scrapbooks

I'm still catching up on things after being in DC for a number of days.  Since the studio is slow going right now, I thought I'd post some images of a fledgling collection of mine -- old scrapbooks and sketchbooks I've been finding in antique stores.  This first one is one of those questionnaire books I remember making and swapping with my girlfriends in elementary school, where each person fills out their name and answer the same bunch of questions, some benign (name/age/hero/favorite color, sport, food, etc.) and some slightly more probing (latest crush, best looking boy, etc.).

 

I love the old magazine cut-outs, but I also think the sociology of this little piece of American history is fascinating.  Take the girls' names, for instance: Marion, Helen, Grace, Louise, Charlotte, Ruth, Sadie, Margaret, Olive, Gladys, Bessie, Ethel, Bertha, Lillian, Esther...  Amazing how some of these are very much back in fashion in terms of baby names.  And then there are their "ambitions," which largely favored being mothers or teachers, though there was also someone who wanted to be an artist (yay!), graduate with honors, and my favorite, "to be real, raving happy."

My favorite part of the book is this little scrap of paper that was tucked in between two pages.  It reads: "You'll wed before your twenty-eight. If not then, 'twill be too late!!!"  I love how it's on inky black paper, perhaps suggesting the doom of the statement on it.  Ha!

The second book I have is much more of a scrapbook.  There are quotes on every page, handwritten and burnt on the edges for effect.  I love all the collaged bits of ephemera.

This detail is my favorite.  I love the color palette.

Now if only I could spend some time working on my own sketchbook, that would really be something! 

Comments

[lisa s]

amy - those are AMAZING finds....

[emily b.]

Oh how lovely they are. I'm jealous. Plus it's a fabulous thing to collect.

[Andrew Thornton]

What wonderful treasures to find! I have a friend who collects old yearbooks. It's fascinating to dip into someone else's life for a little bit.

I wonder if the one who wanted to be an artist ever pursued her dream.

[Anne]

Wow, they are amazing!

[Esti]

This is such a great treasure. It makes me think of past times. I wish I had been the one to write I wanted just to be real happy. How mature! Well, anyway, I might not be mature yet but I am happy :)

[nature morph]

I'm glad you all got a kick out of them, too. It's crazy to imagine how they end up crammed into old dusty bookshelves in antique stores... sort of like all those boxes of old black and white baby pictures I always find. How do people get rid of this stuff?