Scream for Zines!

What is not to like??? A beautiful, warm sunny day here in SF. And the SF Zine Fest this weekend -- with zines (of course), artistamps, rubber stamps, book-making workshop,
friendly people -- and a green typewriter to play with.
Who needs Burning Man?

I learned how to make this teeny book today and I had fun doing it! Free workshop given by (my pals) Monica Lee and Dorothy Yuki of Mad Made SF.
Their business card says "Monic and Dorothy are a little crazy & wild and make repurposed designs in San Francisco".
They have a Mad Made SF Facebook page if you are interested -- check it out.

I love a good work table.....

Monica taught us how to make that adorable tiny accordion page book and Dorothy showed us how to make an envelope booklet....

Here is the cover -- pretty cool, isn't it? Quite a handy booklet for a mail artist....

Mad made SF table --  selling really cool stuff too.....

After the workshop, just strolled the isles...lots of great stuff to see and to to buy, if you are so inclined...

One room is a zine library. No, you can't check them out but you can sit for as long as you like and read through them.....

Buttons -- Bet You Can't Buy Just One!!
Buttons and artistamps by the fabulous Maureen Forys, book designer of Good Mail Day and Mail/art/Book -- check out
Happenstance Type-O-Rama
Sorry I didn't get a shot of her artistamps because they were wonderful!

And what have we here?
Postal rubber stamps?
Red Letter Day?
Miss Good Mail Day herself?

The newly launched line of postal rubber stamps, Red Handed Rubber Stamps, by Jennie Hinchcliff
is here (for all of you who have been asking me where I got the amazingly cool new rubber stamps I have been flaunting.
You can buy the stamps at FLAX, here in San Francisco and the Ink Pad in NYC and
Guadalupe's in Santa Fe. Just google them to find the addresses.
I know both the Ink Pad and Guadalupe's do mail order for those of you who are desperate to get your hands on these fabulous stamps (you know who you are).
And you can check out Red Handed Rubber Stamps right here

You know we haven't had any food pictures on the blog in a while and you KNOW I am having lunch....so after all the excitement at the Zine Fest I had to go have some lunch -- join me?

Egg Puffs?
Freshly made and hot and paraded around the restaurant? Who could resist? Not me!

After all that I had to go home and hang out in my studio for a while and chill out.
There are just so many fun things to do around it isn't easy to keep up with everything.
(Library Big Book sale in September anybody?)

It's a holiday weekend, right? So why not crack open a nice bottle of wine, set out some cheese and work on art for as long as I want? And I know there is a dvd and some BBQ take-out waiting for me when I'm ready. We know how to spend Labor Day Weekend here in San Francisco.
What are you all doing?
Come on over for some wine and art if you want.

Happy official end-of-summer. I am ready for fall -- bring it on!

Hope you guys are all having fun this weekend, wherever you are, and making some art.
Tell me about it! 
Make a zine!

SEND GOOD MAIL -- GET GOOD MAIL

Making Stuff

Oh yes, I've been busy. Besides exploring my friend's studios and going a little crazy at the Vintage Paper Fair, I am always making stuff.
These tri-fold pockets were inspired by one my mail art pal Dori Singh made for me.
They are so fun to make (and to receive). I like to fill them up with little surprises or letters.

Thank-you folder for j

Here is the folder opened up and filled with small surprises.....

....easy to do -- just either use double-sided paper or put two sheets together -- and do a tri-fold.
Then, fold up the bottom part way to make a pocket.
You can either sew the pocket closed or (as I do) use some double stick tape
and punch a hole on the front, thread some ribbon through and
fill 'er up!
Thanks for the inspiration, Dori.

Outgoing to the UK -- vellum envelope with airmail folder tucked inside.
This one did NOT make it to Alex in the UK.
I wonder what happened to it. I took it to the PO to be sure the correct postage was on it and had it hand cancelled.Very frustrating.

Little rubber stamped zine -- an edition of only six! 

But -- you can all take a look inside!

I spent one chilly, foggy SF summer day making loads of envelopes -- very fun!
The kangaroo is for Vizma in Australia (of course). I bet she's seen a real kangaroo or two.
Now she'll get a mail art one.

Support Your Local Cow -- do I have to say any more?
(to KSP)

Some summer farmers market inspired envelopes -- the giant tomato goes to
Miss Millicent.
The only thing about making loads of decorated envelopes is that you've got to actually FILL them up.
I'm working on it.

I got out the watercolors and started splashing and dripping and dabbing (and then stamping) on papers......that was fun. A lot of fun!
But waiting for everything to dry is hard on an Aries...

Allan Bealy/Pamela Gerard
Took a little time out to collaborate with AB on a collage postcard. 

Remember the postcards I was working on in the Collage post? Well, here they are all finished and going out to Jon Foster and Stan Askew....

A couple more envelopes ready to be finished up, filled and sent off into the world....
This week was all about farmers markets, summer produce and vintage kid's books...

An Empire State of Mind -- outgoing to SW

Playing with paint...
I have been having so much fun just fooling around with paints, inks and rubber stamps.
Getting your hands dirty is really fun.
And my motto is
Why Send It Plain when You Can Send It Fancy?
These sheets of lined paper just needed a little something...

It was quite entertaining to flick paint around and dribble and stamp some distress ink and generally make a (beautiful) mess. I am really getting into this...

After the paint comes the rubber stamping -- now I'm ready to write some letters to fill up all those envelopes I've been making!

A couple more envelopes....coffee inspired....

And some postcards.......Avocado cards and  a postcard I made while fooling around with paints and stencils...

Now I'm just sitting around waiting for different paints to dry.....gathering up my nerves after a 3:32AM wake-up call in the form of a 6. earthquake.
I really can live without those suckers.
We are fine here in SF except for jangled nerves but I really feel for those folks up there in Napa who really took the hit.
I guess earthquakes are the price we pay for living in one of the most wonderful places in the world.

I am happy today to be safe and work in my studio. Thanks to all of you who contacted me to ask if I was OK. Such a lovely, international mail art community.

SEND GOOD MAIL --- GET GOOD MAIL
So, what are all of you working on this week? Envelopes? Collages?Letters?
Do tell.

Does the Postman Ring Twice? Postal Books You Just Might Like!

This little book looks like it was much loved. And, I love it too. I recently came across it in an antique shop where I also found a tiny mail box bank.
The guy just threw this book in for free!
Sometimes you get lucky.

A good example why you shouldn't use tape that isn't acid free.

I am just loving these drawings of post men. So charming. And, since the book is falling apart anyway, I don't feel too bad about tearing out the pages to use for art purposes....

Did you know this?

I hope he stops at my mail box.

Here is another charming book about mail. A pal gifted this one to me -- a find at Scrap. 

There is some fun stuff in this one -- a section of The Language of Stamps and
another few pages of US Postal Service stamps featuring the US Postal Service!

I have long thought we should resurrect The Language of Stamps.
Anyone agree?

Love this one. Is she licking it? Sealing it? Smelling it? I don't know but I like it.

An American Postal Portrait
A Photographic Legacy -- produced by the United States Postal Service
2000
I found this book cheap on Amazon and took a chance on buying it. If you are a postal nerd (who, me?), I"d say it is nice to have in your collection. Lots of photos, some vintage and semi-vintage and some interesting stuff.

Mail/Art/Book
The book from the fabulous Ex Postal Facto event and show. These are photos of the mail art shown at the SF Center for the Book -- an inspiring collection of mail art.

A sample page of deliciousness....
Contact the SF Center for the Book if you are interested in getting a copy of your own.

Good Mail Day
by Jennie Hinchcliff and Carolee Gilligan Wheeler
I have mentioned this book many times but I am finding some folks still don't know about it --gasp!
If you don't have it, and you like mail art, you've got to get it.
That's all I can say.

Page after page after page of great stuff.

No, it doesn't come autographed -- I am just lucky enough to know Jennie and Carolee and  almost all the folks who created the book and the mail artists who contributed.
Kind of like a mail art yearbook?

This post started out to be about the two vintage books I had but (like all my art projects) it evolved and I included a couple of contemporary books too to round things out.
And, why not?

So, keep your eye out for some of those old books next time you pass a garage sale or library book sale and you know where to get the other, newer books if you want to.

Now I'm going to go read........and maybe tear that little Mr Postman book up........

Send Good Mail --- Get Good Mail

Am I missing any good books? Postal? Artistamp? Please let me know in the comments if you know of any others.
I'm sure we'd all like to know!