Enamelling Little Book Pendants: Art Project Tutorial 6

 

Enamelling Little Book Pendants

Art Project Tutorial 6

Inspiration, Images and Tips

By Lynne Suprock

Little books have been created at the studio bench....well, since before I had a studio or bench :-)  When I was a little girl, I had several little, teenie-tiny books for my dolls.  Mattel and Golden Books made a few, and I still have them packed away somewhere.  Certainly they are stored in memory.  

Nowadays, these little book pages are filled with my own stories.  As well, when I teach a little book workshop, the students do the same.  You can carry them in your hand or wear them on a necklace, or read them to your dolls.  

So after making quite a few metal and soldered books and experimenting with Apoxie Clay and bookmaking, I decided to dabble a bit in yet another medium.  

A lot of fun was had when I bought a Paragon kiln from an art sister.  I had learned to fire pieces quickly and felt my world had just been rocked with this new and delightful media.  The ideas were just unending..... how perfect for little books!

So, part of the challenge of book binding becomes how to marry the front and back plates in both a structually sound and an aesthetically pleasing way.  For me, I like to experiment, so along the way, I tried several things.

The easiest for any book binding is the paper back method  This involves PVA glue and lighter weight front and back covers.  I do this in two earlier blogs post where I also show text on the spine of the leather or add ribbons for added strength. http://simplyprettystuff.blogspot.com/2016/06/art-project-share-soldered-little-books.html  

and 

http://simplyprettystuff.blogspot.com/2016/06/art-project-share-using-apoxie-clay-in_21.html

Another way to bind the enamel books especially, is by using a coptic stitch.  The above image in this post incorporates a type of Coptic stittching with added beads. This allows the wearer to open and close the book without worry of the pages becoming loose, as they sometimes do using the gluing method. 

Lastly, I love incorporating little windows in my pieces.  Sometimes the the little books are shaped like houses themselves, sometimes they incorporate hearts, stars or circle cuts.  It adds interest and is a lot of fun to do!

TIPS:  To help hold together heavier book covers using the PVA gluing method, incorporate a thin fabric or leather to hold the pages to the covers on the inside.

Use a jeweler's saw or a metal shape punch to create openings in the metal before firing the enamel.

Make sure all your holes are aligned and punched before covering the copper with enamel and firing, as well.

Create polka dots or stripes using stencils with your enamel powder.

Always wear a respirator or equivalant mask when applying or cleaning up enamel powder.  See manufactures warnings and instructions.

Follow me on FB where you can instant message me with any questions.  I also have an Instagram page at lynne_suprock

Stay tuned for the next Segment, with more stories, images, and tips throughout the weeks and months ahead