Just when you (and me too!) thought the way back machine had run out of gas...
Back in January of aught seven, I received a delightful invitation to participate in a postal ring hybrid. It was called
The Artful Log: A Decorated Journal Round Robin and was started by Heysukeyw. The idea was to pick a theme, create a logbook and carve a stamp and mail it around the circle. With me so far? The twist was that each person who received your logbook would then completely decorate a double page spread according to their interpretation of your theme. No limits. In this case the stamp was really secondary to the logbook. Oh, and did I mention that we were to title our logbooks in such a way as to disguise the true theme until the logbooks were actually in hand? So there was no way to plan what you were going to do until the next journal arrived in the mail. We had about two weeks with each book, so there was plenty of time to brainstorm and execute. If I had to pick one favorite postal out of them all, this would probably be it. (Wait, have I said that before?) I will be posting the pages of my logbook over the next 12 days. (See, isn't that clever? I can finish NaNo and you'll never even miss me.)
You're probably wondering what my theme was, right? Well it was titled Reservations, which seems straightforward enough until you take into account the online chit chat designed to mislead. *Insert Doctor Horrible laugh* So while my theme was fantasy destinations, it could have also been Native American or phobias.
The logbook that I sent out was created to look like a suitcase (Yes, I was taking travelogue in a different direction) and it came home delightfully battered and stuffed to the brim with wonderful art depicting all of the places people would go if there were "no limits".
In case you can't read it, the first page says: "Now taking Reservations for the ultimate vacation of your dreams! If you could visit any place on earth, where would you choose to go? A secluded beach? The bullfights in Madrid? Or back home to Grandma's farm? Tell me! Nitrocat and Kittens have their bags packed and are ready to go! We're leaving Newark, Illinois on January 29th, 2007. Next Stop....
The tag at the top of the page has the words to Johnny Horton's "North to Alaska", which we will now all have stuck in our heads and which will make us all want to watch the movie, right?
The depth of the colors and layers on this page are a feast for the eyes. Everything from the alien time machine to the burnt paper edges is genius. Do you notice how the flowers on the pocket line up perfectly with the flowers on the background making the transition seamless? Such attention to detail!
This tag with the wonderful old key pulls out of the pocket.
Postage stamps, rubber stamps galore, tags with logos and miniature travel posters clutter the page. And when I say clutter, I mean that in a good way.
The card with Lars' picture on it folds out accordion style to show some of his work in miniature and the details of the tour. The back of the card (not pictured due to techinical difficulties) is vellum and says "The first step is the dream" in black script.
The warmth of the colors really brings out the South American feel. Love the Llamas!
This card is in the pocket behind the Milano card and miniature fresco on the right hand page.
The tag in the pocket pulls out to show Orion's sig and her note on the back.
I love how she stamped her sig on all of the different stops. There is so much to see in Europe that I imagine traveling by rail would be a very convenient way of seeing alot in a short amount of time. Great idea!
The photo of the "Shepherd's Cot in Glen Nevis, Inverness-shire" opens up to reveal this poem.
If you live around here you may recognize these stamps as the contents of the Norway in a Pine Box letterbox. There are 12 stamps in all.
You're probably wondering what my theme was, right? Well it was titled Reservations, which seems straightforward enough until you take into account the online chit chat designed to mislead. *Insert Doctor Horrible laugh* So while my theme was fantasy destinations, it could have also been Native American or phobias.
The logbook that I sent out was created to look like a suitcase (Yes, I was taking travelogue in a different direction) and it came home delightfully battered and stuffed to the brim with wonderful art depicting all of the places people would go if there were "no limits".
In case you can't read it, the first page says: "Now taking Reservations for the ultimate vacation of your dreams! If you could visit any place on earth, where would you choose to go? A secluded beach? The bullfights in Madrid? Or back home to Grandma's farm? Tell me! Nitrocat and Kittens have their bags packed and are ready to go! We're leaving Newark, Illinois on January 29th, 2007. Next Stop....
...onto Peter Rabbit (54) who leaps up and knocks Charlotte out of her web (55). Charlotte lands on Miss Muffet who runs into a tree, dislodging a bird who asks, "Are you my Mother?" (57)
...which tilts shelf causing vase (21) to fall, pulling string, lighting gun lighter (22) causing hot air balloon (23) to rise, flipping switch (24) turning on light (25) which shines through magnifying glass (26) which lights fuse to rocket (27) deploying parachute (28) which lands on start button of race track (29). Race car hits rail arm (30) hitting bowling ball (31) knocking over bowling pin (32) hitting banana (33) causing it to...
Dominoes head up the ramp, one falls off (15) hitting cat on back. Cat wakes up, notices other cat, falls in love (16) and runs to the store to buy catnip for the new love (17) getting tangled in a string that pulls a pot of melting chocolate our of boiling water (18). Aroma of chocolate fills the air which causes the chocolate loving girl to drool (19). Drool waters plant which starts to grow uncontrollably (20)...
