Mail Art

Some swaps say, “Documentation will be provided,” or something like that. Here’s what that means:  The person organizing the swap will provide a list of everyone who participated in the swap, mailart call, or whatever. In some cases, that list may be just people’s names.  In others, it’s each person’s name and address.  (If you … Continue reading "Swaps and Documentation"

When organizing an art swap of any kind, postage can be a Very Big Headache.  Here are some tips to keep the postage problems to a minimum. Different people send items that are varying sizes and — more importantly — different weights. Even in a cloth doll swap, you never know who’ll embellish their dolls … Continue reading "Swaps and Postage"

  When you’re participating in an art swap through an online group or community, the numbers may confuse you.  Here are some tips to help you understand them. There are three kinds of art swaps: Equal-for-equal, Number-for-number-minus-one, and Number-for-number-minus-X. Here’s how they work… EQUAL-FOR-EQUAL Art Swap When a swap is 3-for-3 or 10-for-10 or anything … Continue reading "Art Swaps – How the Numbers Work"

Disneyland is celebrating its 55th anniversary.  I’m commemorating it with an artistamp design featuring art by my mother, Muriel Joan Bernier (1919 – 2010). The artwork at left, which was also on the Fantasyland board game, was based on my mother’s art. She freelanced for Disney in the 1950s. I remember her drawing lots & … Continue reading "Disneyland Tribute for My Mom (Fantasyland game)"

There are as many ways to create, modify & embellish a single-sheet zine as there are artists. How to Create a Single-Sheet Zine Here’s a very simple way to create one: 1. Take any white sheet of paper.  Pull one out of your desktop printer, or rip one out of a notebook.  (Think of the … Continue reading "How to Make a Simple, Single-Sheet Zine"

Single-sheet zines can be easy or complex.  In my earlier article, Single-sheet Zine Design – Basics, I showed one of the simpler ways to create a zine. What most people do… From what I’ve seen, the majority of people who swap or sell zines take a bunch of letter-sized printed pages (8 1/2″ x 11″) … Continue reading "Single-Sheet Zine Layout – More Info"

[This was for a March 2010 artzine. Obviously, submissions are no longer accepted.] After considering various topics for my first/continuing zine issue, I’ve decided to make it about sketchcrawls.  (If you’re not sure what a “sketchcrawl” is, visit Sketchcrawl.com or see my examples at this website.) So, I’m looking for articles and sketch samples — … Continue reading "Zine update – Sketchcrawl theme"

This is from my archives, when I sent “creative somethings” (including zines) to my subscribers. Recently, I’ve been thinking of restarting this project, perhaps through Patreon. If that sounds interesting to you, let me know. The zines are returning in 2010. They’ll be in three versions: 1. Paper copies (“old school” b&w) for previous subscribers. … Continue reading "The Return of the Zine"