if you are just starting out in Altered Books, or if you are interesting in collage or other paper arts and want to keep a record of techniques and ideas, a Techniques book is a great way to go.
the idea is simple. you take a book, any book, and try out techniques in it. ok, so that sounds too simple? you want more help? you need ideas? you need pictures? here ya go...
first you need a book. any book will do... but for some techniques you'll probably wish you used a stitched book. if you don't know how to tell if the book you want to use is glued or stitched, check out the article on preparing an altered book for a RR on Lisa Vollrath's web site. if you don't care about that, you can use anything from a blank journal to a garage sale book. the next concern is the page material. not all techniques work on glossy paper. not all work on matte. think about what you want to do and choose accordingly. remember, you can always have another book for different techniques. i have several to fit the needs of what i am trying out.
ok, now for the fun stuff...
Paint Some Pages!
one way to make an interesting display of paint samples is to rip some pages at different levels to create a layered effect. in this first example, i gessoed 1/2 of each ripped page and left the other half plain. then i used a sample of about every coloring media i had, from crayons to paints to ...., and colored stripes across the pages. this allowed me to see how the medium reacted with both the plain page, and the gessoed page. in some cases (especially my Olive Lumiere paint) the difference between the plain page and over the gesso was dramatic. now i know how each looks and can choose the effect i want when i work in an altered book.
Rip Pages Some More!
now that you've see how fun ripped and layered pages can be when they reveal layers behind them... let's try some more. the first example here shows using layered ripped pages as pockets to stuff lots of nifty stuff into. i used double stick tape to secure them and added eyelets at the start of each ripped layer to help protect them through heavy use.
the second example here is a use of layered ripped pages as a design element that works with the reast of the imagery to add interactivity and depth to the spread. each section of the quote is revealed as waves roll... and at the same time, the dolphins disappear until there is only one solitary one left.
and a third example here is one i actually cut into the pages... but it could just as easily have been ripped in. it is an example of one element being exposed through multiple windows so that it is a focal point on several pages. this method is great for exposing a key element... but it also is a wonderful method of releaving bulk over a 3d element to keep it from stressing the spine, without having to rip out whole pages.
Glue Some stuff on!
by now you're probably asking that age old question asked by almost all newbies to altered books... "what type of glue is best to use?" the answer frustrates many people - what ever type you like best! really, there are as many favorite types of glue as there are altered book artists. the only way to get a "right" answer to that question is to find out what YOU like best... by trying them out.
always start out with what you already own. there is no reason to go out and buy a lot of expensve glues if the right one is going to turn out to be already siting on your desk! lol.
there are 2 things that make a difference in what type of glue will be good in any situation. the first one is what you are gluing on. the second is what you are gluing onto. because of this, there are almost endless combinations and no simple easy glue answers. that's why a glue test section in a techniques book is a priceless tool.
this is a very simple section to create. paint some pages. leave some blank. color some with inks. create lots of variation in surfaces to test gluing onto. you want to see how well the glue holds onto the different surfaces. glue will stick differently to acrylic paint versus pastels, etc. once you have a few surfaces ready, then start collecting things to glue on. i suggest trying at least 1. a light weight paper (like tissue paper) 2. a heavy weight paper 3. a small metal object and 4. a small porous 3D object. make sure you have enough of each type to try one on each surface with each glue. now gather up all your glues and adhesives. glue 1 sample of each type of material onto each surface with each glue. mark next to it what glue you used.
Some glues will show obvious downsides right away. Does it seep through and show on your thin papers? Does it leave too much of a clear glue halo around your 3d objects because it's too thin to stay put? Does it cause the page to wrinkle/warp where you glue on? Others will take a while to show up. Does it cause the page to yellow over time? Does the glue weaken and peel away over time? Is it not strong enough to hold 3d items on over time? This is why it's important to label what glue you used. If problems show up 6 months later, you want to be able to know which glue that was so you can avoid it in future.
Now, fold some pages...
Folding pages is one simple technique to create interest and interactivity in books. People always notice things that are different than what they are expecting. Folded pages also make wonderful pockets. Experiment with different folding patterns. Your techniques book will serve as a idea reference later to remind you of the combinations you liked.
Experiment with text
Text tends to be a large part of altered books. There are 2 areas where text plays a part. The first is interacting with the original text in the book. The second is adding new text to express an idea.
When interacting with the original text, you can allow it to peak through your backgrounds, etc to enhance your design... Or you can select text to expose and recreate the message, which is known as found poetry. These first 2 examples are of masking off text and painting the background. When the masking is removed, the words are left exposed and the art is created around them.
This next example is a variation of found poetry, where words and phrases are cut from an old book page and reassembled into a new order on a new book spread. If you are cutting or ripping pages from your books to make space for 3D elements, this is a fun way to use the excess pages. I keep an Altoids tin (altered of course!) in my purse filled with interesting bits of text cut out. When I need a little entertainment, I pull out my pocket journal and a glue stick and start writing found poetry!
When adding text, there are hundreds of methods that you can use. You can paint words on. Use stencils. Write with interesting pens. Use rub-ons. Use Rubber Stamps. Use stickers. Print onto interesting papers to glue in. Create transfers. Explore all the methods you can think of! You will have a perfect idea book to refer to when you need ideas later.
Experiment with transfers
This tutorial isn't an in depth instruction list for techniques... But I want to get your head in the groove of thinking of the possibilities of experimenting in your book. All the transfers on these couple pages were done with packing tape. The scrabble tiles, goddess sculpture, "quiet grown-ups at play" quote and "the more i drew and painted..." quote are all transfers.
And just keep experimenting!
You will have noticed that all my pages pictured here have a lot more going on that just what I was showing examples of. And these are only a few of the pages in 1 of my techniques books. I have 3 filled already. Don't be afraid to stick an experiment in anywhere it fits... anywhere you have room. Try anything!! But make sure to take notes! You never know when those notes will be the key to repeating a success later.
As I started to move into more books, I decided to organize a little too... I have one book I started while taking an online class in background techniques taught by Kristi Schueler. The class was a quick overview of all the possibilities of several types of mediums (over 80 possible backgrounds). This just needed it's own book. You can see examples of my work from that class here. BTW, the class was excellent and I highly recommend it. Kristi also teaches a beginning altered books class that is a great place to start out if you are new to altered books.
Here are a few more images for some final inspiration...
