create a collaged suitcase

Ok I decided I didn’t want the manga in the suitcase and I had a need to fill. I needed somewhere to keep my witchy things neatly, so I have removed the manga from the case and I smoothed it all over by actually coating the inside in several layers of Gesso! Gesso is a liquid that you use to prime a canvas. So if I decide to paint inside the suitcase I can, I have a clean white surface in there now and I may start collecting little pictures and things related to witchyness to paste in place on there. It may become a mix of collage and painting.

During my yard sale adventures in September I bought a suitcase for $1 in order to collage it, much like my room mate April had done to her own suitcase, and refurbish it inside. During the past few days I finally found time and worked on various pieces of the project.
I decided to use two issues of one of my favourite comic series, Demo, going with a black and white scheme. The two issues were the most touching of the stories told in Demo, so they had special resonance for me. The lighter side is from “Mix Tape,” which tells of a girl who committed suicide and left a farewell mix tape for her boyfriend. The darker side is from “Mon Dernier Jour Avec Toi,” the story of two lovers’ last night together. They’re both visually and narritively superb, and I wanted to preserve some of that in my collaging.
Inside the suitcase I replaced the bland light blue with the pleather of one of the curtains I had at my old apartment. This was the most challenging part of the project, taking three different glues and a fair amount of frustration. Other than some minor fixes, I’m pleased with the results, however.
I’d consider the project a big success. I always have my perfectionist tendencies flare up and focus on flaws when I create anything, but I’m rather surprised this turned out so nicely. I feel like a much classier nomad with a properly expressive suitcase. I’ll actually be taking it with me tomorrow morning when I head out of the province to New Brunswick.

going to cover up my manga (I don’t even know it enough to be a fan) with brown paper which will eventually be covered in a tarot theme and the outside with tarot and astrology theme, and then I’ll pack a quilt, book, and tarot cards and go sit in a park and offer free readings.

I removed the inner lining and broken remnants of arms that used to hold up the lid while packing, and wallpapered the inside of the suitcase with chinese manga. :) Gotta decide how I want to do the outside. I may be sawing the face off a manequin and applying it with glue/paper mache’ for a 3d look on one side. I can add features to it with paper mache’ but this will be a project to finish after the move.

Okay, so technically it isn’t Done yet, since I still have to put on another coat of varnish in the morning, but it looks done and that is the main point. I spent all day cutting up an atlas of Great Britain, and now it is all collaged over my suitcase and I can explain why I chose each section of the map. It makes me happy!

I should mark this as ‘I’ve done this’ and ‘I want to do this again’ as I have one semi collaged suitcase already. But as it is only collaged on one side, I wont count it. :)
I am greatly looking forward to this project, even though it will be some time until it is completed as I have two cases to cover, and I wont have the income for it until next month at the earliest.