Instagram & marbled paper

Most book-lovers agree that print books have a certain beauty, and some even enjoy the smell of a book, library, or bookstore. But have you ever heard of marbled book art?

The American Antiquarian Society has been sharing the beauty of this ancient art form over their Instagram feed, and their feature #MarbledMonday has become very popular. This art form used on historical book bindings is undeniably beautifully artistic – the papers, edges, and cloths of these books are enhanced with colors and swirling patterns and shapes. Another reason for the popularity of this feature is the fact that artists in the 18th and 19th century produced these complicated patterns without the help of modern equipment!

The way these designs are produced is by placing chemicals and pigments in a water bath, then the artist manipulates the floating pigments to create patterns, which are then put onto the book edges or papers.

In the early days of America, even currency was marbled to prevent counterfeiting! Check out the full article here for more examples and pictures.

Image credit: https://unsplash.com/(Sebastian Unrau), licensed under CC0 1.0

 

Nine must know tips for Instagram

Instagram (in this writer’s opinion) is one of the most fun social media sites. Being able to beautify your pictures and literally see what your friends are up to without the wordy commentary of Facebook, what’s not to like? Just like any social media app, Instagram has some great shortcuts that can improve its experience.

This article delves deeper into nine tips for beginners, many of which include increasing privacy by blocking random followers and removing location tags from a map. You can also find instructions for viewing every photo you’ve ever liked, and arranging notifications to alert you when someone you follow has posted a new picture.

How do you like Instagram? Any other shortcuts or tips the article forgot? Leave us a comment and let us know!

Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/md7dfnp, licensed under CC BY 2.0

Library Instagram Accounts To Follow

Polka Café brings us 17 Library Instagram Accounts You Should Be Following Even If You Are Not A Bookworm!  These libraries participate in many tags like BookFace Friday, highlight their most beautiful features (like this one from Indiana State Library), and show off their casual side.  Maybe they’ll inspire you to set up an Instagram account for your library!

How-To: Really Utilize that Instagram Account!

We know that social media sites like Instagram can be used to connect with patrons – but do you ever wonder if you’re using your social media sites effectively?  The New York Public Library (NYPL) is here to help you really get some use out of Instagram!  Morgan Holzner, who manages the NYPL’s Instagram account, recently posted, 20 Ways to Make People Fall in Love With Your Instagram. It is based on a presentation she gave at the annual MCN conference in November 2014.  Her final bit of advice?  Be passionate!  “I cannot stress this one enough,” she writes.  “If you run your account with passion, your followers will see this and give it right back to you.”

Ways That Libraries Use Instagram!

There are some great ways libraries can utilize Instagram.  The New York Public Library is a great leader to look to.  They use some really great “hooks” for followers – from posting old book reviews to #bookfacefriday.  This is a way that they use to encourage followers to contribute.  Users can connect with The New York Public Library and send images to them.  You might end up on their Instagram, like these two from Palm Beach County Library!

While having some simple fun is great, Instagram can help you get more patrons in the door for those great events you’re planning!  Amy Mollett and Anthony McDonnell, of The London School of Economics and Political Science, have a great blog post about more ways to use Instagram.  A couple things they recommend are posting teaser pictures of event posters, or of people getting ready for the events.  Let your followers know what’s going on at their local or school library, and encourage them to contribute to the conversation!

Are you already on Instagram?  We’d love to see what you’re posting.  Please share your library photos with us (via Facebook, Twitter, or even e-mail)!

Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/nsrltvb, licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0