charity (squared) and tallest book request

i have some ideas and questions about the tallest book in the world project that i wanted to run by all of you lovely participants… but first i have some thank yous!

first, thank you immensely to all of you that have emailed me and/or commented and wish to participate in this project.  i’m hugely behind in emails (this is nothing new) but wish to get back to you all by the end of the week if i haven’t done so already.  thank you so much for participating in this project!  it warms my heart to know that there are so many like-minded and charitable people artists out there!  (okay, yes, artists are people too, but we’re a special kind of people.)

thank you also to miss maggie mannwieler for sending me a spool of binding thread.  you rock, lady, and i thank you so much!

i wanted some input from all participants on the charity in which this book will benefit.  my suggestions seemed well received by so many and no one has (as of yet) made any other suggestions but i welcome all thoughts and ideas.  as a recap, my ideas were something having to do with any or all of the following as they are daily aspects of my life as a mother and an artist: kids, art, aspergers/autism.  along the vein, i have researched a few non-profit organizations but have some more work to do and contacts to make before i list them out.

in the meantime, i’m working away on my pages.  here is a start that pretty much shows you nothing but a door on the front of my “page one”:

i promise to share more later and snap-shots of other’s pages as they come in.  i know it currently looks like a cover but i’m mystery girl — it will have a photo and other bits on top, and lots of secrets inside once i share it.

IMPORTANT BOOK INFORMATION:

as of yet, there is no specific deadline.  i’m loosely thinking the end of the year.  i want this to be TALL so don’t want to put a firm date on it until i know how many pages we end up having, etc.

pretty please request: when you mail your page(s) in, please include: name, location in the world, URL to website or blog.  please also send a photo via email with a shot of your page(s) to hi (at) altered bits (dot) com so i can keep it all straight.  it doesn’t have to be a good photo — this will just be for my visual reference so i don’t mess anything up when it comes to giving proper credits.

you are welcome to put your name and url on your page(s) — i have had a lot of questions about this.  but you don’t have to — the last page will have a pocket and i will list the page number, artist, location and url so you will be credited no matter what.

pages will be put into the book in the order received unless there will be a binding issue of some weird sort, though i can’t imagine that will be the case.

just as a reminder (because i was asked again), please use thick paper or whatever you’re using as your base/substrate, like watercolor paper or something else that’s sturdy so that it doesn’t rip when bound with needle and binding thread (see size, folding and other specifics in this post).  fabric is fine as is anything else that won’t tear or break when bound.  🙂

here is the mailing address again (unless you have my physical address — that is fine too, of course):

alicia
altered bits
PO Box 83928
Portland, OR  97283

on another charitable note, i was recently commissioned to do a piece for the cover of a book produced by a local meditation center.  it was to be a collage with buddha on it (thangka buddha, to be precise) and be colorful.  they wanted me to sell the piece when i was done so i could make some extra dollars as they only needed the digital art for the book, but i’ve donated it to them for an auction they are having to benefit an upcoming retreat (actually, both the original and a print).  it was different from my typical style in that it’s so vibrant and colorful but i greatly enjoyed the challenge and they couldn’t have been happier.  here is a shot of it on my shelf:

each flower and little piece is hand cut — it was fun!  ingredients: collage, acrylic, water color pencil, ink, crackle.

i hope you’re all having a fab start to autumn (on this half of the planet) or start to spring (the other side).  i’ve been working away on some serieses (that’s not a word, i know), some commissions and some collaborations and will be sharing those here soon.  happy book page making to all!  i’m off to work on mine right this second.

(oh, and i may be quiet again for the next week as the in-laws are coming in a couple day’s time and i’ve been a busy bee cleaning, organizing and cleaning more for their arrival.)