by Ethan Johnson
December 1, 2007

Depending on a great many factors, working with a self-portrait can either be thrilling or incredibly painful. How about one that was painfully thrilling?

Earlier this week, I was taking time out to bask in the oasis that is our craft room. My penmanship is gawd awful, and I have been trying the 30-day trial trick with writing things out by hand. I have been writing in a small journal every day. I looked up from the entry du jour and marveled at the controlled chaos. Organized, even. Compared to the ebb and flow of the rest of the house, we have been very good about keeping this space sovereign. It's relaxing and inspiring.

I decided to muck about with the camera, and fired off time self-timer portraits and lucked my way into the featured photo in the above project. I'm really amazed at how well the portrait turned out. Normally, I have a tough time working with images of myself in any medium, but this worked for me. I tried to keep a level head and piece together a layout that would keep the main photo front and center but also convey the message I hoped to express with the design. I think I succeeded; you tell me.

Techniques:

Once again, I had to work with 8.5x11 photo paper, which can be really nerve-wracking. Worse, my funky adhesive that I normally like is really unforgiving when it comes to placement. One false move, and the layout has to be trashed and re-created. No pressure!

We have a small stash of frames in the craft room, and there is a bare patch of wall in the room that has been crying out for something, anything. I temporarily hung a framed piece I made for my sister before I mailed it off for her birthday, which was nice while it lasted. I found an 8x10 frame that looked reasonably promising. I used the photo frame sheet that provides the bar code and product information to mount the layout.

I found some stripey patterned paper in our shelving unit, and cut it to size. Unfortunately, my killer adhesive gripped the flimsy page and held on for dear life before I could get the paper lined up correctly. I managed to tear it away from the backing without ruining either sheet.

I hand-tore a strip of cheap border cardstock for the title bar. I used clear rubber stamps to make the title. I was going to add some sort of journaling block to the effect of "despite our embarrassment of riches in our craft room, none of it matters without inspiration." I decided to let the photo say all of that.

I'm happy to report that the adhesive didn't cause any further problems and everything came together cleanly. It's framed and on the wall.

Lessons learned:

• Less is more. Again.
• There is a swirling mix of emotions that must be conquered when working with self-portraits. Ego, vanity, embarrassment, pride, fear, annoyance... and on and on. Despite the would-be arrogance of me liking my self-portrait, I gotta say, I like my self-portrait. Rather than clutter it up with doo-dads or even other photos to support the theme, I went minimalist and believe that decision paid off.
• Remember, the theme drives the layout. But available materials did too. I'm pleased to report that no additional craft store shopping was required to create this project. I feathered the supply nest, and put a small amount of it to good use.
• I did print more copies of the featured photo and some supporting shots that I didn't need, but I kept the printing to a minimum and/or economized the use of my photo paper by printing multiple images onto a single sheet. The creative arts are as wasteful as they are messy, but some steps can be taken to reduce the mess.

Supply list:

I used photo paper, cardstock, patterned paper (a scrap of some, actually), clear rubber stamps, and stamp ink. Make your own, your way.

Thanks for looking! <EM>

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