Alma Stoller

zines, zines and more zines

I've started working on samples and art work for the class I am teaching at The Art Nest next month in Utah. I am sOoOoOo looking forward to it.

This is the cover of Odd Ball Charm issue #5. A really YUMMY mixed media zine...if I do say so myself. It was such a JOY to create it... I hope you consider it another installment of visual and creative juice.

Somewhere inside is the Golden Ticket.
I really don't know where it is. An order comes in and I pull one out and stick it in an envelope.
So you...and I will be completely surprised.

As for mailing....Media Mail sucks.
I have mailed back a few that were returned.
I always...always have some kind of problem with this feature.
Either packages gets lost, arrive INSANELY late, are returned back to me, or arrive looking completely unlike the way I sent it. Some packages look like they were sitting in a battlefield.
It really is not worth the stress and hassle. But I always think...this time it will be different.
I will print the address just right....I will even center it exactly in the middle of the envelope.

Forget it...any effort always results with a few undelivered packages.

No, not again. I WILL NEVER USE MEDIA MAIL AGAIN.
It sucks.  It sucks a million times...a million times + 1.

It sucks a million times to the second power. And it exponentially continues to suck.
So if you ever decide to mail a bulk of handmade, one-of-a-kind creations....don't do it.

Be a dear and slap yourself out of the lure. It is soOoOoOo not worth the discount.

Here is a bit inside this issue.

Here are a few of the inclusions.

If you'd like to order one *click here*.

Will you get The Golden Ticket?

I have been working on Issue #5 of my little zine.

Painting, creating patterns to include, and assembling.

In each issue I am painting an abstract image on a magazine page. (recycle, recycle, recycle)

In a pocket on the inside of this page, will be a few collage papers.....in the mix, you might find this.......

a Golden Ticket.
If it is in your issue....you will receive one of my portraits.
Just a little something extra.

Will the Golden Ticket be in your issue?

 

These Dreams have a Heart

I have started work on issue #5 of my little mixed media zine called Odd Ball Charm.

Are you sick and tired of me blabbing about it yet? But it is coming out simply delicious......like food for the creative soul and eye candy for the visual junkie. I create the zine on Adobe InDesign and by using interesting magazine clips.
Using good old cut and paste technique over my InDesign layout.

This issue will include some mixed media instructions, a crochet tutorial, a fun jewelry project, a super funky art doll pattern and a whole lot of other yummy superfantastic stuff.

For issue #3, I printed 150 copies. For #4, it was about 200. This issue I am working on 250, possibly 300 copies.
It all depends on how many pre-orders I get....that helps me gauge an approximate number.
This issue is completely different from previous ones because it will be twice as big, more color pages and I am now offering ad space. So if you would like to put an ad in this zine, Ad Space is Available in my Etsy Shop. As always, my zines come with fun little inclusion, so if you would like to contribute something and attach your business card on it, e-mail me for further info.

I am now taking pre-orders for Issue #5.
It will be available in mid April. I am super excited.

Thank you to Janet from Michigan for bidding and winning the Dimensional Collage piece I made a few weeks ago prior to my computer disaster. All my Wednesday pieces are sold and benefit the For All Kids Foundation. This is a year long project and so far we have 31.00 in the bank. Yippee-doo.

I was looking through one of my old plastic bins and found my sheet music book of songs. I would spend hours in my college library...just making photocopies of songs I wanted to play. Here is one.....These Dreams by Heart.

And in case you don't already know, I am an 80's geek.....and I have the Adidas, the Boy George hair and the sweater dresses to prove it. Well, anyway, I love Heart.....and I specially love the lyrics to this song.
So my new Wednesday piece was inspired by this song and you can find it in my Etsy Shop.

These lyric ROCK. I love the imagery. I know it will inspire you too.

These Dreams by Heart

Spare a little candle, save some light for me.
Figures up ahead moving in the trees.
White skin in linen, perfume on my wrist,
and the full moon that hangs over
These dreams in the mist.

Darkness on the edge, shadows where I stand.
I search for the time on a watch with no hands.
I want to see you clearly, come closer than this.
But all I remember are the dreams in the mist.

CHORUS
These dreams go on when I close my eyes.
Every second of the night, I live another life.
These dreams that sleep when it's cold outside, every moment I'm awake,
the further I'm away.

Is it cloak and dagger, could it be Spring or Fall?
I walk without a cut through a stained-glass wall.
Weaker in my eyesight, a candle in my grip, and words
that have no form are falling from my lips.

REPEAT CHORUS:

BRIDGE
There's something out there I can't resist.
I need to Hide away from the pain.
There's something out there I can't resist.

The sweetest song is silence that I've ever heard.
Funny how your feet IN DREAMS never touch the Earth.
In a wood full of princes, freedom is a kiss.
But the Prince hides his face from dreams in the mist.

REPEAT CHORUS:
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Here is another project I am involved in.
The Pink Artist Project.....hosted by Monica Magness.
Check it out. Read about it and join in. I think she has about 120+ participants already.
The doll will be auctioned and will benefit the Susan G. Komen for a cure foundation.

Now, for the freebie, I mentioned yesterday. I started creating zines in 2004. I made some limited one-time zines, but the first on-going one was The Fabric Arts Zine....The FAZ for short. Since it was my first attempt, I only printed 50 copies. Well, here is one for you. This is one of my three mock issues....you know, the copies I use to lay everything out....make sure the color is ok, the lay out works.. etc....

This is issue #1 of The Fabric Arts Zine.

I interviewed Rice Freeman-Zachery for this issue...she was super nice and giving.

Chrissy Howes whose work I've always loved and Megan Noel who is a prolific artist in various fields...... and a bunch of other instructions.

Simply leave a comment on this post with your name and I will enter you in the drawing for this issue as well as a baggie of my mixed media confections. I will have one of my kids pick out the winner on Monday the 18th.

It's good to have you back....my old and dusty Marky Mac.

I Heart Zines

I have been collecting zines since about 2002. The first one I ordered I got on Ebay and it was The Zine Queens by Kara Sjoblom. It is a directory of art zines created by female artists. That is how I found out about Megan Noel’s Mysterium, Sherrylynne’s The Gleaner and Suz and Helga’s Artitude Zine as well as countless other zines, fun articles and instructions.
One zine led me to another and another.....and now this is the state of my collection.

These are zines that I have either bought or swapped and most of them are not in print any more.
It has been a process....I get it, enjoy it, possess it (for a few years) and then give them away.
I have put this lot on My Ebay page.
I figured it is time to allow someone else to enjoy them.

And while on the subject, let me point you to some zines I recently bought...all incrediably inspiring, smart and creative.

1) Croq Zine is one of my favorite zines...go now and get a copy. I promise you will not be disappointed. I don’t know how they do it, with the crazy cost of printing and mailing. But they do. This zine is chockful of projects, articles, interviews and much more. Check it out here.

2) Spin-Spin (a beginners guide to spinning yarn)

3) Mostly Hand Written #6

And as I mentioned in a previous post. Mix Tape Zine is a charm.
A delight for the artist in all of us. I can’t wait for issue #3 to come out.

I hosted a zine swap a few months ago over at I Heart Zines (and I should note that I desperately need to change that site. I want to make it look like a web site not a blog...anyway)

We had 10 zines in the mix....including my Odd Ball Charm #4.
Here is a look at the nine wonderful zines that I received. If you can get a hold of them...do so.

Small Glimpses by Tracie Lynn Huskamp

Oodles and Doodles by Amber Dawn Goldish

Eccentric Pastiche (Creating Fear) by Anne Dowden

Cupcake by Taylor Schapiro ( no web site )

Here to There by Maggie Hannigan

The Art of Travel by Kara Klein ( no web site )

Coloring Colorzine by Janine La Luz

Nestled Together Dreaming by Megan Noel

ReCreations by Martha Brown

The great thing about zines is that you always walk away with an understanding of the artist and her/his ideas. It is a great forum for sharing and learning and connecting with other artists. If you can join in an Art Zine swap, I highly recommend you try it.
The next I Heart Zine swap will be sometime in May 2008.
~~~~~~That's a wrap~~~~~
At some point, I'd like to do a little tutorial on how to make a zine. But it will have to wait until after the New Year.