Little book gifts

I finished all my little books for gifts and it amounted to a total of 19 completed books. I had finished 14 for the gifts and then made several more..2 Thanksgiving themed ones, 2 Christmas themed ones and another gift for a friend facing surgery. Making these books were a learning process for me. At first I tied the closing ribbon to the ribbon that held the books together and there is nothing wrong with that. But later I glued the ties into the inside covers and covered with paper to hide it. 

So here are my steps..(somewhat)

After painting the books with gesso, the red of the original books showed through but when painted over the gesso, it covered them fairly well. Then I decorated the covers. 

The top book shows how I tied the closing ribbon to the back ribbon. It is nice but not as finished looking as the other 2. I had a friend to visit me while working on the books and she gave me hints on how she wanted her book done. Hers is the one covered in lace. 

I had measured the books to cut the inside pages and only cut them 1/4inch smaller. Later as I progressed to more books, I cut them a half inch smaller and it made a big difference in closing the books. I used old wall paper scraps from some wall paper books from my teaching years and cut 10 for each book. I was planning on just using one page but the backs were ugly so in the process of adding pockets and hang tags they needed the backs covered. So I cut scrapbooking paper and some old handmade paper I did years ago along with old sheet music for the opposite sides. I used my sewing machine and sewed all the flaps, pockets and other scraps to the pages and the putting a page of the wallpaper and a page of scrap together with wrong sides together, I then sewed the 2 pages together. On the first book I accidentally sewed one page upside down so I scrapped it. When finished I had 10 pages. I folded each in half and then laid the cover on top of one and using a pen, I marked through the holes punched in the covers on one page and punched out the matching holes. I used this first page as a guide to punching out the rest. 

I used tip-ins or postcards, pictures on cardstock I had printed or just plain scrapbook cardstock for the tip-ins. I sewed these in on one side so they opened like book pages. It gave more space to add the stickers and other things I added later. 

***************

Later I will share some of the mistakes and some of the finished pages. If you are following along, and want to attempt doing one of these books here are some things you might need. 

I have an old version of Corel and can add lots of pictures to one jpg file so it made it less waste of paper. I also bought sticker paper on Amazon (cheapest place I found). Cardstock and any scrapbooking paper or just junk papers cut from magazines, sheet music and old books..just mainly junk paper. 

You will need scissors, embroidery thread or string and large eyed tapestry needles, ribbon, hole punch, glue, gel medium like Modge Podge, hot glue, scrapbooking 3-D things like tiny shaped brads, buttons and any thing small junk items you might want to use. I used old jewelry and beads as well. I also used bought tags and tags I cut out myself from cardstock. I have a sizzix so used it quite a bit. I also used craft paint on the covers along with glitter. I am one of those people who love glitter, and I have all kinds and colors. For these books I mainly used the rainbow looking glitters in larger size. It made the covers look more finished. 

It was a major mess around my house until I finished the original 14. After that, I only pulled out what I needed for the extra books so it wasn't quite as big a mess. 

Just don't stress over it but HAVE FUN!!!! 

Busy working on Junk Journals

I've been busy working on my junk journals that I'm making for Christmas gifts. Haven't really taken any new photos so will try to get some tomorrow of the progress I'm making. I have 3 more JJ's to put together and then will start gluing in the added fun stuff. In the meantime I thought I would share a few photos I've taken lately around the place.

We had a terrific sunrise the other morning. We have had rains off and on and now the temps are really cold. Got to freezing last night. Thankfully we got our house plants inside in time.

My spider lilies had a really good bloom. Our flower beds are so overgrown and really need some work but physically neither Sonny and I able to until spring. 

My silver lace vine finally bloomed well and it will probably be awhile before it blooms this well again as I need to trim it back.

Of course I have to put up my baby...she is almost a year old and is finally settling down some...but still so much puppy to her. 

My faux sweet potato plants finally did something and look like they are taking over the yard. 

Sonny is into deer hunting season and this is what we are seeing on his deer camera...a bear! Bad news is they keep the deer run off so Sonny and son had to take down this feeder and relocate. Course that doesn't mean the bear won't move too. Thankfully one of the other hunters in their lease is hunting the bear as presently it is bear season. 

My junk Journals

I promised to try to update here often and with limited data on my internet plan, it makes it hard. I will be back here more after the 16th to update some but thought I would add a few photos to get you started on making junk journals

 I had these old old 1931 Funk & Waggnal Encyclopedias and they were beginning to dry rot so I took them apart and kept a few pages that had pictures to glue into new pages. I mainly wanted to salvage the covers to use for my new junk journals. Here is the beginning stage.

The original color was red and has been hard to cover up to change the colors. But first I measured it to be able to get the pages inside and the inside layer of the cover the correct size. These books were a little larger than 9x6 inches so I cut the pages a tiny bit smaller and the inside lining right at 9x6. 

Next I glued the lining inside. I used off white quilt fabric. I used modge podge to glue it in. 

It was quite messy. After they dried, then I painted all the outsides with white gesso. 

As you can see the red dye from the covers bled through the gesso. 

Next week, I will show photos of the afters of some of the covers after I painted and dry brushed and added trim. A big difference in looks. 

I didn't have my photos of the muscadines I picked. Today I worked on starting some wine. Pictures of it will come later. But to give you an idea of how to begin. I smushed up the muscadines and put in some crocks that are about a half gallon size. I added a cup of water to each crock along with a cup of sugar and stir well. Covered them with clean pantyhose and put on the top of my refrigerator to ferment. 

Once they go through the first ferment cycle, I sill strain and put juice back in crocks with more sugar and let it ferment again.

While Sonny was recovering from surgery I bought a Shark steam mop and man do I love this thing. It makes it so much easier to mop floors now.

It is well worth the money spent. 

Also while Sonny was recovering I slept on our sofa for about 3 weeks. The last night on the sofa, I got up while still dark and walked to shut the bedroom door so I wouldn't wake him when I turned on lights. I ran into our laundry room door which has a stop in it to keep it open so I blacked my eye and made a knot and huge bruise on my boob. Thankfully the bruising is gone now but still have the knot. 

Really at first it looked like eye shadow.

I guess I'm getting old as I tend to wander around at night which is not good. While taking Kinzey out early one morning, I saw this little critter. 

At first I thought it was a bird nest, but it happened to be a little wren. See him in the faux grass on the left side of photo. I had been watching a large spider but the rains had washed it out so found this cutie instead. 

I will be back later next week and will start posting photos of junk journals I'm in the process of making. I'm having so much fun making such a mess. 

It has been another long time since I've posted. Been too busy with life. Sonny had one of his knees replaced. And he has done marvelous. Has really gotten back to walking and doing around the place and it has only been 5 weeks. He has his other knee scheduled for December. It has taken all my energy with helping him. 

We had to let the outside yard work and garden go as I can't physically handle it. Also with late freeze and June drought our fruit and garden harvest were awful this year. Only fruit we got was about 1/3 the blueberries we normally get. Strangely we got an over abundance of muscadine grapes.

We got our German shepherd in December. She was born on Halloween and is fitting as she can be such a monster at times. She is now 10months old and weighs 80+ pounds. We had her spayed at the spay clinic in July and it seems to have settled her some. She is still a handful though. 

The first bed we bought her, she shredded.

We keep her outside during the day and in her crate at night.

I've not hooked a rug in over a year now but have mainly worked on quilts. I've made 2 baby quilts for gifts for young couples in our church. And finally finished the star top and have it at the quilters to be quilted. I hand tied the baby quilts. I also hand quilted 2 star baby quilts with left over blocks from my big quilt. 

We were rather busy with church this past year as well. Sonny was teaching Wednesday night Bible study and I was doing a weekly ladies Bible study at our house. But with Sonny's surgery, we ended our work at church. The church had their annual elections and we both stepped down. I am continuing to make the bulletin each week and help the children teachers when needed. I hope to get here more often and post more. 

I see it has been since September since I posted. I've just been too busy and staying off the internet. Our service we have limits our data usage and includes our phones so hoping after the first of the year I can change that to unlimited and then can come on here more. The pictures below are not in order as they happened since September but will try to explain each one.

We recently got a new addition to our family. This is Miss Kinsey and she is a German Shepherd. Sonny's middle sister gave her to us. It has been some years since we have had a puppy. Those big wire kennel cages are wonderful.

In September I set up a display booth at the fair again this year. It was much better than last year. I found out they gave ribbons to the best ones but I wanted to keep ours simple so it wasn't as elaborate as others.

In October Sonny and I went to Little Rock to begin his surgery for knee replacements at the VA hospital. Well it didn't happen. We spent the night in one of the worst hotels I've ever stayed in. I won't go into detail about it. Then at 5:30 we took the shuttle to the hospital where they wouldn't perform the surgery because he had a 3 week old chigger bite on his knee. So we had to wait on our ride and then after the disappointment and anger of it all, Sonny had decided to use Medicare instead. Well seems he can't have that done until he enrolls in it and then it would be July before he could get scheduled and so looking at going through another year of waiting. So he changed his mind and has rescheduled for Jan.9. This will just be the starting process again as we have to start all over and will probably be in February or March before it happens. 

In November we fired up the smokehouse and smoked 5 turkey breasts, 2 hams and 20 tubes of summer sausage. The turkeys and hams were for our church Thanksgiving dinner. 

In between all that we drove out to the little cemetery where we have decided to be buried. I love old churches so it has this little chapel on the grounds. 

The end of November we celebrated Sonny's 72th birthday with kids and grandkids. 

We also had Christmas pictures taken for a change. I really want to try to do this each year. My sweet daughter-in-law Carmen is great with cameras so she did the honors. 

And best news is our oldest 2 granddaughers are getting married. No dates set yet. The picture shown is the one who lives closest to us. Other lives in Arizona. 

Kinsey

on our way to VA hospital. Hate city traffic. 

Sonny smoking meat for Thanksgiving.

The small chapel at our cemetery. 

Fair booth display

Sonny's 72th birthday with son and granddaughter...goofing off. 

Our granddaugher Nicki and boyfriend Kolin...soon to be married. 

Our Christmas photo

Rugs For Sale

I was having so many problems with etsy not depositing my money into my bank account so I closed out my store and decided to try to sell here on my blog. I have posted my "Garden Run" rug to the right with a paynow button if you are interested. But here is the bigger photo of the rug. 

It is traditionally hooked...that is it is hooked with a heritage hook on cotton monks cloth backing using 100& new, hand-dyed, and recycled wool strips. It is bound in wool and has hanging rings on the back for hanging on a wall.

You need to take care when cleaning your rug. Do not ever use bleach or bleach products on the rug as bleach melts wool. Also do not machine or hand wash the rug. The water and agitation will make the monks cloth sag and fray. 

To clean: Spot clean only. Shake gently and vacuum lightly. To deep clean and if you live were there is snow...lay in clean snow for an hour or 2 and then dry and block.

To block a rug...lay on a hard surface...(I use my wood floors). Lay a damp towel over entire rug. Using an iron without steam and set on highest setting, press going up and down (not sliding your iron around) several times over entire rug. Remove towel and let it sit and dry preferably overnight.