Starry Night, Sketchbook Wednesday with Mrs. Staggs

Last week Mrs. Staggs suggested that we make a page with the prompt "starry night." She also suggested we add an element of mystery.

Above is my page. It consists of an envelope with a book inside. At first glance it is not obvious there is a book inside. That is my mysterious element. However, there is a clue---I added some stars to the ribbon and yarns that are attached to the book.

As the book opens, it reveals daylight to a very dark starry night. It is not obvious that the book is about a starry night until the last page.

How I did it:

I painted the picture on the cover in watercolors on water color paper and scanned the painting.

I digitally altered the colors to create progressively darker images and printed them off. I cut away a square on the ages revealing a tiny star. The last page has glittered stars which are much more sparkly than this photo.

What I used:

a mailing envelope attached with brads to the journal

velvet and textured collage paper for covering the envelope

ribbon and yarn from my stash to embellish the book

digitally altered images from my original painting

What I learned:

It is more difficult to photograph pages than make them! It is impossible for me to capture glitter with my camera or scanner.

Meeting deadlines requires discipline. I used to meet deadlines every day of my life in the work force. Now I have trouble getting even small tasks done on time. This commitment to the journal is a journey in discipline for me.

Disclaimer:

I have been making paper art for decades. I went back to school to learn graphic design just before computer graphics became the gold standard. I learned how to cut and paste and do everything by hand....not too useful info today for graphic design. I love using my useless skills in useful ways!

To Mrs. Staggs:

Sometimes something clicks ...your sketchbook idea clicked for me. I have seen zillions of sketchbook challenges on line and had no desire to participate in any but yours. Mrs. Staggs you gently sparked my imagination. Thank you!

A picture is worth a thousand words....

Although the weather was sub-tropical all weekend due to a tropical storm, autumn has begun. The Bridge of Flowers looks beautiful in early fall, too.

Stay tuned for more early autumn photos and enjoy the day!

A little Edith Flack Ackley doll story...

Last October while visiting a shop in MA, I met a great gal in a shop I wandered into. We started talking about dolls. Don't ask me how we got on the subject, (Neither one of us can rememebr) but we both collected the same types dolls... Hitty, Bleuette, others.

To make a very long story short, we recently met again when I was visiting up her way again in MA. She had mentioned that she had a little doll that was similar to one that I had with me--Edie, my travel doll. Edie travels with me in an eye glass case. In case you didn't notice, I collect dolls made from EFA patterns and make them sometimes, soon.

As it turns out, I believe she has an original Edith Ackley doll. I took a book with me to identify the doll but one doesn't need a book when you see greatness in the palm of your hand. TINY stitches, impeccable clothes and winsome expression.

Above are some photos I took of her doll and my doll, Edie in the pink dress. We met where Carol works and interested bystanders and shoppers watched as we posed our dolls. They seemed to enjoy our endeavor.

I hope that you will enjoy our endeavor, too! It was real joy to meet a stranger in a shop who turned out to have so much in common with me. I wish everyone the same serendipity!

Enjoy your day.

Mrs. Staggs gave an assignment for Sketchbook Wednesday:

The prompt for next Wednesday is, A Little Needlework, and your page should include at least one element that moves.

Well, I didn't get anything actually sketched but I used my own photos once again.

What moves? The needle and thread in the left hand corner and the narrow banners that say "sewing for Bleuette." They are attached with brads and can be swung into different positions. There is loose ribbon, fabric, and tatting as well and some of the elements are not fully adhered to the page.

Since I sew for my Bleuettes from time to time, they were a natural for a page in journal. I actually made the Bleuettes a sewing kit from a pattern that was on a doll list a few years ago and you can see it in the photo. That little heart quilt in the scan is a real doll quilt that I made with friends who exchanged heart squares and signed them for a friendship quilt.

I tried putting the page in the scanner this time since the light was not good for photos here today. The journal is slightly bigger than the scanner bed. It cut off part of the page top and bottom.

Maybe next week I can get some painting done for the pages. This past week was hectic. I finished the page this afternoon and am posting it now while I have the time.

Enjoy your day! Go forth and create....or do laundry which is where I am going next!

One more time....

We needed another beautiful day in Rockport, so off we went on Friday. Can you see how spectacular the weather was? Well, it is still that spectacular and will be really good for the coming week. It is hard to stay indoors in weather like this!

I met up with a friend and had a special visit which I will write about later in the week.

The weekend went by so quickly and here it is Monday again. I have a "to do" list in front of me of things to accomplish. If I get half done before the week is out, I will be very happy. Summer is officially over now and we have three months of autumn ahead before winter.

Autumn is my favorite time of year. In New England, we will have a profusion of color, erratic weather, amazing cloudy skies and the annual divestment of leaves from the trees. For today, though, it feels like June.

Enjoy the day!

Mrs. Staggs is having some fun in Merryville. She has prompted a fun project for her readers using images or concepts to prompt her readers to create some journal pages. I am always up for paper projects and am a veteran of many altered books...BUT...I lack discipline and Mrs. Staggs has ignited the fire to get some pages done.

My notebook/journal is BIG--13x9--about the size of a baking pan. (I should also bake a cake but let's not go there..more projects and long weekend await me.) I cut up my own artwork and photos after printing then pasted and painted away to my heart's content.

She invited us to participate with a post card she created which said "meet me at the fair." I chose to use her post card on my page. Right now, the autumn harvest fairs are starting up in our area.

Maybe you will want to join us, too?

Enjoy your day...and create if you can!

Look who is sitting in my chair!

Last week a very large box arrived at my door. As I unwrapped it, I couldn't imagine what was in it. I recognized the return address but was not expecting anything in the mail.

When I discovered what was inside the box, you could hear me a few houses away!

It is a pristine Becassine doll and a very large one at that! She is 27 inches tall and unique in size. I think she is artist made but she is so well done that it is hard to tell. She is wearing a wool dress and all the clothes one would expect to find on Becassine.

She accompanied me to doll club on Monday and you can see how tall she is. The dolls around her are mine but not that tiny bisque--she belongs to a fellow doll club member.

All the Becassine dolls I have seen have been much smaller. I have made one myself and other cloth doll makers have made them, too, especially those who enjoy Bleuette.




There are relatively few dolls considering the popularity and longevity of the character. If you want to know more about Becassine look here and here.

Let me give a really special shout out to April (a very talented person herself) and say THANK YOU and merci beaucoup. I love this doll so much!

Enjoy your day!

Reaching the goal...a Pilgrim Doll!

I completed another doll. My goal is to make several dolls for several holidays for an online challenge using Edith Flack Ackley patterns. (I forgot to mention the group.)

She is about 12 inches tall and is from the pattern Dolls to Make for Fun and Profit by Edith Flack Ackley. You can see more of these dolls here made by many doll makers in many eras.

It is a rainy, cool early autumn day here. A good day for vegetable soup...which I made earlier and we enjoyed with crusty French bread for dinner tonight.

Weekend again.

Enjoy it!

It's that time of year....Boo!

Halloween is next month and after that, fall and winter holidays will follow. Of course, Halloween is (commercially) over around here as Christmas items are quickly replacing the Halloween in the stores.

Here is a little witch I made from an Edith Flack Ackley pattern. She is around four inches tall. My goal is to make a Thanksgiving doll and possibly a Christmas doll. Maybe even a doll for Kwanzaa. I will make at least one of them bigger, probably 12 inches tall. I always have these plans but I am not sure if I will really get them done. Time will tell.

Time to get moving here.

Enjoy your day!

Gillette Castle and the CT River.....a fine end to a fine vacation....perfect weather! Many decades ago I visited this castle and sat on what I thought was a throne. It was actually an ornately carved chair. I imagined I would grow up and be a princess and live happily ever after roaming this castle's grounds.

Well, I don't live there, but it is a marvelous state park and the interior is fabulous. Go here and look around. Over the years my friends, family and visitors have trekked around falling in love with this special place a special actor called home, on a cliff, by the CT River. I love showing them around.

Tomorrow it is back to the every day grind. We had such grandiose ideas about home improvements and things to be accomplished, but the open road called us away instead. We saw so much beauty, nature, and architecture! We dined in some wonderful places. I think our winter will be filled with warm memories of late summer days in New England.

Enjoy your day!

Vacation is nearing its end. Enjoy your day ...and enjoy your weekend!

More post cards from the road.....

William Cullen Bryant Homestead

Wild Turkey

Pretty Turkeys all in a Row

Country Road

Wish you were here! Enjoy your day!

Back to Rockport and nearby places....our vacation continues...






Enjoy the day!

More post cards from New England.....the humidly increases....the turkey vultures block our way.. a birch that looks like patch work ...and gloriously blue water!








Enjoy your day!