Customer Reviews

Memory Art: 30 ideas for shadowboxes and other keepsake displays

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I did a collage of my mom's life and this book was so helpful to me. The artist's projects inside are wonderful! I recommend it for inspiration and helpful techniques.

Mary Lynn Maloney provides fresh, fun, unique, and innovative ways to construct mixed-media themed pieces designed to memorialize a person, event, or one's own hobbies or collections. She begins with examples of things you have around the house to "frame" your art pieces with, or that can be obtained cheaply from yard sales or thrift shops, plus other materials you can incorporate into your piece. Beautifully described and photographed, her book shows many ways to honor the memory of a loved one (art becoming family heirloom pieces) or to take things from ones past that are lying in a sack or drawer and bring them to life. This can be anything from pamphlets and souvenirs from a special trip, or awards, photos and other kudos you have acquired throughout your life to commemorate a life's history. I've never seen a book quite like this, and I'm anxious to implement Maloney's creative ideas into pieces of my own.

I wanted to know more about shadowboxes and how to make them. Memory Art has been a big help, offering ideas and techniques I wouldn't have considered. The descriptions and instructions are easy to understand, and there are photos to help. If you're looking to make a shadowbox (out of just about anything), I'd recommend this book--no matter what your age. This book is good for all ages.

Ms. Maloney is a mixed media artist, author and designer. If you're a packrat like me who holds on to photos, old ticket subs, every piece of paper my children ever drew on, etc. you're going to want this book, you're going to need this book. The author will show you how to make art from your mementos and have them out so they can be seen and enjoyed. While the 30 projects in the book are created using the author's keepsakes she gives us the ideas and methods used to create our own memory art with the things we've been saving. She also gives us valuable information on archival issues, how to choose items to use as foundations for our art, how to attach frames to shadowboxes, how to attach picture hanging wire and how to choose the right adhesive. She also gives great tips and photos on how to achieve a stronger composition in our work. I loved all the projects in this book and my only problem is I don't know which one I want to try first. There is Mary's Sewing Box--it is a project where she commemorates her mother-in-law, a skilled seamstress who left the author her sewing machine and notions. I also inherited these things from my grandmothers and have been wanting to create something to honor my memories of them. Now I know what to do. Another project is the Retro Holiday Forest where she creates a display of trees covered with vintage-style papers, Mardi Gras beads sequins, silvery garland and photo's from the early `60's. As a child of the 60's I've always been drawn to the color combinations she used and always loved polka dots, silvery garland and sequins. This will be one of my Christmas decorations this year. Check out this book and it might be one of yours too.