Hi <<First Name>>!

Last time, I told you about the upcoming Books As Art exhibition. The photos above are the base of another book I will be showing, "The Horticulturist". It's a garden theme (obviously, hence the name!) with a good scattering of New Zealand flora in there. The inspiration from this piece comes from my hopefully-soon dream of building a veggie garden, the beautiful surroundings of the Otago Peninsula, and the warm, golden autumn sunshine.


Materials:
For this book, I used a mix of:

Embellish! This is when I gather a pile of paper-y things (and a few non-papery things), as well as some washi tape rolls that fit with the theme. I'm thinking greens, golds, and florals; this piece feels very warm, so I'm avoiding cool blues.

I then go through each spread of pages, and build something incorporating new materials with the elements already on the page. As this is a gardener's journal, there will be lots of pockets and tuck spots, and I may also include some painting. Below is a spread with a couple of pocket styles I may include.

 

Follow the yellow brick road! 

I've become a believer in following inspiration, and trusting that it will lead me in the right direction. Well, The Wizard of Oz popped into my head the other day, and I thought the Emerald City would make a divine book theme. Don't you think?

Next step:

Gather inspiration! Once I decide on a theme, I collect images and ideas, maybe do a bit of research, and start building a pile of materials that would suit. For this piece, I've made a Pinterest board so I can share the process with you (I usually just take screenshots and save them in an album in my phone).