More Than a Card, Less Than a Book

A year ago, I picked up an accordian fold book in France. It was small, 3 X 5 inches, and very affordably priced. One side was a sketch book of a trip and the other was the text explaining and identifying the pictures. It got me to thinking of alternatives to publishing a book versus just having images copied for cards. Here was a middle ground. The little book I purchased was hard bound and much more elaborate than what I went to work on. I have been working with a local printer, who does great scans and giclee prints for a reasonable price, and discussed what I wanted to do. I made a dummy copy, took the book I bought and together we problem solved. I didn't want to make a major investment, "print on demand" seemed the way to go.
To back up a little bit - I paint miniatures, having frames custom made would make them prohibitively expensive. I buy frames, either commercially made or remnants from a framer, remove the glass, trace it onto my watercolor paper and paint to size. This enables me to price my work reasonably, yet pay myself adequately for the work I do. My pieces are usually impulse purchases, Many artists think of the frame as an integral part of the art, the difference is that I start with the frame and paint it to fit, both size, style and color. I took the same approach to the booklet. The printer has limitations on size of single sheets of paper that can go through the printer. She gave me a sheet of this and I managed to lay out the entire booklet on one sheet, which meant one scan. The fewer the scans, the lower the cost. To reference the images on the reverse side, I used blackline drawings of the same images and the text was placed next to each one. This way the images were not spoiled by reference numbers or letters.
The finished booklet fits a 5X7 envelope, the back has a thumbnail sheet and it is presented in a glasine envelope.
This first book was a labor of love. It was a profile of the town and area that we visit every year in France. I had more than enough reference photos after going there for over ten years. It is now for sale in the Galerie Arbouge in LaBastide Murat, in English and in French. My next booklet is titled " A Day at the Beach" . Check this blog soon for pictures of it in process and finished.

Watercolor Travel Kits 4

This is the largest and most elaborate of the boxes I've made so far. It measures 6 X 12 X 1.5 inches when closed. It comes unpainted with the handle, latches and sturdy hinges already on it. I purchased it from an online art supply company. It is referred to as an artist's tool box. It cost about $12. Again I used the basswood for dividers in addition to plastic half and whole pans for the paint. A 5X 7 watercolor block fits inside. The interior is painted with gloss white acrylic. I used the "Liquid Fusion" glue again. The water dish is a baby food container. It has a tightly fitting lid and holds the smaller items quite neatly while traveling. The big difference between this box and the previous ones is that it attaches to my tripods. I purchased a threaded socket from a local hardware store, the old-fashioned kind of store where they have thousands of little bins and little brown envelopes to contain just the number of things you need, not prepackaged bags of no less than a dozen. I reinforced the bottom by glueing a small block of wood to the inside. When that had set I drilled a 1/4 inch hole, pounded the socket into the hole from the outside, as far as it would go.
Quick release mounts for tripods are all very different, however, the screw on them that attaches it to the camera is 1/4 inch diameter. So, once you have the socket in place on the palette box, it can accept any tripod quick release mount and fit onto the mount's matching tripod. I have a table height tripod and a heavier, full height, tripod. This box accepts either mount so I can paint plein air standing up or sitting down. When traveling, a light source isn't always near a comfortable table, this solves the problem. The table height tripod is small and light weight as well, making it a great travel companion.

Watercolor Travel Kits 3

This little box is a gift card container. The lid is separate, not hinged. I spray painted the interior of the lid with the same enamel that I used for the cigarette box. Instead of constructing compartments for paints, I glued in plastic half pans. I also put in a water reservoir brush and used two plastic full pans for water containers. Very small, very light, very portable. I added a water reservoir brush to this kit in addition to a folding brush. It's very handy for sketching on the move.

Watercolor Travel Kits 2

As you can see this is a very small vintage box. It was a cigarette case. The body is pewter or steel and the top is inlaid with tooled leather. It is slightly curved, to fit better in a pocket I suppose. The nice thing about the curve is that it fits very nicely in the palm of your hand when painting. I purchased a 12 X 12 inch sheet of the kind of steel used for duct work, metal shears, and JB Weld epoxy cement. I made a template out of heavy paper to fit the curve of the case, and traced it onto the metal for the pan divisions. This made the cutting of the sheet metal more accurate and less tedious. I used an ultra-fine permanent marker to trace the template onto the metal before cutting. When mixed, the epoxy is close to the consistency of peanut butter. With the partitions cut accurately, there was no problem with things needing support while the epoxy sets up. This is so small that I had to make the compartment for the brushes and pencil go diagonally across the box so it would be long enough to hold them. The interior is painted with an enamel meant for metal surfaces. As small as it is, there is still a water compartment and room to store an eraser and sharpener.

Watercolor Travel Kits I

I travel a lot and I always take my paints and a journal with me. For years I have been on a quest to find the perfect travel kit for easy and comfortable painting. Recently I began to make my own out of cigar boxes, vintage cigarette cases, and the odd wooden box or tin. This is one of my favorites, overall it measures 7 X 8 X 1.25 inches. It holds a 5 X 7 watercolor block, 16 colors, a water dish, brushes, a pencil, sharpener and eraser, a sponge, and a cloth.
The divisions for the pans are made from basswood, purchased at a local craft store, the little water dish is from a kitchen store and the folding brushes are from a mail order art supply company. The box itself is from a local cigar shop and cost $2.00. I used "Liquid Fusion" glue instead of wood glue, it sets faster and is totally waterproof when dry. The interior is painted with gloss white acrylic paint.
Cigar boxes are light weight and often have dovetailed corners. Watch out for the hinges, sometimes they are just driven into the soft wood. The metal fatigues with use and they tend to break. I replaced these with tiny, brass hinges, that are held in place with very small screws. The hinges can be purchased at most hardware stores.

Thank you for checking out my blog. I'm starting this to share my enthusiasm for watercolor painting, along with what I have learned that makes painting a satisfying activity, and those things that I continue to discover as I grow my craft.
I paint very small, 1/2 X 1 inch to 4 X 6 inches. I also do very large murals for my classroom, but nothing in between.
I teach fifth grade in a public school in Manchester and art to adults at several different places, both academic and casual. I'll be teaching a class on "Clouds, Rocks and Waves", at the NH Institute of Art, in Manchester, on August 15 and 16. You can register by calling the school, 603-623-0313. I will be posting more pictures and some "How to's..." in the near future.