Finishing My Second Exacompta Sketchbook

a filled Exacompta

*EDITED: I decided to include the images that I had previously posted, just to keep it all in one place. Enjoy!*

I purchased my first Exacompta sketchbook, and won my second from a Rhodia Drive raffle giveaway. (Remember how cute they were together?) I admit I had my doubts about using the same book twice… I tend to get a little claustrophobic with my art supplies if I’m not head-over-heels in love with them… and I did have few frustrations with the way that some of my more delicate nibs would catch on the Exacompta’s laid paper.

But now that I’ve finished that second book, I’d have to say it’s one of the best all-purpose books I’ve used thus far. In fact, I’m having a lot of trouble finding a replacement. I want many of the same characteristics: thick, unlined paper, a nondescript cover, and medium size. I’d like to have smoother paper this time around, though. And apparently, those requirements don’t come together too often in one book. I need to gather up the energy to bind one for myself again.

Here’s the visual summary:

ink therapy

testing Caran D'ache Museum leads

More Pages from the Exacompta

Art Therapy in an Exacompta

A few weeks ago I had a crisis involving Very Big Questions (you know, the kinds about Life and Love and The Future). I spent some time in ink therapy and came out with this.

This was in my 2nd Exacompta journal. I’ve found that I’m doing far more art than I did in my first one, which is good.

End of the Exacompta

Once upon a time there was a girl who decided to use an Exacompta sketchbook as a journal.

She wrapped it with a blue rubber band that originally held a bunch of asparagus, tucked some liberty stamps inside the cover, and set off. Over the next few months, she wrote a poem with her sister, added an ID label to the front cover, and test-printed her own hand-carved stamps. Postcards from a friend in Vanuatu began to accumulate inside the back cover. She tested all kinds of pens, and a great number of inks, inside its pages.

In short, she beat it up, bit it, scribbled it to death.

Some Selections from recent months

(click to view larger)

Clearly, I don’t use fixative in my journal.

Latter half reads:

I think I’ll finish by pasting in all the rejects from the roll of film out at Holly Tree. Because of course, they’re memories too.

On to the next book!