etsy treasury pick!

i was absolutely thrilled when laurel notified me that she had included my leaf batik journal in her etsy treasury!  she has created a beautiful collection of items that range from jewelry to a mosaic guitar...i'm so honored to have been included in this!  you can check it out here!  thanks again, laurel!

thankfulness

wishing everyone a very blessed Thanksgiving!  :)

do not worry

one of my favorite scripture passages in the Bible is in the book of Matthew, where Jesus talks about worry (or specifically, not to worry!) .  normally i bind blank journals, but i really wanted to make a "text book" using this scripture, so i set up my pages using a program called indesign.   i'm not very computer literate, so i was a little skeptical when i began...it was actually quite user-friendly once i got the hang of it.   the orange book was bound using a japanese-style binding (although it's hard to tell because i used a ribbon for the binding).  i bound the other two books using my bind-it-all, which is one of my favorite studio tools!

inspiration monday

sometimes i go to the bookstore with a purpose, but mostly i love to go and just wander around and wait for inspiration to strike.  during my last trip, it didn't take long for the vibrant red cover of stampington and co.'s quarterly publication,  artful blogging,  to grab my attention.  i really couldn't resist opening the front cover to see what was inside!

once inside the covers, i was introduced to over twenty blogs created  by artists just like you and me.   they're all creative in their own way, and each one has stories of success, struggle and self-discovery...and are willing to share them with us.  and that's where the connection is made.  i continue to be inspired through the art journeys of others.  

filled with gorgeous photography and beautifully written "partial posts" contributed by each blog creator, artful blogging remains a constant source of inspiration to me.  each time i open it, i find something new...whether it's sewing, mixed-media collage, or hunting for the perfect flea market find...it all appeals to me.   if you already own a copy, i'd love to hear how it's inspired you.  i'm also curious to know...have you plastered post-it flags all over your copy too?!

to learn more about artful blogging, click here

online journal class - week three

remember my pollyanna's garden series?  it's been a while since i drew and watercolored those quirky little flowers...and it's been a while since i put "make a book using pollyanna's garden illustrations" on my to-do list.  so, this week i decided to combine two projects into one.  

my sue bleiweiss online fabric journal class is in its third week now, and my project was this simple hinge book.  the covers are made from some of my favorite polka dot fabric and the illustration was printed onto a piece of canvas and then sewn to the front.  inside, each one of my illustrations is printed onto italian velata paper and separated by a piece of moss green canson paper.  

here are some extra photos...i hope you like it!  for a larger slideshow, click above on "view all images"