Vintage Paris

That is Lynne's theme in the journal round robin going on at Kindred Souls.  What a gorgeous book it is!  Our collaborative project is nearing its end, and this book is full of beautiful images of Paris, in Lynne's requested colors of whites and creams, lots of fabric and lace and lovely papers.  It's a great size too; 8x8 may be my new favorite.

Here is the front of my page.

 

 

The background (most of which wound up being covered) is an old photo of the Eiffel Tower, printed on cotton.  Many of the images I used came from a Navel Jelly collage sheet I've been hoarding  saving for years.  Others I found online, and others were in my stash.  Some are printed on fabric, some on paper, and there is a bit of machine stitching as well.

 

A couple of closer looks:

 

 

 

We don't have to do much to the backs, just finish them and include our information, but I think I decorated this back as much as the front.  Guess I was having too much fun.

 

 

 

The background on this side is a decorative napkin.  On the lower right there's a little pocket.

 

 

 

Inside the pocket, this little tag:

 

 

 

On the reverse side, my information.  The dangly on the top is actually a pin, which Lynne can remove if she likes and wear.

 

Although I'll be thrilled to get my own book back, I'll be a little sad to see this come to an end.  I've enjoyed each book I've worked in, and am always impressed with the pages that came before mine.  This is a group of very talented people!











DJ Pettit Workshop, The Final Post (I Promise!)

While I can say my book is finished, I know there's lots more I want to add.  I have tons of bird stamps, including some great crows from Quietfire Designs that are perfect for this project.  But the book is bound, and I love it just the way it is.  Here are my pages......all 30+ of them!

BTW, I always forget to mention this, but if you click on a picture you'll get a closer look.  Which sometimes means a fuzzier look, but hey, I never claimed to be a photographer.

This is my cover, and you can see a bit of the spine.  DJ taught us the best, easiest binding technique that involves sewing that I've ever done.  The buttons are not merely decorative; they are what hold the thread in place.

 

 

This is my book opened so you can see both front and back covers and the spine.  

 

Some pages are all paper, but some are all fabric and lace:

 

 

And some are a combination of paper and fabric (and some washi tape and a few feathers never hurt anyone).

 

I love how the stitches from the previous page just add some texture to the next one.  On the right, one of many smaller bird images I've already added to the book.

Another image, more washi tape and one of Donna's stamps.

 

 

Room on these pages for something.  I was thinking of adding quotes and poems and song lyrics relating to birds and/or flight to some pages.

Check out the great texture on the left hand page.  This was one of many pages that was gessoed with super heavy gesso.  I didn't even know such a thing existed.  Now on my must-buy list.

 

I found this bird photo in a tourist publication at the hotel.

 

Lots of room for journaling, or just more stuff!

 

 

I took one of Elena's leftover muslin strips to incorporate into my book.  One of Jacquie's is somewhere too.  Love having a bit of my friends' work as part of my own. When you go to a class with friends do that.  Every time you look at your work you'll think of them and the good times.

 

I got that little photo of the two pigeons from DJ and painted it just as we did the crow for the cover.  Aren't they sweet?

 

 

The wonderful thing about picking (and sticking to) a color palette is you don't have to do too much fussing about the order of your pages.  Every single page works well next to any other page.

Just so you know, the circles which appear throughout my book were stamped with the rims of a paper cup and a glue stick cover.

 

 

When the book was bound I added some charms and do-dads to the bottom.  That little turquoise bird and nest was made by my friend Val.  I've had it for years and have been saving it for just the right project.  Talk about perfect! 

 

 

The beaded trim on the back cover was acquired recently at yet another great weekend workshop with Lynne Perrella and Michelle Ward.  We had a share table, and I found it there.  It didn't make its way into my project that weekend, but I knew I'd use it eventually.  More perfection!  So, thanks to the anonymous artist who left it there for me to find.

 

 

That's it!  I'm looking forward to a return visit to Donna Downey's fabulous studio.  I don't know if I'll ever be in the same space with DJ Pettit again, but I can hope.  DJ did say she'd come back, and if she does, I'll be right there too.

 

If you enjoyed this art adventure, and want to see even more photos, go to Donna's blog on her site (link above).  And also, don't forget Andrea Walford's blog.

 



DJ Pettit Workshop, Part II

Here's a story for my "small world" files, also known as you-can-run-but-you-can't-hide.  One of the students in the class is the super talented Andrea Walford, who flew down from Canada.  I'd never met her before, but I've been following her blog for years.  How did I learn who she was?  A friend emailed me that she saw one of Andrea's blogposts (she was posting while in NC) and was shocked to see a photo of me, Elena and Jacquie.  It was great meeting her, and she is every bit as nice as she is creative.  Which is very.  Here she is sewing away.

 

 

Look at her amazing book:

 



 





 

 

This is the photo from Andrea's blog that caught my friend's eye.  The blonde surfer dude looking guy standing behind me is Donna's husband/business manager, Bill.

 



 

Have I mentioned how well Donna and Bill treat their students?  Bill picked up and delivered people from and to the airport.  He came by in the morning to transport us to the studio, making as many trips as needed.  Reverse trips after class.  And every day we had unbelievable meals catered by Donna's mom. 

 

 

The kitchen is right next to the classroom, and we were welcome to help ourselves to whatever we wanted, which included all sorts of beverages and did I mention the candy corner?

 

 

On our last night, instead of eating in, we were treated to a meal in a local restaurant.  How did 24 students, two hosts, and one teacher get there as a group?  Here's how:

 

 

 

We were actually very close to the restaurant, so the driver took the long way there so we'd have a bit more of the limo experience.  Look at DJ, so relaxed:

 

 

 

Here's the front of the restaurant.  We had a long table in the back, under a tent.

 

 

 

Of course we had lots of laughs and good conversation between courses.

 

 

 

Remember I mentioned that Jacquie opted to use a photo of her mom instead of the crow photo; well, she did an amazing job.  I think her stylized picture is gorgeous, and her pages are lush, done in vibrant tropical colors with lots of lace and fabric and beads.  Here she is at work, followed by her bound book.

 

 

 

On the last day, just before we all started our journeys home, we took a group picture.

 

 

 

And I made sure I had one with Donna.  And yes, little Karma was in her pouch right between us.

 

 

 

Andrea took this photo of me with my book. 

 

 

 

Speaking of which,  this turned into another episode of War And Peace, so I'll post pictures of the inside of my book tomorrow.  Stay tuned!