At one of
the shops we visited in Aix, there were beautiful dresses and skirts that were
all designed by the same artist. I bought a gorgeous yellow skirt with
handpainted detailing, and a one-of-a-kind printed dress with bright ribbons
that Mr. Moggie chose. In the corner of the shop I spotted a shelf with some
sweet handmade books. I got a simple cahier, with beautiful natural flecked
pages and this amazing stitched book with a musical note cut out of the front
cover. When I picked it up I noticed that under the stitching, the book artist
had slipped a piece of sheet music so that the binding of the book is littered
with musical notes. My face lit up and I looked over at the shopkeeper, who had
the biggest knowing grin on her face, like she had been waiting and waiting for
someone to notice that detail.
Later in Paris my friend, Amber, pointed me to a fun little shop near her apartment. She thought I would love it, and she was right. I found a couple more little cahiers there. One featured an illustrated map of Paris with the major sights collaged in, and one with adorable animal characters for each letter of the alphabet.
And while
we’re on the topic of cute alphabet drawings, here’s a sheet of paper I picked
up in Aix. And have you seen Emily Martin’s Black Apple alphabet poster? I
snagged one a few weeks ago and it’s tucked away safely to be hung on the wall
at our next apartment.
What kinds
of books inspire you to make books of your own?
***I've
decided to run a series on books over the next few days (weeks? until I run
out, I guess). I'll share some of my favorite books to carry around, what
supplies I bring with me on trips, some easy book-binding techniques, and what
inspires my favorite pages.
Feel free
to use any tip or technique I share on the blog in your own work. If you find a
way to make it profitable, by all means, use it. If you really like an idea
that I've shared, I'd love a link back to my blog or the post where I shared
it; if you like lots of my ideas, consider adding me to your blogroll. If I
share something that I didn't come up with myself, I will point you to the
source; if I point you to another website or blog, please be considerate about
how others want their work attributed.If you make something super neat using an
idea from my blog, I'd love to see a photo of it! Thanks and enjoy.***
