Altered Books
 Altered art is a very popular craft form all on its own and making altered
books are right up there at the top. I guess it is only natural that
scrapbook makers will want to adopt this concept and make their own, throw in
some family photos and you now have altered scrapbooking.
There are a million websites that go into the how to and why's of altered
books so I will just leave that up to the experts like David and Maria from
Altered Art. I just wanted to touch lightly
on the topic. To be honest some altered book art tends to freak me out a little.
Some seem so deep and intense and almost...dark but then self expression often
is. I am more partial to the idea of using an old book to chop up and covering
it with photos and pretty pink papers - nice and fluffy.
Altered book supplies
The supplies you need for an altered scrapbook are pretty much the same as
what you would use to make any other mini album. Glue, Scissors, craft knife,
Ruler, Stamps, inks, paint and the usual bits and pieces. Don't forget the Book!
You can use any sort of book, Hard back, Paper back, Composition book,
Children's board books, those little mini gift books. Poetry and inspirational
books seem to be popular since you can cover the pages with paper and stuff but
still leave some of the better poems uncovered. Pick up some old used books from
garage sales and other markets if you're not keen on ruining your own precious
collection.
Make an
altered Board Book
Instructions to make an mini album from a childs board book
Making Altered books
Once you have your book and supplies it is simply a matter of getting
creative and embellishing as you would a blank mini album. Rip out some pages,
leave some as they are, give it a lick of paint, stick some patterned
paper here, slap a photo there, splash some pretties everywhere....you get the
idea. You might end up with a journal to record your life, a recipe book,
an altered book shrine or a mini album scrapbook for a small child. What ever you end
up with it will be worth the effort so give altered art books a go.
Altered Book Techniques
A few basic techniques used to alter books include but are by no means limited to:
- Ripping pages - sounds good to me.
- Cutting into the pages - you can create frames this way.
- Folding pages - to do various things to add interest like to create
a pocket or just fot the sake of folding a page.
- Painting pages - dilute some paint and paint over a page, you will still
see the words through the paint.
Select a few words on the page and highlight them by completely covering the
rest of the page with paint or ink - you can create poetry this way!!
- Stamping
Return from
altered books to home
Let me know if you have
seen a great project to share
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