekly.

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