Welcome November

Our October/Halloween decor has been packed away for another year and the November/Thanksgiving decor is in place.

This basket belonged to DH's mother - she used it for a wastebasket but we fill it with fairy lights, colorful leaf picks and an assortment of pumpkins.

The two wool mini pillows were made by a member of a long ago quilt group - she did such beautiful work.

And yes, there are a number of owls mixed in.

I especially like the colors of this ceramic set.

My grandfather's buffet in our dining room . . .

And a glimpse of our newly set-up but not yet fluffed or embellished Thanksgiving tree in the foyer, almost ready to brighten our evenings after the end of Daylight Savings Time on Sunday.

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In the studio - my Garden of Collage journal is indeed completed (photos pending).

I've also finished hand stitching the first of twelve "pages" in my slow stitch journal.

And one evening I sat and stitched the stack of 3" blocks and then the rows for Smaragdine, our March dining room wall quilt.  

Open enrollment research is on the list for next week, along with a lot of other errands -- while I really want to spend my time getting started on the FMQ of Inglenook.

Quiltdivajulie

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“It will all shake out. Meanwhile, I’m putting up more twinkle lights.”

Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan) in the movie You've Got Mail

Flowers Magic Journal - an Update

For weeks now I've been gathering quotes for my flowers journal and earlier today I finally sat down and wrote them out using white ink on black construction paper.

I've been adding papers into the binder and getting things ready to start on the collage process.  Some of the pages came from the original BHG book while others are from my stash.

Once that was done, I went through my ephemera and pulled out the floral/garden related items.

I ended up sorting those bits and pieces into my stack of white baskets to make finding things easier . . . the system is working well so far and I'm delighted with the number of bits that are now glued into the journal (as in "have been used").

Here is one page on parchment paper which is why you can see the following sheet shadowed underneath.

Here is another page, also on parchment paper.

This page features a seed envelope with a vintage heavy-weight card  inside.

There's lots more to add before those baskets are emptied.  

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You can see Francisca's Flowers Magic Art Fest journals before they were filled by clicking HERE.  

I learned so much from watching her free class on how to make these and I'll definitely incorporate some of her methods in future projects - but I'm not into eco dye and I don't have a stash of previously painted papers, so I went my own eclectic/scrappy way.

And if you'd like to see a flip through of another instructor's completed Flowers Magic Art Fest journals, click HERE.  SO very different than how mine will look.

Quiltdivajulie

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"But out of limitations comes creativity."

Debbie Allen

Studio Time - Part 2 (photo heavy post)

The box contains a lot of more-or-less 14" strips of Dumpster Diving segments ready to be pressed.

(Note of explanation - my iron is plugged into the same power strip as the lamp on my pressing table - if the lamp is on, the iron is on and when the iron is off the lamp is off - and the quilt on the wall was made by Wanda Hanson)

It took a couple of sessions but all of those strips are now pressed flat and ready to be sorted and sewn into more blocks for DD12 - Confetti.

I also pieced the backing for Inglenook.  

Now the top, the batting, and the back are rolled onto pool noodles ready for pin basting.

I don't think I've mentioned it here on the blog, but I signed up for Fodder School 3 (you can read all about it HERE).  

My overarching approach to FS3 is to learn as much as I can in order to move my own projects/ideas forward (unless the instructor's project completely captivates my attention).

This month's project is creating a bespoke coptic bound book.  I started off in one direction then completely changed my mind (huge surprise) and have chosen a different path (more on this once the book is assembled).

That shift in direction left a stack of prepared signatures without a home - so I used a small cardboard box and made a cover (front and spine shown above).

This is the back cover and spine.

A peek inside the front cover . . . 

And a look at the inside back cover.

(I plan to leave the cardboard edges showing as part of the journal's overall vibe)

Here are the prepared but still unattached signatures tucked inside the cover.

All of the black and white pages in the signatures came from a thrifted book on architectural drawing technique.

I plan to use a version of long-stitch bookbinding (another first) to assemble this journal.

Then, when inspiration strikes, it will be ready for collage to be added.

In August, I mentioned playing along with Francisca's Flowers Magic Art Fest 23.

I had plans to make two different journals but after watching all of the videos, absorbing so much new information, and letting things gestate for a while I am not going that route.

At the very end of September, I happily chanced upon this wonderfully intact thrifted 5-ring binder/book . . . 

And now my ideas have coalesced into actual progress!

I've covered the front/back of each of the 17 tabbed dividers and spent several happy hours sorting/prepping papers to become the pages (still more work to be done but that's okay).

I even found the perfect way to (1) cover up the divider pages' printed tabs and (2) actually use pieces from the snippet roll I made.

For now I plan to leave the cover itself as it is but, to no one's surprise, that could change in the future.

* * * 

Lurking in the background are three more five-ring binders that will eventually become more scrappy, eclectic journals.

I enjoy working on the pages before they are added to the journal and the flexibility of a binder makes the arranging process even easier.

SO many possibilities . . . 

Quiltdivajulie

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"Art is literacy of the heart."

Elliot Eisner