Buttons and more Buttons

Paper Buttons!! How wonderful! I've been planning to construct a Button Book for some years now but never quite satisfied with what I had sketched out. Of course I love buttons, doesn't everyone? But how best to make an artist's book on the subject?

I found a small punch for paper buttons then a larger one and couldn't stop making them. I brought the first few (smaller ones) to the Dard Hunter Paper Conference in Atlanta last October along with sea grass paper from my new Moon Tide Paper Studio and found the attendees were almost more interested in the buttons. I'm going to make bags of them for the next conference. I tested all my paper and found that the banana skin and corn husk papers were best especially if dipped in wax. So my button book will be of paper and wax. I finally feel I have the right idea for this little passion of mine.

So cute I could just about eat them.



I've always been drawn to buttons and never quite realized how much - until I packed up the house last year for my big move from New York to South Carolina. I had jars of buttons, bags and boxes of buttons and a bowl of white shell, bone and glass buttons.

I found buttons all over the place... could never pass a notions department or button shop. I spent many years on Long Island digging in old dumps for bottles and found the most fantastic things along with bottles dating back to the 1850's. One of those small little extras were bone and glass and shell buttons, many in this bowl pictured above. I found metal buttons, a little rusty but fun. I have horn buttons, coconut shell buttons and bakelite buttons, cloth buttons, fur and leather buttons, rhinestone buttons and knotted buttons and clay buttons but until now NEVER a paper button... Are there other closet button people out there? Truly did not know I was collecting them until I had to gather them in one place. Wow... but fun.

I have to finish my copy of "In The Trenches" about Hart Island one of an edition of three in collaboration with Pat Sahertian. Pat's copy is finished, our joint edition done and on YouTube but mine still needs more work. Our primary goal for the next few months is to promote the book and find some book art shows to exhibit them. Then I can have fun with the buttons !

Banana Skins and Coffee Filters

Holiday cards are done and mailed, this year's wrapping gathered and stored, new projects and thoughts for a new book beginning to form .... saving coffee filters and banana skins for making a beautiful rich dark textured paper - several ideas for this as well... just need enough bananas for a vat full of pulp !! etc etc etc. My mind is racing and I'm looking forward to a very productive new year.



The word is out among my neighbors that a papermaker lives in the area and requests for visits and classes are trickling in. We commissioned our neighbor, Rob, to build my studio along with other neighbors in the construction field last year. I invited Rob and his family here to help make the first official sheets of paper in my "Moon Tide Paper Studio" (actually I should call it a cottage... it's so perfect) word spread from there. I guess I will have to be ready to "go public" in my new community of Bluffton. There are still some kinks in the studio layout – we're adding a deck and work table alongside the building for cooking and hand beating fiber out doors since I use the studio for bookbinding as well.... less mess inside and our beautiful weather pulls at me to work outside. I checked with town officials and there is no restriction on collecting sea grass (spartina) from the beaches here. So full speed ahead on MOON TIDE PAPER for the new year.

TIP: for those looking to teach classes - home schooled groups of children are always looking for something different - papermaking and studio visit is perfect for this setting.

My year long project with friend Pat Sahertian - "In The Trenches" a book about Hart Island Potter's Field is ready for its debut ... looking for artist's book shows to exhibit this amazing book. Pat has details of this book on her Studio PS blog. I will eventually have detail photos of the pages as well.

Shark teeth and Emily Dickinson

sea grass pulp in empty studio waiting for paper maker


holiday cards, bottle cap test paper and shark's teeth

Last Monday I was convinced by my dear friend Rose, to go to Port Royal (near Paris Island S.C.) and look for prehistoric shark teeth, popular pastime in this area...only tiny teeth left after years of being picked over... occasionally a large one is found. I was supposed to be making paper and making Christmas Cards (I pulped up all last year's Christmas wrappings from 3 families to make post cards for this year) but hey... finding teeth is great fun !!!

Well, while there at Port Royal we witnessed a space launch from the Kennedy Center in Cape Canaveral Fl.!!!!!! clearly seeing the vapor trail... and found several shark teeth and some bottle caps in the parking lot.

I am collecting 1,000 caps for a paper project about litter... still need a few hundred more. This has been in progress for 2 years now !

I was also supposed to be working on a new meeting site for The Emily Dickinson International Society, Beaufort Branch !!!!!! of which I am a member - hopelessly in love with poetry, Dickinson and Whitman. The day turned out great and I got the postcards cut late into the night...... just don't know what to put on them yet... need to read a little more poetry ! Procrastination is my friend !

Paper Conference, Atlanta GA

Banana stalk paper draining on molds, pulp in black vat

I attended the Friends of Dard Hunter 28th Annual Paper Conference in Atlanta back in October... so much happening I haven't had time to process the huge amount of information presented here. It's always a chance to catch up with old friends and see what's new in the paper world - always mind boggling, breath taking and inspirational. This year was no different except, friend and artist, Madeline Gary attended with me making the experience that much richer - both hoping to attend next year in Tennessee. My sea grass paper was well received so I will continue to refine my process for the best possible results.

Helen Heibert's demo on shrinkage of over beaten abaca, Steve Miller's workshop making banana stalk paper ( I could just eat it... orangey and translucent - yum) and Drew Mattot's Combat Paper Project were standouts. See Helen's video "Water Paper Time"- unique !

Combat Paper Project

The Combat Paper Project - cutting up soldiers' uniforms to make pulp for a very special paper made into journals or for art or poetry. Soldiers who donate these uniforms write of their experiences or feelings.... very cathartic and very helpful in re-entering society after serving in a war zone... swords into plowshares so to speak, uniforms into a platform for words and thoughts. Very nice. Catching on around the country. Loved sharing in this experience.... can't wait to see what happens next year.

Meanwhile I'm looking for a banana tree to grow in my yard along with the pathetic little 5" mulberry tree I brought from NY....hope it makes it. Guess I'll stick with sea grass for now.

New Challenge

Just returned from Phoenix where I was able to complete an artist book collaboration with artist friend, Pat Sahertian..... "In The Trenches, Hart Island NY". It began last spring with Pat's visit to my studio to custom make all the necessary paper for an edition of 3. We worked individually all summer on the art and finished binding in a very unusual but successful way in Phoenix. We have a gallery to show this work next spring but looking for other venues as well. Extremely fun and rewarding experience... looking for another idea for collaboration.

Creating paper for a specific use... to take simple elements and create something unique... is very powerful. This paper was meant to look like hardened ground... compacted dirt. We used cotton, abaca, canna lily, plant roots and actual dirt - for color - walnut hull dye.... hulls actually gathered in September on Long Island in the Islip Arts Museum parking lot ! The paper was crumpled and heavily gelatine sized. Result: a heavy very strong, rough beautiful paper (I'd like to frame a piece !)...... Pat helped me create this blog... and the challenge is to continue on my own... obviously including pictures with my words will be a very big and new challenge.... !

Making more sea grass paper today but will have to rearrange my studio for production.... it's a small space... papermaking / bookbinding / papermaking / bookbinding etc...

Experimenting With Sea Grass

Still in the experimental stages in my new studio I'm finding new ways to process and use this found sea grass fiber. I've used a western mold and deckle for blender beaten pulp and an asian sugetta for hollander beaten pulp with varying results. The steamy south makes drying difficult... hoping to refine my processes and make beautiful paper. Stay tuned...

all work by Mary C. Leto © copyright 2009