New Drop: Fresh Direct Recycled Journals, Inspired by Greece
The only way to handle grief is to go through it. After my grandfather passed away this year, I’ve been trying to dive into our Greek heritage and history. His father, Visor, immigrated from Mouzaki, Greece, entered the US through Ellis Island, then moved to Detroit where he met his wife, Rose Coté. They had my grandfather, Robert in 1936.
In honor of him and our family, I painted a series of upcycled journal covers inspired by Greece.
It starts with a surplus of reusable grocery bags. When we lived in New York City during the pandemic, we would get groceries delivered from Fresh Direct. They stopped taking bags back to recycle, so I had a sky-high pile of Fresh Direct bags. I deconstruct them, then sew them into journal covers with pockets to hold the notebook inside. Then, each one is handpainted (now with paint that will not crack or peel). I coat it with protective spray, then it’s ready to be used.
Journal refills are made by shredding paper waste into pulp. Then, I handcraft 60 pages of high-quality paper and bind them with a French Link Stitch. I create slightly denser front and back covers, and marble them using Suminagashi, an ancient Japanese marbling technique. I use old marker and empty cartridges to make my own alcohol ink for this step.
READ MORE: High-Quality Recycled Journals
These are hands down the best versions of the reusable journal I’ve made to date and I’m so proud of them! So much labor goes into each one, but you deserve something lovingly crafted to carry your thoughts in.
