Some New Journals

Been wanting to bind these up for a while.

This is a mixed-paper journal using the last of those old 1879 book covers. Inside are odds & ends of calendar, scrapbook, pastel, cardstock,  and watercolor papers. I covered the front and back in a heavy upholstery fabric I love. It's a sewn-over-tapes journal using light gray leather strips.





 

This is another sewn-over-tapes binding with green leather strips. I painted canvas boards using some light modeling paste.  Inside papers are Fabriano Artistico 140 lb. cold press watercolor paper and one of my painted pockets with a leaf painting.



8" x 6" canvas board covers



With both of these, I forgot a few things and did them ahead of time instead of as the last things. But, they are only for me so it's just cosmetic.

Love the details on this journal!







Celebrating My Irish Ancestress

St. Patrick’s Day may be over, but it’s always a grand time to celebrate your Irish heritage.

 

I hand-sewed this green velvet heart with a photograph of my great-grandmother who crossed the great ocean with her family to settle in America. I have this hanging in my studio to inspire me.

Free Online Workshop

Strathmore has a free online workshop going on right now. I am learning a lot watching Earnest Ward, an excellent teacher, in his “Back to Basics” class. He explains drawing in a very relaxed and logical way, dispelling any notion that it is some mystical craft only some people can understand. When his tutorial ends, there will be two more workshops later in May and September with different topics and instructors. All classes remain open until the end of the year.