Embroidered linen book cloth with a handmade paper journal by Christine Trexel.
New artisanal indigo textile hand-dyed fabric by Christine Trexel on a trio of handmade journals.
This farm-to-book paper is harvested by Christine Trexel from the many plants throughout her gardens. She grows New Zealand flax, iris, crocosmia, or anything that has a long parallel fiber. Recently Trexel has perfected her hues in book cover textiles and mastered the art of deep blue indigo dyeing on textiles using a powdered mix from a fellow organic grower.
Everything is uniquely handmade and harvested from her farm on the North Coast of Oregon. Christine Trexel is passionate about using natural ingredients; therefore, all her material is ethical and sustainable.
Christine lived in Panama for years, where she learned to harvest and process plants from her garden to make paper for the books and boxes she creates. The wealth of vegetation forested experimentations and a great love of learning about making books.
“It is truly a magical experience to convert a growing thing into a beautiful piece of paper.”
Christine Trexel firmly believes a day without time aside for reading and writing is an incomplete day.
“People often say I couldn’t bring myself to write in a journal, but on the contrary; the book’s life would be unfulfilled without their contribution.”
Christine uses high-quality materials in constructing her books and boxes believing that each individual piece deserves the best. The thought of someone writing on the blank pages pleases her. Perhaps her creation helps facilitate their creation; what kind of writings might there be—ideas, fancies, dreams, fears, hopes, despairs, comforts, musings, histories—anything could become part of it. Trexel often lectures about her work at Fairweather’s during Art Walks.
Christine Trexel has achieved many Doing Good Works ™ endeavors; teaching, mentoring, advising, and leading.
Christine Trexel is a member of Focus on Book Arts, a group of book artists dedicated to making educational experiences available.
The conference attracts participants from around the country with a wide variety of workshops taught by well-known book artists. It is an opportunity for learning new techniques and offering time to network with some truly amazing artists.
I use hand made paper, decorative paper, book cloth, book board, brass, and high quality print paper in making my books and boxes often incorporating images embossed, printed, or adhered to the covers. Every element of the construction of the books and boxes is done by hand, including hand sewing the pages of the book.” Christine Trexel
And, too, I have experience in basic book repair for those favorite books that are beginning to suffer from wear.” CT
