Another project......

This is my latest project. It all started when I went into my attic yesterday and brought down a box of fabric that my ex-neighbor and friend gave me about 10 years ago. She gave me 6 boxes, 5 are still up there. This box had all neutrals in it. Upolstery, drapery and curtain fabrics. Her brother has a store that does those custom made things and she gets the leftover pieces of fabric. She makes bags and aprons and things with hers. I was looking for some fabrics to use on my new sewing machine. Then I started looking through some of my Somerset magazines, for some ideas of something that I could use the fabric for. I saw a pouch that holds artist supplies and an art pad and then realized that I had some scrapbooks that could use some spiffing up and so I dug through the fabrics and found some that would work. I'm going to do a tutorial-type thing here, because I did remember to take pictures as I went along.....

The first step was to make a label. This is a brown paper bag that I stamped the title on. I cut around it with my decorative scissors. This is the fabric that I chose for the cover. It is really heavy upholstery fabric. I had to iron all the fabrics to get the creases out. The fringe is the selvage edge and I decided to use that in the design.

This is the liner fabric......

I used a piece of this gauzy stuff under the paper label.

I cut a piece of fabric to size and just started gluing it onto the back cover.

I layered all the stuff together for the front cover. I put a piece of tulle over the paper to help protect it from wear.

I did a row of hearts on the top and bottom of the label and just straight stitched the sides.

This is a silk rose that I tea dyed the other day. I wanted to try it and it was perfect for this project. I cut a strip of the gauzy material and made a bow and put it in the middle. There's some tea dyed lace under the whole flower thing. I also added some buttons around the label.

This is the back inside cover with the lining and the outside cover all glued on.

I had some vintage hem tape and I used that to cover the raw edges of the materials.

This is a cover that goes between the front and back covers to hide the edges of the pages. This is a closeup of the fringe......




Taa-Daa.....

Here is the completed album......

A closeup of the decorations, notice the big jewel in the center of the flower and another piece of that fringe on the left side of the label.

This shows the cover that hides the edges of the pages.
So, another fun project completed. I hope you enjoyed my tutorial of how I made this album /scrapbook cover. I am having so much fun crafting these days. I have some other things to show you, also.

'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

My new toy......

Isn't she beautiful!!!!
She does infinite amounts of embroidery......probably anything you can think up......or you can use her to do regular sewing.....I've named her Viki..... For instance......

This is a cute little hand towel..... I am learning to use her and I'll be showing you some of the things that I make with her in the future.
If you know of any good machine embroidery sites, please let me know.
'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

A gardener's best friend......

Especially in the dead of winter......

When my soul is craving the beauty of the flowers.....
'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

The perfect ending.....

to any occasion......
'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

The perfect day....

We had lots to celebrate yesterday.......
St. Valentine's Day, and three birthdays.......

It was a party atmosphere in my home.......

Lots of good food, wine, cake & ice cream, and presents!
And a good time was had by all!

'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

The Final Touch....

I made a matching name tag for my little suitcase. I used the same papers that I used on the case......

This vintage tag was on the case when I bought it......

This is the back of the tag......

I tied it on with some cute ribbon......

By the way, the inside is red and is in perfect condition, so it coordinates with the outside. I love my new travel case. It's the perfect size for my cosmetics, camera, sandals, medicine, and such. If I go on a plane, it won't be checked as baggage, it'll come on the plane with me.....I couldn't risk losing it. And when we're on a driving trip, no problem. I can't wait to use it!

'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

Completed Project....

I've been working on this suitcase for about a year now. I don't have a "before" picture, but it was a dark grey. I didn't like that, so I painted most of it. I used acrylic paint and scrapbooking paper for the body. The rest is pieces of emphemera and clip art that I found on the internet. This is the front......This is the back of it.......

Here are some closeups of some of the pieces that I used on it......

A calendar from the day I was born....

A saying about vacation.....

A Mickey piece from the airport when we last went to Disney....

An airline sticker........

This is a copy of a real picture that was taken on Easter Sunday 1947. I'm the little one in the front wwearing the "babushka" (scarf). I had just turned 3 years old. The tall girl in the back is my sister, "BeeBee". The boy on the right is my brother, and the boy on the left is a neighbor boy. We didn't have fancy clothes, but we had beautiful Easter Baskets.

A beautiful butterfly, Disney castle from the last time I was there, a postage stamp from the year I was born, flowers, because I love them....

My breast cancer badge from my blog ........ "Dream" description from an old dictionery.....

I'd say this is pretty true of my personality and determination......

Tinkerbell......in memory of my sister "BeeBee" who went to Heaven 3 1/2 yrs ago. During her funeral, the priest likened her to Tinkerbell because she was always helping everyone. So, she's our "Tink" and is always with us. You'll see many "hidden Tinks" all over the case.... (just like they have "hidden Mickeys" all over Disney)

I just finished it off by putting the braid around the edges of the decoupage . This concealed the edges of the paper and looks great.

This is the back side of the suitcase.....it's dedicated to my family.....

Don is my DBF, He plays the guitar.....

I have two lovely daughters and two wonderful sons-in-laws.....

My Mom and my Stepdad.....the best Mom and Dad in the world.....
Music has always been a big part of our family, Mum and several of my siblings play guitar (not me) and we all sing.....

Of course, you all know my little Dusty......

I have six sisters.......

I like this fortune.....

My six grandchildren........

My horoscope.......
I have many Nieces and Nephews........

I have four brothers........

This couple is not related to me, I just put them in there for fun.....

So, this is one project that I've finished ...... I hope you enjoyed the little "tour"....... I'm so loving my retirement!! It's so nice to have some free time to do what I want, when I want.....

I made a tag with my name and address to match, but I didn't get a picture of it. I used the same papers and laminated it to make it stronger. I'll take a picture of it and post it later.

'Til next time, Love ya, Jean