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Michael Jacobs
"World's Largest Photo Album"
(click all photos to enlarge)
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December, 2008 Newsletter - Happy Holidays!
Welcome to Scor-it News, a monthly eNewsletter from the makers of Scor-it Boards and the Scor-it Mini.
 In the Spotlight: Michael Jacobs Redux Michael Jacobs is a designer, maker, and instructor who has worked in mixed-media and sculpture for over thirty years. In 1990, he designed and fabricated the Kodak Goodwill Games World's Largest Photo Album, and he has been creating sculptural books ever since. He teaches workshops throughout the United States and Canada, and is the author of three North Light books. Michael's work has been published in many books and periodicals, and his wire, wood and leather sculptures are in private collections across America. Click Part 1 and Part 2 to view Michael's YouTube video and see projects from his book, CARDS THAT POP-UP, FLIP & SLIDE, and to learn how to make Easel Card and Slicer Card. Find out more about Michael and his books, sculptures and classes at www.thecreativezone.com
Q - When did you first start to construct books?
A - In 1990 I designed and fabricated the Kodak Goodwill games World's Largest Photo Album. It measured 40" w x 27" h x 8.5" thick, weighed 228 pounds, and contained 7,254 photos. This album was a hybrid - a combination case and stab binding. I used plywood, paper, cardboard, steel, sheet iron, screws, bolts, hot glue, foam padding, waterproof tenting canvas and acrylic paint.
While figuring out how to bind 184 very large and very heavy pages, I began to view books in a completely new way. Each massive, prefabricated piece - front and back covers, spine and book block - was sculptural, yet without much meaning except as part of the whole book. For the first time, I started to view books as sculptures, composed of many parts. It was an exciting discovery.
Building this book had a profound effect on my career as a 3-dimensional artist. I closed down my design studio and started constructing sculptural books as my personal artistic expression.
 Q - What is most exciting to you about your current work?
A - The interactive aspect of my books and sculptures. It is one thing to look at an art piece and quite another to turn cranks and open drawers and make things happen! Mixed-media books and sculptures are a perfect venue fpr me. I have always enjoyed combining a variety of media and techniques in my sculptures, but it is making the pieces interactive and physically engaging the viewer in each one that I find particularly exciting.
 Q - What/who inspires your work? Why do you do what you do?
A - I am intrigued by words and interested in structure and how things are put together. For me, hand-made artist books are the perfect creative expression. These books blend design, form, content and craft into sculptural objects that can be read on many levels. Sculptural books allow me to incorporate and challenge my skills as a paper engineer in unlimited ways. Form and structure are everywhere present in the 3-dimensional world, and inspiration for my bookworks comes from many sources - nature, architecture, art, sculpture and all manner of man-made objects. Anything I can see and touch and feel is grist for the book mill.
 Way back in 1999 I received a commission for five miniature books from a collector in CT. I agreed to make one book each year for five years. These one-of-a-kind books cover a range of topics of interest to the collector - the ancient Egyptians' belief in life after death, Willie Nelson, the whaling history of Nantucket Island, the bizarre three-year history of 'Tulipomania' (1634-1637) in Holland, and the history of Taos, New Mexico. Each unique structure, when closed, is no bigger than 3" in any direction! I thoroughly enjoyed researching the text for each book, and particularly the challenge of making books on such a small scale. You can view these books in the Gallery on my website at www.thecreativezone.com.
 I've since made three editioned miniature books and have included one here. I've titled it 'Playing With Calder'. Each book structure in the edition of 100 measures 3'' h x 2-7/8'' w x 2-7/8'' d and consists of three components - a box with a window and button tie closure, a book about Alexander Calder, and a tiny kinetic wire sculpture. The computer-generated text includes my discovery of Calder in 1964 and a biography of this incredibly playful and inventive artist. To honor one of Calder's main sources of inspiration, the universe, I designed a tiny interactive wire sculpture with a crank that causes a constellation to revolve freely in space.
I used the following materials to create this edition - cardstock, paper, waxed linen threads, beads, wire, polyester film, eyelets, brads and Scrabble pieces for the feet. I made all the scores on the box, pocket and book cover with the Scor-it (my favorite tool). I constructed many models for the box, book cover and wire cranking mechanism while working out the details for the final structure - click www.thecreativezone.com/blog and then click 'Miniature Books' in the Post Categories to view these models.
 I've incorporated wire in many book sculptures over the years, and teach bookmaking classes where wire is a major component. I've also made many stand-alone sculptures from wire, and recently completed three interactive wire fishbowl sculptures with fish that 'swim' when you turn a crank. Check them out on my blog in the 'Something New' category.
 For many years, I've constructed interactive sculptures from matchboxes. One of the projects in my book, BOOKS UNBOUND, titled 'Matchbox Marvel', consists of five covered matchboxes sandwiched between two covered matboards, with wooden blocks for feet and a tiny cardstock pyramid on top, with a toothpick and cardstock toppers to keep it closed. I like the modular aspect of the matchboxes - they can be combined in an infinite number of ways, and the ready-made 'drawers' can hold books, photos or other tiny objects. One of my favorite exercises is to take five or more matchboxes and arrange them in as many different configurations as possible in fifteen minutes, making a simple sketch of each grouping. My only requirement is that each 'drawer' must be able to open.
 I them choose one or more of the groupings and go to town covering the boxes, hinging them together, and constructing a box or container for the finished interactive sculpture. I've made dozens of sculptures from these common place objects, and to this day I'm amazed at the versatility they provide when used as components for sculptures. The matchbox sculptures below can be folded into many different configurations, and each 'drawer' contains a tiny book.
 For the first matchbox sculpture, I painted lightweight water color paper with Golden Acrylic paints, then used my Scor-it to quickly and cleanly score the wraps for the eight matchboxes and the 2-part cover with the button tie. The 6 matchboxes and the two matboards in the second structure are covered with beautiful marbled paper made by Peggy Skycraft <www.skycraft.com>. Once again, I used the Scor-it to create the tiny book covers, sleeves and portfolios.
Visit our website often - www.scorit.com. We value your feedback - please send us your questions, ideas, and critiques any time at info@scorit.com. If you're a manufacturer and would like to be included on our "Cool Stuff" page, please contact us, and check it out by clicking here!
You Asked, We Answer
Q - Why would I use the Scor-it Board to make curved paper to wrap a gift or cover a can when I could use a crimper?
A - The decorative embossing and de-bossing possible on a Scor-it Board give you many more options. With a crimper you get evenly spaced lines or repeat patterns. With the Scor-it you can create randomly spaced lines, customized repeat patterns and progressions, or combine embossed (raised) and de-bossed lines in the same project. You can also move away from the ruler, set the paper at an angle and create diagonals, diamonds, rays, and other effects. Here are two links to view Altered Can projects by Sharon Johnson and Joan Fricker
Q - What’s the difference between the Scor-It Board and other scoring tools?
A - This is one of our favorite questions. The Scor-it Board is the ONLY scoring tool on the market that allows consumers to make professional-quality hinge score lines, just like printers provide when they do machine scoring. Hinge score lines crease, but do not break or damage the fibers in paper, card stock and chipboard up to 24 pt. - whether you score with or against the grain! The difference is easy to see. The Scor-it brochure, available on our website in the
A - Move your cardstock or paper away from the centering ruler to create diagonal lines for folding, or emboss or de-boss starbursts and the rays from the sun, random diagonals that crisscross to create an interesting background, and so on. Experiment! We’d love to see what you come up with!
Learning Center, goes into more detail about the importance of a quality score.
Q - Could you compare the 12” Board with the Mini?
A - Both boards are quite popular and we’re discovering that many people want both. Those who make cards and smaller projects favor the Mini for its portability and small size. Those who want to score decorative embossed borders, create journaling lines on 12” scrapbook pages or make larger cards and accordion books like the original 12” Scor-it Board.
Q - How should I store the Scor-it Board when I’m not using it?
A - Stand the board upright, like a book. It will take very little space on a shelf, less than two inches. Or store it in a tote bag or box like that in which scrapbook papers are kept. Check out our new Mini Tote bag. One creative friend stores hers in a plastic zipper bag that she’s attached to a skirt hanger!
Q - How do I use the Scor-it Board to score envelopes and boxes?
A - Move your cardstock or paper away from the centering ruler. Using a pencil, lightly mark the starting and ending points of the line you want to score on the INSIDE of where you want the fold line to be (the back of the paper or cardstock). Position the two points along the scoring rule. Use one hand to hold the project firmly in place and with the other hand use the scoring tool as always - start at the notch at the center of the ruler and pull the tool toward you. Turn the project and repeat for as many lines as you need to score. REMINDER: Sometimes no marks are needed. If you’re scoring one of Teresa Collins’s die-cut envelopes, the corners are clear and obvious.
Q - I can’t decide whether to buy the 12” Scor-it Board or the Scor-it Mini. Can you help me?
A - Many people choose the Scor-it Mini because of the smaller size, lower price, and because they make almost exclusively standard size cards, place cards, gift tags and such. However, if you want to score and fold larger cards, boxes and envelopes or if you want to emboss decorative lines on 8” x 8” or 12” x 12” scrapbook pages then the 12” Scor-it Board is the way to go. Both can be stored upright in little space, both are lightweight and portable. We hear that a lot of people who start with one of the boards add the second one later because they want more options.
 Fun with the Scor-it Board
InkyAntics (www.inkyantics.com) "Cookies for Santa" Box in a Bag: It's a box...no, it's a bag. Wait, it's a box IN a bag! Fill this adorable container with small goodies, and you've got a quick and easy gift wrapped treat. It's so easy to make using the Mini Scor-it Board!
Click here for Inky-structions!
Press
Sharon Johnson's No Time To Stamp Blog: I live in Michigan's Upper Peninsula on the shores of Lake Superior, where I have been rubber stamping for close to 10 years. It was a pleasant hobby for about 6 years or so, and then became a passion that I have been totally obsessed with ever since!!! My first love is making simple, but elegant, greeting cards, often in sets, with gift boxes to present them in. I LOVE to deisgn, make and decorate boxes!!! It is so much fun to take some relatively simple cards and turn them into a a really WOW gift item by merely creating a beautiful box for them!!! I love to create, teach and share my passion with others!
Did You Know?
You can score a wide variety of surfaces on the Scor-it Board. In addition to scoring with and against the grain of cardstock and paper, you can score board up to 24 pt. weight (light chipboard, shirt cardboard), Mirricard and other coated cardstock that would crack with any other scoring method, lightweight papers like vellum and mulberry paper, many transparencies and films, and more.
Tips:
Practice on scraps so you get the feel for the surface you want to score. Heavier weight board and transparencies require a bit more hand pressure on the scoring tool while soft fragile papers require very little.
To get a crisp crease when folding heavy weight surfaces and transparencies, use a bone folder after you’ve created the score on the Scor-it Board.
Resources:
Mirricard available in 10 colors - Marco's Paper > pricing guide > Corrugate, Mirricard & Petal Card
Transparencies - Hambly Screen Prints > products > overlays
Great Finds!
Teresa Collins's (www.teresacollins.typepad.com) brand new die-cut file folders and the Scor-it Board go together like bread and butter.
Tip: To create a base for the folder so it will accommodate tags, recipes, notes or dimensional memorabilia, score two parallel lines and two folds (like an office folder). The distance between the score lines is determined by the thickness of what you want to place inside the folder. For a folder-style card or folders in which you're planning to tuck a single item, only one scored fold is needed. Click here to download Crush File Folders.
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