[Homemade Book] Wedding Shower Album Made Entirely of Gift Wrapping; "Miscellaneous Shower at Pearl Roger's Norwich Vermont November 17 1943"

A most unusual homemade book, made by the prospective bride, Louise, whose surname is not given, but why would it, for a momento Louise was creating for herself? Oblong, 12 by 16 cm. Thirty leaves of folded gift wrap forming, in essence, 60 pages, without pagination. Pasted to about half of these pages are cards (printed cards from guests and/or other friends and relatives), sometimes in their miniature envelopes, die-cuts and the like with sentimental tidings such as one might expect in a Friendship Album. Also the paper napkin used at the shower. The cards are those that accompanied gifts given at the shower. The final card is a birthday card, some of which seem like things that might have been given to a bride. We would guess that the bride's birthday was close in date to the shower. All the cards describe the gift -- this must have been at the request of the bride. The base wrapping papers are of a wide variety -- floral, geometric, nostalgic costume, patchwork, abstract, Japonisme, hybrids of these and other gift paper repeats. The cover, outside and inside of the boards, also have paper pastedowns. The folding over was surely actuated to give the paper some heft, as the papers are of tissue thinness. The papers seem to us, generally-speaking, very much of the period, with designs mostly ones one would not find widely available today. Above all else, we think the concept of this album's construction quite singular and inspired, and something that allows it to transcend the genre of this type of sentimental momento. Some miscellaneous items are inserted loose. In the center, on a folded sheet of beige textured paper without pictorial illustration, are written in ink the names of the guests at the shower and a brief description of the event, which followed a more intimate dinner at a restaurant in nearby White River Junction. One is a photo of two young girls -- we would guess that one is of the bride. The other item is a cut-out of a silhouette of a boy named "Bruce". Moderate wear, but delicate papers well-preserved. Paper pasted onto cardboard. Ribbon tie. …