Penny for your thoughts? Coin your own copper mesh book

Expression, Nov-Dec, 2004 by Sally White

I love stuff. Watches. Photographs. Bits of lace. Little bottles. Beads. Buttons. Jewelry. Maps. Ticket stubs. If it's old, it's even better. I like to look at my stuff, organize my stuff, make more stuff with my stuff. I also love books. All kinds of books. Non-fiction. Fiction. Reference. Altered books. Memory albums. Artist books. Diaries. Love them all.

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It finally occurred to me that I could give my little paper treasures and other assorted bits of paraphernalia homes by making books into which they could reside and be enjoyed without my having to dig through the Mount Everest of boxes to find something. And, best of all. I could incorporate my stash of ephemera, books and art supplies into the projects.

For the past couple of years. I have been enjoying the work of so many book artists, especially the beautiful copper-mesh pocket books made by the talented Nina Bagley. It wasn't until I took a class from Mary Senn, that I became extremely excited about creating my own books.

Last autumn, Mary taught a class loosely based on Nina's copper-mesh creations. We spent an entire Saturday learning how to gut an old book, re-cover it, make new pages, and fashion copper-mesh pockets with acetate and eyelets. We then bound the books and dangled beads and fibers from the spine. I went home flush with ideas on what I could do with these books. Not only do they look great, but they can also be used to display lots of little bits of this and that. I loved the concept of the little pockets where I could place odds and ends. And I liked the portability of the finished books.

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I have a large accumulation of materials from which to choose when working. People at work know I'm an inveterate "junkie." Imagine my embarrassment when it all started: I'd arrive at the office and find little anonymous piles on my desk: beer-bottle caps, cigar boxes, mint tins, candy wrappers, scraps of wire, and all sorts of other unidentifiable detritus. Some days it seemed that I worked in a junkyard rather than in a professional office! But it has paid off. Long ago I got over being mortified by the anonymous deposits--I now consider myself a dutiful participant of community service in my "urban recycling" efforts.

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I also spend time sifting through antique stores, thrift shops, garage sales, and swap meets in search of interesting ephemera. Whenever I travel, I try to fit in a trip to an antique store (Seattle seems to be especially good for this). Cool items can also be found on Internet auction sites.

My copper-mesh artist books are fairly simple to make. Basically, I choose a used hardcover book (or in some cases, a sturdy photo album), not too large (thrift shops are great for finding suitable books). The innards of the book are carefully cut out, leaving only the book boards (front, back and spine). The outside of the book is covered with decorative paper and a contrasting paper is glued to the inside covers (end papers). I then begin making my pockets and pages. I don't start out with a predetermined number of pages, and I don't measure anything. I just eyeball sizes and hope for the best. If something turns out to be too large for the book I'm working on, I'll either cut it and use half, turn it around, or fold it--anything to make it fit. If something is too small, I attach it to a larger piece. If I don't like something, I save it to use on something else. I use copper mesh (aged with liver of sulfur) for the pockets. Turning the rough edges of the copper under into a small flap (to avoid jagged edges). I secure the folds with eyelets. Some of the pages in my book are the copper-mesh pockets; other pages are card stock.

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When I'm satisfied with my compositions, I begin adhering the pockets and card stock pages to the card stock signatures. I simply fold pieces of card stock in half, decorate them with rubber stamps and/or ink, and stack them, three or four to a signature. I then use eyelets, snaps, ribbon, wire, whatever is handy, to attach the pages to the card stock signatures. When all pages are adhered to the spines, I use waxed bookbinder's thread to sew the signatures into the hard spine of the book using a simple three-hole pamphlet stitch. Finally, I decorate the outer spine with ribbons, fibers, charms, or threads.

Though the construction is similar on the books, each has its own personality and style. I love making them and sharing them with friends. The books are a great way to store and display photos, quotes, letters, and various other bits and pieces without having to surmount that dreaded Mount Everest of boxes!

RELATED ARTICLE: MATERIALS

GENERAL MATERIALS:

USED HARDCOVER BOOK

X-ACTO[R] KNIFE

DECORATIVE PAPER

COPPER MESH

MISCELLANEOUS IMAGES

GLUE

EYELETS

CARD STOCK

RUBBER STAMPS

WAXED BOOKBINDER'S THREAD

NEEDLE

RIBBONS AND FIBERS

WIRE

FOR MEMORIES (BROWN BOOK):