Moon and Stars Journal Mo 19
Italian glove leather, leather cord, eggshell mosaic moon, antique parchment stars, marbled endpapers, black and white linen thread
H 11.5 cm
W 15.5 cm
D 2.5 cm
detail of eggshell mosaic moon, antique parchment stars and ladder
I would give you the moon and stars my love
bound with love into each knot
a moon ladder for finding the way in
a sturdy binding
marbled endpapers and inside of the edge binding
it’s Old Man Crow’s birthday in 2 weeks & he really needed a new journal, the last one was bound in 2016!
I would give you the moon and stars my love
Posted: May 25, 2019 by Mo Crow in It's Crow TimeTags: bookbinding, magic, moon ladder
Comments
It's Crow Time 
I don’t believe I have even seen a more lovingly made gift. Your talent wows me..
(((Tina))) books are my passion, one of the greatest joys in this lifetime was learning how to bind my first journal back in 2003
ooooh, what a lucky man …
(((Liz))) Rod was born in the year of the Golden Pig in Chinese astrology a lucky sign and he is getting suitably spoiled, he scored Barry Smith’s Mother Talisman for the dream for xmas, your pennant for the dream will move into his music room this coming birthday on the 7th and he started hinting that he really needed a new journal last week!
Mo, your work is stunning! Making a personalised gift is such an act of love . . . perhaps my favourite reason to make art.
(((Wendy))) love is the answer!
What a little beauty Mo !!!
(someone will be ready to climb that tiny ladder …. !)
(((Els))) I was wondering how I would fit the little ladder in, thought it might be part of the spine but when I decided not to use a magnet for the closure this worked, not too fussy and because it’s linen thread it shouldn’t stretch!
It’s beautiful, Mo, and so good to know it will be used regularly, not “kept for good”.
(((Lizette))) Rod uses his journals for songwriting to catch thoughts and tunes on the fly, he takes it up to the pub, out on bushwalks and in the car when we are travelling between gardening jobs so it needs to be of sturdy construction, am hoping that reinforcing the ladder with the thin linen thread will help it cope with use but I can always repair it as time goes by!
Absolutely exquisite, Mo! A beautiful gift for Rod.
(((Carol))) so good to focus on making a book again, I do love the process & how each journal informs the next!
ohh lucky man…….beautiful work Mo. Love your books.
(((Eliene))) thanks for the good words I love these little books too!
Rod’s lyrics, ideas, thoughts will scroll across the pages- pages that hold the invisible ink of love. What a special journal you have created for him Mo; a journal with a stairway to the sky, created out of love, deep heart and a lifetime together…a wonderful gift for a special man on his birthday..
(((Marti))) its been such a buzz going back looking at his old songbooks seeing how the songs developed as well as the bindings!
Oh Mo this is truly exquisite and exceptional (as no doubt the recipient is). It is so personal and so meaningful and so darn useful and what a lovely gathering of gifts for the man on his special day. Sigh. Makes me so happy.
(((Fiona))) it worked, you know that wonderful feeling when the book is all finished and you can hold it in your hands for the first time, as Audrey Niffenegger said in The TIme Traveler’s Wife “The compelling thing about making art … is the moment when the vaporous, insubstantial idea becomes a solid there, a thing, a substance in a world of substances.”
perfectly said – in particular I like the notion of “a solid there”
(((Mo)))
How absolutely beautiful. Priceless. How in the
world do you make those teeny stars ⭐️?
(((Sue))) thanks for the good words, here’s a link to how I make those antique parchment stars
What a beautiful love filled gift. May the seeds of some wonderful music get planted there.
(((Beth))) some songs come out complete all in one night, some take years to develop, I love listening to them coming to life!
Oh Mo! I’m stunned (I don’t know why having seen so much of your work by now) ~ This is the most beautiful, love filled Moon book ever! What a gift!! I’ll swoon to your Moon and back! xo
(((Nancy))) I have plans for more eggshell mosaic moons and linen thread ladders!
What a really beautiful gift.
(((Lana))) I love making these songbooks & may there be many more!
Gorgeous. Poetic. Powerfully informed by love and talent. Lucky Rod! What process do you refer to by “eggshell” moon? I may have missed this along the way.
(((Dee))) eggshell mosaic is just crushing cleaned eggshell onto a piece of boxboard cut to shape with the edges rounded coated with a layer of archival PVA glue, sanded flat when dry & grout whitener works well to fill in the gaps
So beautiful, Mo…Is there anything you can’t make? In love with all of your knotted stitches
(((Hazel))) Oh Ha, I have made so many total disasters over the years, I think I win the prize for being the world’s worst knitter, mosaic was so not my thing and anything to do with clay comes out all lumpy and amazingly ugly!
MC – gorgeous work – who would not love a journal such as that – including the textured moon and stars. Lucky Old Man Crow. Go well. B
(((Barry))) Old Man Crow is a treasure and so are you!
Your Rod is a lucky man…………….
(((Martine))) & so am I, he gave me a card for my birthday this year that said,
‘You’re such a weirdo, but I am too. So that worked out.’
and it has for half a lifetime!
wow, Mo…
(((Jude))) for the love of books and the man in the moon
Rod’s beautiful journal is a continuation and fitting entry into the moon-based theme of your last post. Your multiple evocations of the moon and stars are very moving.
(((Dana))) reflecting the moon and stars helps me hold onto the magic in these strange crunchy times for our beautiful broken world
I love this Mo. The egg shell moon and the exquisite binding. Beautiful xo
(((Judy))) thanks for the good words, I love making these songbooks for Old Man Crow & he loves writing in them !