This journal was commissioned as a gift for an amazing local poet who writes "poetry on demand" at various arts events using a variety of manual typewriters. A customer will sit in front of him, give him a topic, and he'll produce a poem right before their eyes, typed on a long strip of paper. This particular typewriter (photo of actual typewriter below) is one of his favorites and I had to reproduce the look of it on a cover in raised leather. So many keys! And on a relatively narrow cover (about 7" wide), everything was very small-scale. Not possible to stamp the letters on the keys with metal type, but otherwise a very recognizable result.

typewriter journal*

 - 100 pages archival mohawk superfine text in smooth finish white

- page size 7.5" wide by 9.5" tall

- British marbled paper endpapers

- satin ribbon page marker

- cover is black pigskin leather (see note below) over hand-cut binder's board and tag board

- typewriter created from many layers of hand-cut tag board with pieces individually-covered in hand-pared goatskin leather, permanently-mounted in a slightly recessed area of the cover

 - lettering on cover added using moveable metal type, hot foil stamping, and white stamping pigment

- rubbed silver pigment accents on typewriter

- inset tiny goatskin "buttons" in red, blue, and white on right of typewriter

- approximately $425

*the black pigskin leather used for the majority of this cover is no longer manufactured or available, but a currently-available leather could be used instead for the flat areas of this cover

___________________________________________________________

 This guest book was commissioned for the Villa Avanti, a luxury rental villa on the island of Satin Martin. One of the most iconic features of this resort property is the very distinctive chair/couch that's out on a pedestal in the middle of the pool (see small photo lower right). I recreated a stylized version of this feature on the cover with bands of blue behind it to suggest the pool, the ocean, and the sky. This villa uses a lot of vintage browns and oranges in its decor and the cover of the guest book reflects that. Oversized and impressive with a 14" wide landscape page, this book is meant to be kept out on a table as a place for guests to write about their vacation experiences. The little pillows and cushions of the chair were recreated in leather right down to the raised seams along the edges.

large custom guest book for luxury saint martin property

- 150 pages (300 page sides)

- pages size 14" wide by 11" tall

- pages are archival mohawk superfine text in smooth finish white

- printed endpapers

- ribbon page marker

- solid-color endappers

- two-tone cover is orange and dark brown goatskin book leather over hand-carved binder's board and matte board

- inset image on front cover cut from hand-carved binder's board and layers of tag board and individually-covered with hand-pared goatskin leathers

- lettering on cover added using moveable metal type, hot foil stamping, and blind stamping technique

- approximately $510

___________________________________________________________

 A commission based on my customer's childhood obsession with tornadoes, this 3-D funnel cloud was hand-carved from binder's board and inset with taxidermy eyes in various sizes to indicate perspective. The tornado is about to decimate an unfortunate house as mammatus storm clouds hang in the green sky. Having lived in the midwest for decades, there is something that becomes very familiar about tornado season. They're always out to get you. And sometimes the sky really IS green.

tornado (is watching you) journal*

- 50 pages (100 page sides)

- pages roughly 6" wide by 12" tall

- pages are archival mohawk superfine text in smooth finish white

- italian marbled paper endpapers in a gray "stone" pattern

- cover is predominantly black and dark green pigskin leather (see note below)

- tornado carved from binder's board, covered with goatskin leather, and inset with several size of taxidermy eyse

- clouds, ground, hills, and small house hand-cut from matte board and tag board and individually-covered with various colors of hand-pared goatskin leather

- approximately $475

*please note that the black pigskin leather used for the majority of htis cover is no longer manufactured or available but a different black leather could be substitued for the flat portions of a cover like this one

___________________________________________________________

camper journal

 - page size 6 and 1/8" wide by 9 and 1/4" tall

- 105 pages (110 page side to write on)

- pages are archival unlined Mohawk Superfine Text in smooth finish white

- pages are hand-sewn in signatures with 100% cotton thread

- decorative endpapers printed in a fun retro camper design

- cover is predominantly navy pigskin leather over carved binder's board

- design on cover created with individual pieces of matte board and tag board covered with hand-pared goatskin leathers in silver, black, white, red, purple, aqua, and gray with all of the pieces assembled like a puzzle inside a recessed area on the front and back covers

- accent of hand-pared yellow British book calf in open camper window

- mountains on the horizon continue across the spine

- yucca accented with navy wax

- rivets on camper added one at a time using a moveable metal type "period" from a set of type, hot foil stamping, and pewter stamping foil

- all archival adhesives

- approximately $380

___________________________________________________________

skull journal

- 100 pages (200 page sides)

- pages size roughly 5" wide by 8" tall

- blank, archival, unlined pages

- cover features inlaid red and dark brown goatskin leathers

- "skull" panels are raw-edged leather that is NOT bookbinding leather, embossed with a skull and skeleton pattern

- skull panels riveted through the cover with steel rivets

- monogram lettering on cover added using moveable metal type, hot foil stamping, and blind stamping technique

- approximately $170

___________________________________________________________