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PAGE 3 CREATIVE SOULS WELCOME This is your invitation. Connect, indulge, create, chronicle.
PAGE 5 YOU ARE AN ADVENTURER You go your own way. You gather, explore, and collect. You take notes, you tell the stories.
PAGE 6 VINTAGE TRAVEL JOURNALS More than an art journal, more than a travel diary, and best of all, no experience required.
PAGE 16 VINTAGE STORAGE FOR VINTAGE EPHEMERA While searching for vintage ephemera, be on the lookout also for vintage storage baskets, boxes, tiny cabinets and drawers.
CREATIVE SOULS WELCOME
Hi there, and welcome! I’m Tammy Gilley - a gatherer, explorer, collector, storyteller, dreamer, observer. I’m guessing you might be many of those things, too. I teach travel art journaling to treasure collectors who want to capture memories in a bespoke, keepsake artist book. I help my students and tour attendees source materials and ephemera from inspiring destinations, and then show them how to create a one-of-a-kind artist book, filled with found objects and collected memories. I’m so glad you’re here. Let’s go places and create things. PAGE THREE | TRAVEL CHRONICLES
I READ, I TRAVEL, I BECOME. DEREK WALCOTT
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YOU ARE AN ADVENTURER You’re an observer of the little things that make the world so magical. You seek camaraderie with other curious souls to share experiences.
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You explore with new eyes everywhere you go; and you collect things along the way. You log your impressions in a notebook, and then you tell the stories.
You go your own way.
What is a vintage travel journal?
GATHER, EXPLORE, COLLECT
VINTAGE TRAVEL JOURNALS
More than an art journal, more than a travel diary it’s an archive that chronicles my visit to a dreamy destination, capturing the memories and inspiration from that place. During my days of exploration and discovery, shopping and eating, I collect ephemera and other items to fill my artist book. It’s a vessel that holds all of the bits and bobs I pick up along the way, sketches of the places I visit and the amazing sights to be seen. Typically, I will create my book ahead of departure because that only heightens my excitement for the trip. Then, while I’m traveling, I’ll add layers to pages every day. No experience is needed to make a vintage travel journal. It requires minimal skill. Just let your intuition be your guide as you add layers to the pages throughout your travels.
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For more about my personal travel journals, my process, and upcoming retreat, be sure to visit my website.
One Little Word
Travel Rituals Before some trips, I will select one little word for my voyage. The idea came to me after doing that at the beginning of so many years. Maybe you’ve done the same. Why not adopt that ritual for your travels, as well? Maybe it’s a mantra for your time spent in another city. Or a secret wish. Think about what you’d like to investigate further, journal about, sketch, reflect upon while you’re on your journey. When you decided upon your destination and began planning your trip, what about those decisions made your heart sing? That’s a great place to start for your own one little word. Once you’ve selected it, think about using your word as a theme for your vintage travel journal. What stories does this one little word inspire?
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TRY THIS NOTE TO SELF When you’re buying postcards to send to friends, buy an extra one. Write a note on the back and mail it to yourself at home. What’s memorable from this trip? How does it feel to do something just for you? It’s easy to lose track of those feelings after we return to the busyness of our everyday lives. Getting a note from your traveling self will remind you of your carefree and joy-full self experiencing life on a fantastic journey.
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ONE’S DESTINATION IS NEVER A PLACE, BUT A NEW WAY OF SEEING THINGS. HENRY MILLER
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Carnet de Voyage
Vintage Paris Travelogue I packed a basic travel art kit and imagined myself back in Paris after a nearly 40-year hiatus. It was a trip I’d dreamt of all those years. As I zipped shut a pouch full of glue sticks, watercolors, pens, pencils, and brushes, I began to imagine the carnet de voyage, the travel journal, I would create on this very special return to Paris. For this trip however, I had another plan. I had decided to make my journal, from start to finish in Paris, starting with a visit to the Marche aux Puces de Vanves and the Marché du Livre Ancien et d’Occasion, or the old and used book market in the Parc Georges Brassons. I headed both places my very first day in Paris. Here I found the perfect old book to use as my journal cover, along with beautiful French ephemera postcards, letters, hand-calligraphed documents, vintage lace, button cards…so many treasures. Returning to my apartment on Butte Montmartre, I settled in to create. By the end of the evening, I had taken apart one of my books, cut papers to fit within the cover, and began chronicling the day’s adventure at the flea markets. I was in Paris for ten days, and with each day my travel journal got fatter and fatter, full of items gathered throughout my explorations, photos taken on my phone to be printed that evening in my apartment with my pocket printer, a feather picked up near the Tour Eiffel, a bookmark from Shakespeare and Company, and so many other little treasures that would help me relive my wonderful reunion with a city I hold so dear once I returned home and to the busy-ness of life. This essay originally appeared online at France Today magazine.
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Allons-y!
(Let’s go!)
THE SOUL SHOULD ALWAYS STAND AJAR, READY TO WELCOME THE ECSTATIC EXPERIENCE. EMILY DICKINSON
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GATHER SOURCING VINTAGE MATERIALS TO FILL YOUR TRAVEL JOURNAL DEEPENS THE ENJOYMENT OF YOUR JOURNEY
There are many options for gathering materials for a vintage travel journal, prior to departure and while traveling. At home, audition Goodwill stores, thrift shops, and antique malls near your home. Visit them often to get a feel for the types of items that would lend themselves to your travel journal. Antique malls offer the opportunity to shop several vendors in one venue that sell old papers, envelopes, wallpapers, ledgers, and other items that make great fodder for vintage travel journals.
While traveling, the same venues apply. I do a bit of research on my destination before departure: locations for the antique malls, thrift stores, flea markets, and other vintage shopping opportunities in the area. Throughout my trip, I collect menus, tickets, guides, maps, and other items to tuck away in my travel journal. I press leaves or flowers between the pages, or do a quick sketch while sitting at a cafe. I also shop online at eBay and Etsy, searching for “vintage papers”, “vintage ephemera”, “vintage French paper”, and “vintage postage”. Additionally, there are many individuals who sell vintage ephemera on Instagram. Collecting and gathering special items to fill your vintage travel journal deepens the enjoyment of your journey. Bon voyage!
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EXPLORE In wisdom gathered over time, I have found that every experience is a form of exploration. Ansel Adams
There is nothing better than a good “explore”. Get lost. Wander. Sit at a cafe and watch people. Try something new. Connect with the locals. Use public transportation. Be flexible. Allow for spontaneity. Learn the local language. Immerse yourself in the culture. Get off the beaten path. Err on the side of kindness. Be in the moment.
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TOURIST IN MY OWN TOWN It’s not always possible to get out of town for a grand adventure. That’s when I like to explore the neighborhoods of my hometown, Portland, OR.
1. Voodoo Donuts | 2. Shopping at Cargo | 3. Steamers and beer at Dan & Louis’ Oyster Bar | 4. Lavender Festival | 5. Keep Portland Weird mural 6. Paris Theatre | 7. White Stag Sign | 8. Pine Street Market | 9. Eastbank Esplanade PAGE FOURTEEN | TRAVEL CHRONICLES
FOUND OBJECTS
COLLECT
IN ADDITION TO ALL THE PAPER-Y GOODNESS TO BE PICKED UP ALONG THE WAY, I ALSO MANAGE TO RETURN TO MY HOTEL AT THE END OF A DAY’S OUTING WITH POCKETS FULL OF ROCKS, FEATHERS, BOTTLE CAPS OR CORKS, COINS, AND VARIOUS OTHER SMALL TREASURES.
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WHEN I RETURN HOME AFTER A TRIP, I PLACE THESE FOUND OBJECTS INTO SMALL BOWLS, JARS, AND BASKETS, AND DEPOSIT THEM AROUND MY HOME. EACH TIME I LOOK AT ANY OF THEM, I AM REMINDED OF THE PLACES I’VE VISITED AND THE PEOPLE I’VE MET. IT’S A WONDERFUL WAY TO RECOLLECT A JOURNEY.
Vintage Storage for Vintage Ephemera It’s just a theory, really, but I have always thought that your physical surroundings can shape your voice and personality. K.D. Lang
Collecting vintage journal-making materials is a fun and satisfying treasure hunt. Sorting and storing all of that fodder should be too. While searching out the perfect vintage books for journal covers and postcards of your bucket list trips, also keep an eye out for clever ways to store your loot. A place for everything and everything in its place. But pretty.
Vintage Tins For smaller items, coffee tins make great storage. They are easy to peek into and are colorful additions to a shelf or cubby. Vintage lozenge or candy tins can be made into unique watercolor palettes or a place to store cancelled postage stamps.
Cigar Boxes Vintage paper bits and ephemera are stored flat in cigar boxes. If you have a lot of it, sort by category then label the boxes for easy access.
Little Cupboards Old wooden bathroom cabinets with a mirror or glass panel on the front make a statement in your studio while also doing a job.
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STORY Part of any travel journal is storytelling, whether it be the written word, a photo, a sketch, or a splash of watercolor on the page to depict the palette of Paris on a rainy afternoon. All of it tells a story. As the traveler journeys on, capturing memories and pocketing treasures, impressions are being made. As artists, as writers, as explorers, we are compelled to gather these observations and jot down notes, draw the details with a pencil or charcoal, and tell the stories behind all of it. By creating a narrative or a visual representation of our experiences, we then have something physical to return to as the memories begin to fade. We also leave a chronicle for those who love us, that they may see what travel meant in our lives, and how those encounters shaped us. A journal is the traveler’s true companion, allowing her to be in the moment of the journey as impressions are logged and sketched, but also serves as a chronicle to revisit once she has returned home.
We write to taste life twice, in the moment and in retrospection... Anais Nin
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D
DAYDREAM The art of doing nothing. In order to be the fabulous you you’re going to be, to go all the wonderful places you want to visit, to accomplish, astonish, and achieve, you gotta slow down and rejuvenate. Chill out. In the long run, and after some practice, it will make you far more productive. Start small. Daydream, lay in the grass to imagine shapes in the clouds, sit by the window to watch it rain - at first, foregoing the to do list to do nothing is going to bring about feelings of guilt, of “I should be doing (fill in the blank)”. Start slow. A few minutes at a time should do it. Find your spot where no one, nothing, nada will bother you. Choose a cozy corner at home, go to a favorite cafe and put in your earbuds with some quiet music, sit on a park bench, take a bubble bath. Go dark. Turn off all the devices. Seriously. Turn them off. Do this every day for 5-10 minutes. Do it two or three times a day. You’ll be so glad you did.
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OBSERVE The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new sights, but in looking with new eyes. Marcel Proust, Remembrance of Things Past
Travel to become inspired. Become inspired by observing, taking in the world around you. There is nothing quite like traveling to another part of the world and immersing yourself in a new and unique culture that leaves you a bit breathless. Stepping into an environment so different from your own can awaken you to so many wonderful new experiences - culinary adventures, beautiful vistas, sensational aromas, and welcoming, friendly locals.
Observation is an insightful practice. Observe with fresh curiosity events unfolding around you. This requires slowing down, stopping, seeing, and soaking it all in. It’s all about the journey, not the destination.
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Once we’ve slowed our pace, we can breathe deeply, hone our senses. Now, we can explore colors, shapes, shadows, and movement. We tune in and hear sounds that we may not have before. We can savor smells and flavors, even our sense of touch becomes more pronounced. As you master this art of observation, you’ll feel drawn to record what you see and how it makes you feel, what you think about it. This might be a bit of writing, a sketch, or a poem - even a torn bit from the paper placemat menu where your glass of wine left a ring, pocketed to be glued later into your travel journal. After you’ve captured the moment, all of the moments, of your journey, being able to put your self back there via your travel journal is a great way to explore your observations and reflect on the experience your travel provided you.
I NEVER TRAVEL WITHOUT MY DIARY. ONE SHOULD ALWAYS HAVE SOMETHING SENSATIONAL TO READ ON THE TRAIN. Oscar Wilde WWW.TAMMYGILLEY.COM