Update: Funky Fabric Journal of Hidden Spaces

So, the class is a go. It is going to be held at Frenzy Stamper in Scottsdale, AZ on July 25. There will be more information on the website there soon. I hope to see some of you in class!

Funky Fabric Journal of Hidden Spaces

So while Helen was over today making her first journal, I sat across the table and worked on a book for a class I might do this summer. There is room on every page spread plus the back cover to write on the fabric and/or pages, making it a real write in/on book. What you may not be able to tell in the photos is that the pages are sew together back to back on the bottom and sides but not the top which leaves a pocker, so more goodies like photos or other evidence can be added to this book. I would love to hear what you think about it. My blog does take anonymous comments, so you don't have to leave your name. I have taken the photos twice and am not entirely happy with them or my camera skills, but at least you can get an idea. And for any newbies our there ( I Love newbies!!!) if you click on a photo, you can get a closer up look at any page.

Farewell, Helen

Helen, one of the art teachers where I work, is heading home to St. Louis in less than a week, moving back, leaving us all very sad. She is one of those kinds of people that just don't come along that often. She is 5 feet of fun, bold red lipstick and a flower in her hair, sparkling eyes, gauged ears and colorful tatoos, like a smile and hug on two legs. She is the kind of person you want to be around. For one last "adventure," Helen is getting together with my daughter, Jeane, (who also knows her from work) and me to have some breakfast and hang out in the studio making journals. I made her this little going away gift as a surprise. Her internet was cut off yesterday so she won't know about this posting, but I think it is so her, and I hope she loves it. The little pin says "memento." They are kind of hard to see, but there are little tiny paper clips attached near the upper left. I photographed it on top of another one of my canvases. She said to me yesterday, "I bet you don't know many Helens." Nope. Especially not like this one. Farewell, Art Friend. I hope we cross paths again.

in progress...

So midweek when stress was high at work, I stayed up late to paint some fabric, and here is what I have so far. I started with a great big piece of canvas and did three different things on it. I am still looking at the paint on the other two sections and deciding where to go, but this one was screaming for attention, so I have gotten a little farther. After painting, I drew on it and then stitched on the drawing. It is talking again today, so it is only a matter of time until I get back to it for the next steps. I wish I had made a larger piece of this.

Done! At Last!

About a hundred million years ago, Kellie, in one of my swap groups, sent me an envelope of miscellaneous ephemera and whatnot, and challenged me to make something with it. Earlier, I showed what I had in progress. When I woke up this morning, I knew it had to be done today, and here it is. You can't see the lining, but I did put one in using scraps from another project. This is a very sturdy bag because the fabric I used on the outside is upholstery fabric given to me by my friend Gwen. My friend, Laurie K. gave me the metal label thingy, and I got the giant piece of plastic from used packaging. Maybe I should have made the bag green. So about all it cost me was some time, thread and the ribbon on top.

Altered Books, One

One. One as in the one before the second one, having nothing to do with the order in which they were made. This used to be a less than half inch thick book written in a language I do not comprehend. I removed the spine, punched holes in the front and back covers, went to my rescued papers stash, cut up about an inch and a half's worth of goodies, and bound them inside the covers. This stirred up a bunch of ideas I can barely wait to get to soon.

Altered Books, Two

This used to be a ledger. I took it to Kelly Kilmer's class at Frenzy Stamper last weekend where all the students gutted their books and made new spines for them. I broke the rules, even though Kelly doesn't really have any, and I just reinforced mine. Then we painted pages, tore them to whatever size we wanted, and sewed them in. OK. We were encouraged to add other things in when we sewed, and Kelly didn't have to ask me twice. Jeane called me a paper engineer, and I went crazy doing what I was told this time. I made pockets, fold out pages, and added all kinds of fun stuff: paper, tape, etc. After I got home, I added more to all the white pages I had sewn in. I will continue to add on to the pages when I do art and or journaling on these pages. Right now, I am working in my Kelly journal I made when Jeane and I flew to LA last summer to take her class.