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I’m not much of a shopper anymore, but I do love rummaging through thrift stores, flea markets, and estate sales. You never know what you’ll find—sometimes nothing at all, and that’s perfectly fine. Recently, I went to Estate Treasures and Services in Middletown, CT—a massive warehouse packed with everything from furniture to rickrack. Tucked along a back wall, I spotted a bookcase stacked high with the largest collection of piano roll paper I’d ever seen in one place. My first thought? You already have two boxes—you don’t need more. But, of course, curiosity won, and I had to take a peek inside a few.  To my surprise, these rolls weren’t just the usual light tan I knew of. These were manila, white, translucent white, and even a darker tan variation. I bought 5 boxes - they were only $2 each! .  In the photos above and below you can see the variety of punched slits and holes. Each one so unique. Two have words which I'm assuming are the song lyrics and notes about tempo.
I’ve loved using piano roll paper in my collages, and now, with these new colors, the possibilities have expanded. The sturdier manila and white rolls are especially exciting. They are less brittle so I’m already imagining them as pages in future bookbinding projects. Below are the 2 rolls that a friend gave me a year or so ago and some examples of how I used them.  The holes, slits and printed dots on these papers are great elements to work with. I've used the slits to weave through and the holes and printed dots as inspiration for stitching french Knots.
This one of my favorite book binding projects. I randomly glued the piano roll paper onto two large sheets of printmaking paper.  Then cut them into smaller pieces to become the pages for this book.  
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A pink and orange combo always captures my attention with its playful energy.
Week 1  Week 2  Week 3  Another month ending - week 4 of my August Concertina Sketchbook "Breathe the sweetness that hovers in August." ~ Denise Levertov  The finished 4 panels  End of the month collages using leftover scraps
Pink and orange are a great color combo in the garden too. The photo on the left is from Harkness Memorial State Park. I took a walk there this week and the cutting garden was amazing. They change it up a little each year with different color and plant combinations but it is always lovely. The other two photos are of my garden. A light pink cosmos and a cactus zinnia mixing with orange cosmos.
 Even before I had finished my collages for March I started a collection of papers in the colors I wanted to use for April. With spring in the air, the greens were calling out to me.
Week 1  Week 2  Week 3  Week 4  Below is the finished four panel concertina. It's been so much fun working with all the different varieties of green this month. Each week I looked from my green and yellow paper covered table to the outside. There I saw more green and yellow as the garden is starting to come back to life. There is definitely a magical feel in the air this time of year.  Here are a few collages made from the scraps I have left at the end of April.   You can read more about these monthly concertina sketchbooks and how they got started here.  Happy New Year! We're only a few days in and things don't seem that different but I am hopeful that 2022 is going to be better than the past two years. I don't make resolutions, I prefer to reflect on the past year before looking ahead. It helps me get a better idea of what I want for all the different parts of my life. I still have some serious planning to do but in the meantime, I found this quote and thought it sounded like the perfect way to start any plan I might come up with for the new year.  The first time I saw and read this quote it made me smile and laugh because the silly part of me could imagine doing all 3 of these things. Doesn't it sound like a fun way to approach the new year? Well, even if I don't 'hop happily' and 'scream loudly' to friends every day you'll certainly find me collecting lots of shiny things. If you remember, last month I mentioned to start saving your holiday foil candy wrappers. Well, they are some of the shiny things I've been collecting for a very long time.
My first workshop for 2022 is "Sweetest Valentine" and it's all about repurposing foil candy wrappers into "Sweet Valentines". Maybe you have a few leftover from the holidays? If not, it's the perfect excuse to go get a bag of sweet treats - just for the wrappers of course : ) In the class, there's a little painting for the backgrounds, covering heart shapes with burnished foil wrappers and embellishing with some simple stitching.  Registration opens on Friday, January 14th, 2022   "The new year stands before us,
like a chapter in a book, waiting to be written." ~ Melody Beattie |
AuthorHi, I'm Kathy an artist working in the mediums of collage, eco-printing, rust printing, and slow stitching who loves to teach. I enjoy sharing my process and guiding you on your creative journey. Archives
May 2025
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