Parallel Paths & Universes

It took me a long time to figure out what I wanted to do for Lindsay's Parallel Paths & Universes book.  I decided I would do something with "The Twilight Zone."  I have always been fascinated by pop-ups and what they call "Origamic Architecture."  I found the pattern for this design in a book I have and thought it represented a parallel universe quite nicely.  I love how it folds flat and opens into a beautiful and surprising display.  Remember, the 58(!) parallel cuts have to be very precise in order to achieve this effect, so make sure to have a very sharp exacto knife on hand! 

Chunky Book Page Swap

I have the privilege of hosting a chunky book page swap for one of my on-line art groups (the Sketchbook Sisters).  We've had an average of 10 participants each round which means that each player creates ten similar or identical 4 x 4" pages interpreting the monthly theme.  Everyone sends me their completed pages and I re-distribute one page from every player to all the others.   You make ten pages and you receive ten different pages in return!

These are some pictures of the pages I made for our first two themes, "Music" and "Maps."

It's so much fun to receive your pages at the end of each round.  Just see how quickly our chunky books have grown after just two rounds!

Trying My Hand at Poetry Spools

I decided to try my hand at making these delightful poetry spools inspired by Kelli Nina Perkins for a Christmas grab bag exchange.  The tutorial can be found here:  http://ephemeralalchemy.blogspot.com/2010/02/thread-spool-poetry.html

What a fabulous way to use up all of my scraps of ribbon and trim!  Rather than creating random poetry however, I selected some favorite quotes for my thread spools.  Here are some of the quotes I used:

Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you've imagined~Henry David Thoreau

Only those who see the invisible can do the impossible~Unknown

Minds must soar before people do~Unknown

Inspiration: Revelation a divine influence arouses feelings awakening creative vision

Say what you want about aging, it's still the only way to have old friends~Robert Brault

It takes a long time to grow an old friend~John Leonard

Sweet friendship refreshes the soul

True strength is delicate~Louise Nevelson