Bottle Cap Projects

Sign up to take this class at the Nevada Museum of Art on November 12th, read more about in on the Happenings tab.

Do you love drinking beer, soda and other fine liquids that are bottled? Well swig away, my friends, but save those bottle caps because they are the next cool thing! While I'm not following in the bodacious footsteps of Luna Lovegood and creating necklaces I have learned that with a little resin you can preserve almost anything the size of a penny in these lovely little vessels.

bottle caps full of resin

Bottle cap magnets and charms are a great way to recycle your bottle caps and preserve a small memento. From acorns, buttons, small knots and charms to photographs, drawings, and beads anything little can be suspended in clear resin and makes a useful and beautiful keepsake or gift. These are the best stocking stuffers ever. Candace Nicol taught me how it's done though I first learned the technique with my Etsy group the Handmade Hustlers, check out pictures of us making them on our facebook page. I am hoping to teach a workshop or two in this simple and fun process later this fall at the Nevada Museum of Art where I will teach Monoprinting with your Environment on August 13th this summer. 

bottle caps on my fridge!

beautiful little leaf

Moveable Type - Literally!

In this video Kyle (the blonde in the middle) is setting type in a chase to see if it will fit on the Platten press to my left. Eventually she had to move her project to the sign press on my right. This is a great view of her studio space including her furniture cabinet - which has a door! - her two presses and the number of people straining to catch a glimpse.

Last week I had the opportunity to meet the brave and beautiful Kyle Durrie of Power and Light Press at a Holland Reno event. If you've ever heard of Drive By Press, who came to Reno last year, this is a similar story of taking printing on the road.
When I first heard of someone taking an entire letterpress print shop on the road I was puzzled and impressed. Larger than people and weighing as much as a ton, letterpress machines are not what I would call portable. Transporting these ancient and heavy presses often costs thousands of dollars and Kyle had announced that she would be traveling all over the country! Needless to say, I was entranced.

The print I pulled with Kyle and her lovely business card

Moveable Type did not let me down. There was an epic amount of workshop space inside the linen truck Kyle had converted with custom cabinetry to hold not only some beautiful little presses, the likes of which I have never seen, but all her furniture, type, leading paper and even some plates. It was really a dream on wheels.
Though Power and Light Press is in Oregon, Kyle will be giving demonstrations at schools, museums, and workshop spaces all over the United States. Already she has been all over Washington, at the Hamilton Type Museum, and San Francisco. If you are close to one of her confirmed destinations (or en route to one!) there is a place on her website to request her visit! Yes, that's right - if it isn't too far out of the way you might be able to get Moveable Type in your own hometown! More information can be found here.

2.25 - My First Profesionally Curated Print Exchange

The 2.25 International Print Exchange

Bring the kids! Bring your parents! Most important, remember to bring yourself to see the latest print exchange to come to my art studio. Read more about how I organized the theme and created my own submission under my Creations tab. See the beautiful prints that were submitted for this exchange online at Candace Nicol's Blog!

my kitty example!

2.25 is an international print exchange, artists pay a small fee to support the creating and distribution of their prints then send in an edition of images for display. In this exchange artists sent in 10 prints and will receive 10 prints in return from other printmakers who participated. This is a fantastic way to learn about other printmakers, see what techniques people are using, and have a project with a deadline (if you need that sort of thing) As an added bonus, your print will be displayed either in a gallery or studio space of another artist. Learn more about this exchange on the Happenings tab.

This will also be the first opportunity to see the inspiring U.S. History Portfolio in which Candace Nicol is taking part. The exhibits will be up through all of the Artown celebration this July.

C.Nicol's beautiful 4-color etching from the U.S. History Portfolio

A breathtaking collection of expertly printed works of art, the U.S. History Portfolio showcases some of the best current print artists in the United States. Techniques, colors and inspirations are diverse. Each print touches on important events, people and inventions during a certain year in American history.

Clam Shell Box Making

Small workshops equal a lot of fun. With fewer people to keep track of, I can encourage individuals to explore their projects on higher levels. Projects become more complicated and unique when students know they have the direct attention of an instructor. A couple weeks ago I taught a box making class and though everyone's boxes were the same size each enclosure was unique to the creator.

beautiful clamshell and book by C. Wozy

Clam Shell enclosures, as they're called, are great in a number of different capacities. Beautiful as gifts on their own these boxes are exquisite "gift wrapping" especially when you make them yourself!  Clam Shells open to lay flat and have two interior trays to cuddle close whatever you choose to entrust to their care. This structure is perfect for portfolio cases, and if I ever get around to developing a serious body of work I will definitely be making my own portfolio cases and enclosures.
They are a great alternative for housing old photographs, prints, greeting cards and letters. I know my mom is constantly adding to her collection of family photographs but there is only so much room on her mantle, walls, and piano for framed pictures. If you like to keep images loose (and away from acidic non-archival papers, tapes and plastic) this is a nice way to preserve your memories.

My group was so inspired after the Clam Shell Box that they asked to create another enclosure! It's so invigorating to hear that people want to learn what you know. We created these small boxes out of some thicker board that I had given up on cutting down to the correct sizes for the Clam Shell project. Our enclosures were constructed from archival quality binder's board. Think REALLY thick cereal cardboard - not corrugated, not chip/tagboard - nice thick (well... 1/16th of an inch thick) and strong, perfect for building walls! The extra box was made from double thick board which was ordered for a class that didn't need the supplies, bonus for Rachel, but is (as I said above) twice as thick as the board I regularly use to cover books and create boxes. It was very difficult to cut down to the sizes we needed even with brand knew X-Acto blades. I will have to do some neat experimenting with that thick board, see if I can use it to my advantage.