Innovative Gourd Book Connections

I forgot about these!  Made by members of the Virginia Lovers' Gourd Society, these books not only use discarded book parts but different types of gourds from a warty gourd, to apple gourd, to a (dare I state the obvious?) swan gourd. With these innovations, it begs the question what more could be done?

 

Continuing on the gourd book theme...

 

A Jane Austin book was drilled at the top edge of the book to be a flipbook so each page circles backward behind the tangled combination of two long-handled dipper gourds. The designs along the handles and belly of the gourds mimic the shadow design on the front cover of the book itself. 

Inn this way, the book stands up as a sculpture and bookstand, ready for the next page or chapter to be read!

The Finished Musician's Daughter...

              

Remember how the gourd began? Book, gourd, and an idea to combine them to make a gourd book. With this book, the gourd can be stood up for display, but then can lay down to open for a good session of reading. A leather strap and magnetic catch keep the text safe inside. Sheet music was decoupaged along the inside walls for a finished look. Well worth the time! 

The Musician's Daughter - revisiting Oct. 9 post

The Oct. 9 post showing a viola-shaped gourd opened to expose the interior, can now be updated. Remember the gaping hole along the side where the bandsaw cut the gourd open, and snagged the edge to produce a broken area?  A piece of scrap was cut to fit and installed using wood putty. When dry, the surfaces were sanded smooth. The interior seeds and pith was gutted and sanded smooth before decoupaging torn pieces of sheet music inside. This added a glossy layer of music-visuals to an otherwise mottled interior gourd wall.

Eggs

The book Eggs by Jerry Spinelli seemed to be natural to use with egg gourds.  Some of the text was used to make a nest for the egg gourds. Since the title of the book was on the spine, and not the front of the book, it was cut out and glued to the front.  The opened book was attached to a half-dozen egg carton and viola! A reimagined book combined with gourds!

Daydreaming revisited..

Here is the result of the post called Daydreaming. The apple gourd was inserted and painted red. Sunglasses were added to imply a face and winter skiing. In this case, the book cannot be read again, but the connection between the title {A Spiced Apple Winter} and an apply gourd wearing earmuffs is irresistible!

So, Considering the Various Ways...

So, what to do?  The text of a book could be decoupaged on the inside of the gourd. As seen in earlier posts, it can be torn into strips and glued together. As this is being written, another book sits here on the desk called The Purple Unicorn. The distinctive image of a unicorn is the forehead horn and certainly a piece of dipper gourd handle could be painted to resemble a horn. Gluing it to the cover might be a way to reimagine the book!