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Saturday, November 30, 2013

show & share: peg 'o my heart

In honor of what would have been my parents' 60th wedding anniversary, here's an altered book I made for them over 10 years ago:













I gotta say this is my favorite way of working: gathering artifacts and mementos of a special event or loved ones, then pulling it all together and telling a story with all of it. I had a lot to work with here:
  • my favorite wedding photo of Mom and Dad (Mom says that Dad had just cracked a joke as the photographer pressed the shutter button. This was so Dad!)
  • photocopies of assorted newspaper clippings, plus the handwritten receipt for rent for their first apartment, in Dad's own handwriting
  • snapshots from their courtship and wedding rehearsal
  • bits of vintage chantilly lace from the 1950's
  • crucifix
On the back of the book cover is the text of the Denver Post newspaper article.

I was greatly inspired by by Cindy Pestka's article in the Jan/Feb 2002 issue of Somerset Studio magazine. I played around with the concept, adapted it and made it my own, eventually teaching an Altered Book class at a local scrapbook shop, where I worked at that time. I later wrote an article about my books for Legacy magazine (Oct/Nov 2005). I will share more of these books later...

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Here's a more recent photo of Mom and Dad, one which I took just five years ago at Thanksgiving - which we have always celebrated simultaneously with their wedding anniversary. I love this shot!



Have a listen to this old tune 'Peg 'O My Heart' which was a favorite of Dad's:




Peg o' my heart
I'll love you don't let us part
I love you I always knew it would be you
Since I heard your lilting laughter
It's your Irish heart I'm after
Peg o' my heart
Your glances make my heart say
How's chances come be my own
Come make your home in my heart

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Kim's Beyond Beyond lesson for Day 34 last week happened along at the right time: making a 'magic' texture and applying it to a photograph for a subtly rich effect. It was just the right touch for the white background in these photos, which seemed a bit sterile for my tastes. Thanks Kim! How do you know just what I need at the right moment?

I used Kim's kk_waterfront20 for my 'experiment' and tried the Color Dodge blend mode @42%...just perfect for my purposes!

I converted the 2008 photo of Mom and Dad to b&w in Lightroom, playing around with the duo-tone concept, and even made it into a preset. It seemed to need warming up, so I added a layer of kk_waterfront12 (Overlay 34%, and then desaturated it a bit).


Linking up with
Beyond Beyond Day 34
Texture Tuesday
Vintage Fest

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3 comments:

  1. Sarah HuizengaNovember 30, 2013 at 9:04 AM

    I love seeing what you did with the altered book and a great tribute to your parents. I worked in a scrapbook store in another life as well.

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownDecember 1, 2013 at 4:59 AM

    It's a time machine Cindy, wonderful! The smiles on their faces are priceless and you brought it all together beautifully. The steps cut into the pages to resemble the steps to the alter is artful too. I bet your dad knew my dad Howard Baker, he started practicing law in the area around the same time.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Roxi HDecember 6, 2013 at 6:50 AM

    Oh wow! What more can I say. such a beautiful work of the heart. And photo is so wonderful. You are blessed.

    ReplyDelete

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