While I love the holidays with the joy of family and friends, ours extended into January and this was our first weekend that did involve having to clean the house for said joy. I did not care what state the house was in, and really how dirty could it be anyway, so I took time to play. I spent Saturday morning at KBAG and this book was the result. We chose a book, cut out the innards, cut the spine, sewed new signatures and voila a new journal to be filled with new ideas. Voila is a bit of an overstatement because at least 3 out of the 7 of us, me included, cut our spines wrong and had to reevaluate our process. To add interest I crocheted an inner lining. I liked the way it looked, how soft the yarn felt but I will have to add a closure due to the thickness. Truth be told I did not read the instructions properly ( see below). I thought it was going to be a simple sewn book and I wanted it to have a little pizazz which was the reason for the crocheting and ultimately the improper fit. After all that I was thrilled to have a finished project. That does not happen often for me in the gatherings. It was a fun morning being with creative people, even if my partner in crime (we sit in the back and giggle...a lot...hence the reason for incomplete projects) was not there.
My afternoon and Sunday were wrapped around a mini mobile that has 6 books which are 1/2 inch tall. The mobile itself is 7 inches and stands 11 inches with the base. It is sturdy but looks very delicate as it spins and glides around. The book covers came from a site that deals with miniature houses. The signature pages, which came from an old dictionary, were sewn together in sets of three and glued into the covers. Sewing thread and my trusty wire were used to create the actual mobile. The base is some cool rusty spring thing I found somewhere and have had for sometime waiting for the right use and this was it.
I must admit that I have an addiction. I have had it for so time now and do not believe it will abate any time soon. I love to acquire craft/art books. Oh, the possibilities the beautiful pictures and written instructions allow one to explore. I will say that I am much more about the pictures because I have a hard time following written directions. The words get jumbled up and I have to really get involved to follow the process. Just ask Husband about the countless time I have screwed up dinner following recipes. (I have learned to cook by taste and we have eaten much better because of it) This mobile is a direct outcome of this. Coupon = new book, yea, and in said book was a project using old book parts to make a hanging bird. To me this sounded very confusing so I looked at the intriguing photos and came up with my own lovely bird which I turned into 3 and hung as a mobile. The idea of the mobile was born and the next logical step was to make one with tiny books, of course. I am going to teach my version of the bird mobile in our KBAG meeting next month. It will be fun to see the colors and patterns chosen by each to make their birds come to life.
It is dreaded tax time in our house so off I go to gather and conquer. Be sure to stop and watch the clouds pass by every once on a while.
Peace,
Hilari
