So far in this series, we’ve discussed how to get started with altering a book, backgrounds and how to choose a theme. We’ve done quite a few basic projects to get your juices flowing, and now it’s time to add some interactivity to your books. While it is fun to add an extra surprise to your page spreads, it is even more fun to watch someone else discover them. One of the easiest ways to add some interaction to your pages is by cutting windows and doors into your altered books.
This first project takes our technique quite literally. Find a photo of a door and/or a window and add it to your book. Then, cut along the lines of the door and window images to create hinges in your pages. There is a great stock photo site called Morguefile.com where you can search on images for use in your projects and that’s where I found this photo. I resized it to fit the book pages, but you can use any photos, or magazine pages, to achieve the same effect.
“F is for Friend” takes another turn on the last project. The reader sees a complete thought by opening each little door in the spread. Use a good, sharp blade when making your cuts, and be sure to slide a cutting mat behind the page!
“Two Hearts” shows a sort of reverse door, where the binding of the book is the hinge for the two halves of the heart-shaped door. Create a template to trace and cut slowly and carefully to achieve the desired effect.
“Housewife” utilizes stamping, stenciling and one of the backgrounds we created back in the August issue of PapercraftingMagazine.com [link to August Altered Art article]. Click Art from Vintage Workshop is a great resource for your altered books.
As opposed to cutting niches in your books (which we will discuss in the upcoming months), these doors and windows aren’t very deep and don’t hide more than some stamped words or other flat items behind them. The process basically is to cut a hole, either with a hinge or not, into your page, glue something to the page behind it so it can be seen through the hole, and then glue the two pages together. Sometimes I’ll glue more pages for stability, as well, or back the “door” with another paper to create a more finished look.
