Shadows of Shadows

Two of my shadow transparencies make shadows of their own while drying before a transfer.

Frames (Part 2)

My husband is finished cutting and gluing the reclaimed cherry, maple, oak, and walnut frames. The next step is putting in the corner splines, sanding and finishing. They're going to look great when they're finished!

Simple Pleasures

I don't know why, but there's something so incredibly satisfying about peeling a piece of paper off fabric after it has dried. It's my favorite part of the process. (reed canarygrass paper)

Reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea)

The Reed canarygrass I collected last spring in Washtenaw County has turned into beautiful paper. See different stages of the plant in process below. Thank you Mr. H for suggesting I use it and for lending me your sickle.

 

My Husband is Awesome!

Dan has started making 30 frames for the upcoming show in January! Little did he know he'd be making so many when he offered a few years ago. In an effort to keep all the materials for this project ecologically-friendly, he's making the cherry, oak, walnut, and maple frames out of reclaimed wood from a local timber yard and the MSU surplus store.

  

Twenty-one Sheets

I made twenty-one sheets of garlic mustard paper today. They should be dry in a few days and then I'll pull another batch. In the meantime, I'll be chopping and making pulp from canary reed grass that I collected in Washtenaw County. If all goes well, I'll have three invasive plant papers for the show in January: phragmites, garlic mustard and reed canarygrass. It's gettin' jiggy around here!

Garlic Mustard Pulp

I finally got around to boiling and beating the garlic mustard my son Eli picked for me at Fenner Nature Center this past spring. It made some awesome pulp which I'll make into paper later this week.

In order to cover my goofs on the transfer process, I'm going to need 60+ sheets of paper to complete 30 prints for the show. Let the paper-making begin!