Whew! Where does the time go when the warm breezes of summer invade the atmosphere? So far behind in blogging due to a long stretch of hanging out in the mountains of Western North Carolina. Always such a privilege to soak in the beauty and charm of this special place.
But I hope to set aside some time in the next few days to catch up with all my bloggy friends. I don't think I've ever gone this long without inspecting my google reader.
I have to admit, on my drive back from the cabin all I could think about was getting my paws on my art supplies! You see, Mary Ann's newest online class Full Tilt Boogie debuted in my absence. As usual, her video instruction is superb and full of inspiration. Not to mention Mary Ann's adorable sense of humor...so add the word entertaining to the previous sentence as well.
Although the instructions in this class are focused on altering an old Victorian photo album, any type of book will work. The real empahsis is on bookbinding methods.
For my first journal {she will be teaching several different types of binding} I chose the open back binding. Isn't that fun? Another girl in class posted a photo of her completed journal where she used the baker's twine and I was sold!
The "book" I altered wasn't really a book at all! I repurposed the thick cardboard backing on one of my watercolor pads and made my own book covers! In order to give the covers more of an authentic look of an old victorian album, I first padded them with several layers of cotton batting {a slight brushing of mod podge to hold the layers in place}.
Before wrapping the covers in some upholstery fabric, I sewed different embellishments to the front cover using irish waxed linen thread.
The beautiful old velvet violet millinery flower was a gift from my friend, Patty. So fun to find a special place for this much loved little gem!
One of my splurges for this class was buying a Japanese Screw Punch. I've wanted one for a long time since I have gobs of uses for this little beauty. It even punches through thick leather with extreme ease. For this particular class, it drilled all the holes for binding my book together.
My plans will be to add my own photos I've taken, as well as add lots more tape-in sections, pieces of ephemera, a little paint, rubber stamps, and of course, some journaling.
So much for that housework getting done....!
And by the way, I'm pretty sure you can still sign up for Full Tilt Boogie if this is your cup of tea! It's a delicious cup for sure and the best part? The class never closes...meaning, you will have full access to all of the videos forever and ever. I love that about Mary Ann's classes!
{no, i am not a paid blogger! i post this raving review of the class of my own free will!}
Hope you're finding some time to live in your sweet spot too!
xo, Sue
