Among the Daisies

I carved some new linoleum blocks and did a test letterpress print on a vintage document. A piece of vintage music had the lyrics "Among the Daisies" and fit my floral theme perfectly.

 

Collage Time

 I did this collage ages ago and forgot to photograph it. I used some old scrapbook papers, a bingo game and a stamp from Germany

Japan Blue

 This collage was done on a vintage Japanese book cover that I mounted on a wood board. The board has layers of paper from a vintage Japanese book. I also used patterned Japanese papers, an old label and a Japanese envelope with a vintage stamp.

Makeready Collage

I did this collage using letterpress makeready. Makeready is what happens when you get ready to print something new. I use scrap paper to get my colors and position correct on press. You can get all sorts of interesting patterns and overlays on the scraps. Sometimes it's one big mess, and sometimes the results are save-worthy. 

Black Bird and Stars

Here's my first collage in the calendar.  Because the paper is wrinkling on the back from the glue, I'm going to collage only on the right side of the book.

For the bird, I tried an image transfer with Modge Podge. I don't know if I like it since it leaves a shiny residue on the paper. I also used a piece of vintage wallpaper, an old letter and a vintage Hungarian postage stamp. Still needs something....but, you gotta start somewhere.

New collage

2 collages to start off the year, made with lovely vintage French documents and other bits and pieces.

Geisha Collage

 I'm working on a series of collages based on vintage postcards of Japanese Geisha from the early 1900's.

This collage is a portrait of the a Geisha named Sakae. She was very popular and is featured on many postcards. I scanned the original postcard so as not to ruin the original. It's combined with pages from a vintage Japanese book, handmade washi papers, and a fan letterpress printed from my own design.

Spring Butterfly Collage

I thought I'd do a spring-y collage. I used antique French documents including one dated 1898, vintage floral wallpaper and a butterfly stamp from the Republic of Guinea. This collage is available for sale in my collage shop, The Torn Letter.

Collage Re-do

Sometimes I do a collage that after a while I look at it and think to myself, "I could use that canvas for something better". You won't see the before, but here is the after. 

I used some vintage Japanese documents, washi paper, and a piece of a damaged print by Keisuke Serizawa (1895-1984). Serizawa was a master of katazome stencil dyeing and in 1956 the Japanese government made him a National Living Treasure. I have several of his limited edition calendars and have posted them previously (although it may be time for another post!)

New Collage

Here are a couple of new collages. Vintage documents, postage stamps, handmade papers - all of my favorite things to collage with. On the first collage, I also used a metal bird and branch with a nice green patina. I purchased them a number of years ago to make some jewelry that never happened.

Soon to be for sale in my Etsy shop TheTornLetter

Shades of Blue

 I did this collage using a bunch a letterpress scraps and various papers in shades of blue.

First Collage

My first collage of the year. This one was done on late 19th century McGuffey Reader book cover. I used vintage French papers and a French postage stamp with an image of a sailing ship. I may mount the collage on a wood panel but I haven't decided yet.

French Stamps

Now that my Christmas gift buying, wrapping and shipping are all done, I had a little time for a new collage. I received these nice stamps on a package from France, and combined them with scraps of handmade and vintage paper, a coffee filter and some type rubber stamps.

Time for a new collage

 I received a package from an Etsy seller in Russia and some nice stamps were on the package so, I had to make a collage. The purple papers were letterpress printed and I combined them with a vintage ticket.

Time for a new collage

Here's a new little collage I did. It's mounted on wood and uses all my favorites. I found an old worn tape measure that is now one of my new favorites for collage.

When life gives you unexpected free time

...collage!

I purchased some nice old book covers from Red Cottage on Etsy. The base of this collage is a leather cover and part of the spine. The stains on the cover were so beautiful that I didn't want to cover too much. I added some vintage papers, rubber stamp pattern, and postage stamps.

Collage on an antique leather book cover

Time flies by

I can't believe how fast the time goes. I never seem to have enough time to get everything done. I did get a few new collages completed however.

A few months ago, I purchased a massive collection of vintage postage stamps. The books had been left out in the rain so everything was damp. It took me weeks to go through all of the books, peel the stamps off the sheets and flatten everything. The butterfly stamps in the following collages are from that collection. The first three use stamps from Hungary and the last one has a stamp from Bulgaria.

New Collage

I haven't done a collage in a few months but I pulled out my scraps last weekend. This was done on a 4" x 4" birch board using vintage documents, hand made paper and some rubber stamps. The black and white hand made paper is from India and the round rubber stamp is Russian.

52 Weeks of Collage Part 2 Week 44

This week I used part of an old letter, a vintage perfume label and some vintage wallpaper scraps for this small collage.

collage week 44

52 Weeks of Collage Part 2 Week 42

Another collage on  a birch wood board, this one started with some hand made marbled paper that I've had in my stash for ages. I also used some vintage ledger papers and a butterfly, keeping in the colors of the marbled paper.

collage week 42