Silly Billy - and Free! - Downloadable Christmas Zine (& Badly Self-Written Christmas Poem)
- thefearlessfrock
- Nov 17, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: Jan 18
If you are like me (bookish, crafts loving, and clumsy), and have been thinking about (dreaming of!) building your own book from scratch - you are just at the right place: in the beginner's corner. It's my first try as well, but I aimed for something that could be reproduced easily and hence ended up with a downloadable & printable & foldable - and free! - little zine. A Christmas one.
If you are a family member or a friend reading these lines, turn around and leave, thank you very much, haha - for this year's Christmas 'delivery' will be this little zine, and we must not spoil it for you.
Alright. Let's see point-by-point what you'll find in this post:
1.) On zines. What the heck they are.
2.) What to know about this zine (and to whom you might want to make/send it).
3.) How to make this zine (step-by-step), with pictures, of course.
Here we go:
1.) On zines. What the heck they are.
It took me a while to find the right expression I was looking for but in our contemporary (mostly online - and look, the internet is indeed good for something after all!) world, from a little folded booklet (made from a single sheet of A4 paper) to small printed pamphlets anything may be called zine. The genre is open to everyone, from complete amateurs - like myself - to real self-employed visual artists (or writers).
For reference, let me share a few creators and resources I found online and found utterly helpful - creators who are so much better at this than I am:
Zines can be a great choice for writers and poets who enjoy a short and often explorative and/or silly form, and the more tactile experience of writing (or simply just have chapbooks to share), and who are interested 'in the book' as an object (or just the idea of it). They may want to end up with a more 'underground' and completely self-controlled creation (as opposed to traditional books where a writer with its text is just one gear in the system and more often than not has next to no real influence on how the book comes out as an object.)
Zines can also be a great option for those dreaming of making paper and bookbinding - but are too afraid of crazy and very messy undertakings. (Paper making is great fun indeed but also a huge mess - yet something I hope to experiment with again, for I've done it before.)
2.) What to know about this zine (and to whom it might be a nice match).
My zine falls under the silly (aka very unserious) poem-zine category with its 8-pages-long Christmas poem (a creation not aspiring to be anything but funny, clumsy and cute.) If you are looking for high art, this zine is certainly not for you. If you, however, like giggling over badly written but heartfelt, clumsily rhyming Christmas chaos, this zine might just be for you. If you know anyone who's into this experience, sending them this little zine might be a nice gesture as well.:)
Also, as it's my first ever zine with my first ever Christmas poem-ish, please do be kind and gentle. Thank you in advance.:))
3.) How to make this zine.
Firstly, I have a 'materials' guide for you:
And then, we have a step-by-step guide (this is my way of doing it, but feel free to look up better guides online!:))
My zine is titled 'Santa's Got Socks Too'. And here is the first (aka cover) page of this incredible piece of art.:D
And last but not least, here is my little zine - as a downloadable pdf:
And my silly little 'poem' (random lines thrown together) that went into the zine (but the zine is illustrated - so why not check out that instead?;)):
Santa's Got Socks Too (jolly ones!)
He loves candy too (why wouldn't he?)
This Advent Season, this Christmas,
Whether at the North Pole...or in the jungle,
Whether with candy (...canes...even!)
Whether holding wreaths or chasing robins,
Whether shoving shortbread or sipping hot chocolate,
Don't forget those you would otherwise!
(And call your granny!)
Well, this was all for today. Enjoy your pre-Christmas time, Darlings!:))
Comentários