Altered Book Update

I have slowly been working on my Chatterbox Creatives Altered Book Project for almost seven months (original post about project). While I still have quite a bit to go before the project is complete, it is coming along, and I have made tremendous progress that gives a glimpse of what the final product will look like. I wanted to share an update, as well as a bit about what I have learned along the way.

Looking at the book sitting on my workspace, it is almost laughable — bursting at the seams, with no possibility of it closing without something to hold it shut. I purposely chose a board book because I wanted sturdy pages to work with, but layer after layer on already-thick pages has left them bulging. I even removed a few pages, hoping to create more room, but that ended up damaging the spine instead — something I’ll need to figure out how to fix.

The opening spread will be a dedication to the Chatterbox Creatives. One of our members taught us momigami, a Japanese technique of kneading and crumpling paper until it becomes soft and cloth-like. I’ll use that technique for the background, layering an inspirational quote on top. On the right-hand side, pockets will hold tributes to each member.

So far, I’ve received two spreads from other members, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t emotionally moved by both. I’ve only met one of these women in person — we don’t know each other the way people do when they spend regular, in-person time together. So it caught me completely off guard how deeply their spreads connected with me, and how well they showed they know me. Each used a completely different technique, but both captured something true about our friendship.

My own book is a tribute to the fantasy novels I’ve been obsessed with this past year — a spread devoted to dragons, fairies, magic, mermaids, and more. I recently finished the dragon spread, where I learned to build a pop-up mechanism and mounted it onto a background of hand-drawn, watercolored dragon scales matched to the dragon’s own coloring (see photos below). Another spread explores unicorns and inspiration — writing-prompt ideas — with a fold-out unicorn anchored by a quote on the facing page (see photos below). The fairy spread uses a plastic window salvaged from a paint box, framed with free printables I found online; across from it, fairy-themed quotes live in a pocket made from a Walgreens photo envelope.

As I near the end of this project, I’m starting to think about the cover. I don’t know yet what the covering will be, but I know I want a quote about fantastical creatures woven in. Seven months in, and I’m still discovering what this book is really about. Stay tuned!