April is the kindest month

I happen to love April, as it is the month I became a mom (my first baby born the 15th,) and my own Birthday a little later. I also love the song my husband wrote about April with the same title as this post. So I made a linen journal with pink blossoms this week to commemorate Spring. I also painted a noodle bowl at Ceramica with pink blossoms circling around. We are busy getting an herb/flower garden planted in the back yard and lots of spring cleaning. Have a great month! Here is the song:

Linen journal with felt embroidery

Hello again! It's the first day of spring, yay! I just realized how winterish this journal looks...I am resolved to design a more spring looking journal next. I think it turned out cool though, and it's really fun to hold. My favorite sweater in the whole world is this same orange color, so whenever I see this journal it makes me feel all cozy inside. <3

Mini toy plant & Bookish Birdie

I made some mini plants on Saturday. They turned out so cute! Bookish Birdie for my Etsy shop. Nerd Alert!!

Fun with Felt

I never get tired of creating with felt! It doesn't fray, it's so colorful and you can hand sew it better than any other material. Plus scissors can cut so precisely, I just love it!

Handmade Journal w/embroidery

I made another linen journal with embroidery. I really loved the design, but it didn't come together the way I thought it would. I wonder if it will bug people too much with the thread making bumpy lines behind the design? If you think it still looks good, please leave a comment. If you think it looks weird, let me know that too. Thanks!!

Bookish Bunny, Bookish Bee & Corset journal

What I've been making...

Hiroshige notebook with waxed thread design

I've been waiting for the right moment to up-cycle my awesome 2012 Hiroshige art calendar and finally found the project to use it on. I used the prints as the first page of every signature in this hand-bound leather notebook. The design is mine, and the stitching is actually the same in the headbands on the other journals I've done. I think it turned out pretty cool! :D

Hand Embroidery Journal

I believe this to be the first in a series of hand embroidered linen journals to add to my shop someday. I made this on moss green linen and used light green heavy paper for the first page of each signature. Even the waxed thread I used to sew in the pages is green. The embroidery is freestyle- no pattern. I hope to make a few more with more intricate freestyle patterns, but stay with a nature theme. What do you think?

More Ribbon Detail

Hey peeps! So, I finished another journal while watching Downton Abbey(poor Edith!). I am starting a new series of journals after this one, I will give you the details soon, but it is really exciting!! For now, this is the last of the ribbon series. It was fun to learn this skill, and I really loved shopping for all the supplies too! :D

Handmade Journals with ribbon

I finally got some more bookbinding done. I used ribbon detail through the covers and attached to the inside. I think it makes the binding look cool. Thanks to the snow days and a little program called Downton Abbey, I had plenty of time to craft.

Christmas Dolls

Handcrafted by my Mom to my kids as a Christmas gift! How cute is that? She has been making toys my whole life. I think you could consider her a pro by now. Thanks Mom!

Narwhal in felt

I made some more mini notebooks for Christmas. Narwhal, Narwhal, swimming in the ocean, causin' a commotion, 'cause you are so awesome. Ahh yeah!

Plaid handmade journal and mini notebooks

This fabric reminds me of Scotland, and Christmas, and Scotch tape.

More mini notebooks for gifts. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Autumn Inspired Journals

Lots of yellow in these journals! I was inspired, on all the walks I've been taking with my dog, by the leaves changing colors. What a beautiful time of year it is. I especially love breaking out the long sleeves in my wardrobe (if you can call it that). I added the ribbon detail to these again... I promise I will add the tie closure next time! :) BTW Happy Halloween everybody!

Felt bunny

The Hazelnuts felt bunny. I made this one for my youngest daughter Sylvia. And I just realized that I forgot the whiskers. D'oh!

Here she is from the back.

Full image.

Handmade fox - super wonky!

Wow, what a cute/wonky fox this turned out to be! Lots of fun to make and I got to use my machine which I haven't done for a long time. I hope Mia likes it, it's her favorite animal.

Bookbinding with ribbon detail

Another couple of journals with ribbon sewed into the binding. I really like how the color contrast pops. I think I will extend the ribbon to the other side and have them tie the book together for my next project. Pics to come...

Custom photo album

I made this a new size (5.5 X 7in.) to fit 4X6 photos. The paper is almost as thick as card stock to hold the photos better, the customer is planning on adding photo corners. I did a new design on the binding that turned out kinda cool. I also added the headbands. I am excited to add this new size as another option in my Etsy shop. It's about time I branched out!!

Aqua journal

I had a huge break over the summer from bookbinding, but I did manage to get this journal done over the month of August. I really like the hot-air balloon fabric I used for the endpages, and the textured cardstock makes it more tactile. I loved doing the headbands and am looking forward to another school year so I can get more practice and try new binding methods while the kids are gone. :)

July 2012

An embroidered hanging lantern that I made on our trip to Lagoon in Utah.

The curtains I put up with a shell/wooden bead sash across the middle. Thrift store fabric can be cool!

Starry, starry night: the planter.

Handmade journal with textured cardstock

I really like the look and feel of the textured cardstock as the first page of every signature. I think it makes the journal more tactile, I hope to use it more often. Now that school is out and my new job starts soon, I won't have as many projects, but I will update you on new stuff. Happy crafting and take it easy this summer!!