Beyond the typical collage using flat items, and the traditional painted or sketched page there are a lot more variations that can be used with book arts. This does not have to be limited to altered books; it can be used in art journals and book sculpture as well.
Materials:
- Book or art journal
- 3D element
- Pencil
- Craft knife
- Hot glue gun
- Hot glue sticks
Adding 3D items to book arts isn’t impossible, nor is it difficult. First, decide on the item to be added and then follow these simple instructions:
- Close the book that is going to contain the item.
- Place the item next to the book, and make a mark on the side of the pages where the top of the item is.
- Open the book to that page, and then place the item in its center.
- Trace around the item using pencil.
- Using a craft knife, cut along the traced lines.
- Trace the next page along where you have just made the cuts.
- Cut along these lines.
- Repeat these steps until all the pages have been cut right up to the back cover.
- Using a hot glue gun, attach the item to the back book cover.
Try not to make each cut perfect in order to give interest to the appearance the pages when they’re on top of each other. Add distress ink along the edges of each cut to give them some extra dimension.
Variations:
- Use gel medium to affix each of the pages surrounding the 3D elements to each other. That way, when the book is opened, altered bookwork can lead to the sealed section
- Paint the back cover a corresponding color fitting the theme of the bookwork, or that matches the item being added to the book.
- Use more than one 3D element and create cutouts for each of them.
This is a great project to work on with children, however supervision must be used when the craft knife and hot glue gun are in use. They will feel like they are creating something with a hidden treasure or a secret compartment. Encourage children to create projects about dinosaurs, fossils, rocks, geodes, pinecones, pieces from nature and so on for school and personal use. Don’t forget to add other interactive elements such as envelopes, pockets, sleeves, and page flaps.
As you can see, this is not a very difficult project at all. Before you know it, you will be looking at items in a whole new way. Rather than thinking they are only useful with sculptures and other table top or hanging pieces of artwork, you are opening your creative mind to a whole new world of possibilities.
