Riding the Orient Express

I have been working on this mini steampunk album for my friend Cindy, whose character in our Upstate Steampunk group is a spy who travels on the Orient Express.  This is only my second mini album and I had fun.  (warning photo intensive blog entry!) I made the cover from chipboard backings of paperpaks and the inside pages of cereal and brownie boxes.  I now recycle all of of my food boxes.  None go in the landfill.  The small ones I use for tags, the larger for pages.
I watched a lot of tutorials on you tube and looked at a ton of photos of works on the Graphic 45 ring for inspiration and techniques.  This time, I tried a lot of fold out folios, in addition to the tag making and original page layouts.  I may still add more embellishments as time goes on, like I did with my first Steampunk mini book.

On the cover I used a cut out of a photo shoot I did of Cindy in her Victorian piano dress and superimposed it over a vintage Orient Express train engine.  Then added K and Co. borders, metal embellishments, Prima flower, hand made title and letters.

I made a World Traveler photo page, accented with feather and Prima flowers,  with a pull out tag using a Graphic 45 Steampunk Debutante lady on one side and a copper metallic paper photo mat on the reverse.
On another page I made a pull out portfolio using Graphic 45 papers on the page and folio cover  and then adding photo mats and journaling pages inside.
I distressed a lot of the page edges using pigment inks to give the album a vintage sort of grungy, well-traveled journal. 

This is an envelope style folio I made which opens up too and has small photo pages. Bits and pieces of Orient Express ephemera and Graphic 45 papers from the Botanicabella and Renaissance Faire paper collections.
On the left, you can see the copper photomat tag tucked in on the previous page on the left. 

I tied it off using a vintage style thread label topper to hold the twine closure. 

Background papers are form a K and Co. paperpak.
I did a two page spread in black because that seems to be a good color for a spy plus I had some gorgeous vintage style papers I wanted to flaunt!  I added some photo and journaling tags and left a large photomat on the page so Cindy can add photos after our big 2-day Upstate Steampunk Con to be held in November.  I'm sure we'll take lots of photos at the hotel which is very posh and Victorian. I made the London stamp using a wooden stamp made by  Hero Arts embossed with blue ink crystals and added ColorBox pigment inks to age it.

Here are the tags I made for photos and journal writing.  I just cut cereal box cardboard in various shapes and added the papers, used a grommet setter so I could add yarn and ribbon pulls.
The opposite sides are photo mats and also have sayings on them. 

I did a third portfolio using on the coin page.  This one is a library pocket portfolio and holds the vintage train itinerary listing all the stations where The Orient Express makes its stops from London to the Egypt. This page also features ephemera from the Orient Express.  The resin coin is positioned on a gold circle which came from the top of my instant Maxwell House coffee jar!  It came off perfect and was too pretty to throw away. This green striped portfolio opens up to hold four photos.

It's held closed with a ribbon accented with a Graphic 45 tag, looped around a Making Memories paper button and tied through a grommet hole at the bottom of the page.And the last page holds a handmade book to look either like a passport or like a journal the Orient Express would give to it's VIP travelers.  The book as well as a ticket are tucked into a pocket embellished with a raven (one of Cindy's symbols) and a quote.  On the cover of this little blue book  is the logo of the Vienna Orient Express from the turn of the century and inside on the cream colored linen pages are various posters from the Orient Express and pages to journal.  I used about three pages of linen stationary to make the insert.  I folded the cover and inner pages with my bone folder so the book would fit better, then used my grommet setter to punch the holds on the center fold and tied the book together with ribbon.

Foxglove Broadsides inspires journal making

More writing on Foxglove Broadsides, more making of journals.  And what's fun is that as I explore the plot line and my protagonist, Cecile gets embroiled in more and more rather off the wall experiences, they all serve as fodder for creating art. 
At first when she's more involved in her duties with the bookstore and steam press (with odd moments of participating in rebellions) I was only doing research on presses, printing, inks, etc.  But as the botany came into it - lots of research there, and as I realized I could use my personal background as a student balloon pilot,
and staff writer for a ballooning magazine), well that came naturally.

The research leads to many photos and stories and they're all so interesting I want to capture them to - so I do with art - and go off on tangents like the research on absinthe, which I started years ago for my novella or series of shorts stories, Two Ruffians and a Rat before it was sold in America. Since I sold more on ETSY over the weekend, I had to replenish the supplies.  That's four journals shipped in the past week, so I have to restock - especially any in the botany/garden variety in time for Upstate Steampunk Con in November.  I'm thrilled to be working with the Steampunk Debutante papers from Graphic 45, as well as others, such as Tranatlantique and Communique.  But I waited along with many others for the Steampunk line to be available.

Upstate Steampunk Meetup

What a great time at the Upstate Steampunk Meetup at the Greenville Marriott Hotel The Hotel is Stunning! It is certainly a throwback in time with lots of gorgeous event and gathering rooms, indoor fountains, tiled walls, lots of atmosphere and antique looking accoutrements so it will feel like a total immersion con!
Many, many places for great photo ops.
The little details will amaze you, such as a piece of collage artwork with a letter in it dated in the late 1880's, real working antique telephones, brass antique bicycles, old clocks, trunks, globes, books, lots and lots

of hurricane style lamps. There are large amazing event rooms, very grand as well as smaller meeting rooms, a gorgeous bar, a wine bar, a claret room, a posh indoor courtyard, dark study like rooms with wing
chairs and fireplaces. I met really cool people, all different types and personas, some of the vendors and of course, organizer, Gypsey Teague and Marla.
Gypsey did an amazing job finding this hotel. It is a dream hotel for a steampunk con. The gaming room is gorgeous. One of the gentleman took lots of photos so hopefully you can find them online soon. I
suggest you go to the website of the hotel on the Upstate Con site and check out all their photos - although they can't do the place justice.

I only wish everyone had brought calling cards or business cards, so I could remember names and get email addresses. Also there were potential vendors and lots of creativity! I believe in buying direct from artisans and supporting the arts.
There were two people who made top hats, mini ones from Sarah from http://valentinewolfe.com/">Valentine Wolfe, and full scale ones from Soozy the scattered crafter, one who made dolls, and Bethany Williams who makes fused glass steampunk jewelry.
I had the opportunity to show off my latest projects too:  various steampunk journals and boxes which are themed toward the different personas, such as aeronaut, botanist, chrononaut, lady's dream journal, a lady's day journal, a travel journal which are all available on my Etsy page at Gail Gray Studios.  I'm revitalizing my old merchant business Black Swan Thieves Market as a steampunk and SCA (medieval) shop 
It was cool to meet the musicians from Valentine Wolfe, Very bright and fun too. Also very down to earth. I cant' wait to see them perform.
I'd like to have some persona discussions too so I know a more about the people when I see them at future meetups and cons. There were some awesome get ups, but I didn't get to talk to everyone.

Thanks, Gypsey for finding such a beautiful location for our first local con Upstate Steampunk Con.
The atmosphere will transport us in time that's for sure!

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