A Bit of Mail Art

I’ve had a swell time making a bit of mail art.

I immediately fell in love with this set of grunge style sewing themed stamps.   This is a #10 business envelope.  The scissors stamp is quite large.  (The stitches under the scissors are from a different set of stamps).

These carrier pigeon stamps are a hoot.  I gave them a line to stand on.  Unfortunately with modern transportation and email, it is the unemployment line.

I’m quite and sufficiently mad at myself with this envelope.  I was working on a couple of envelopes at the same time and I addressed this one incorrectly.  I found a way to correct it, but I did not mail it.  It seemed waaaayyy too tacky to actually mail it.  There’s no hiding the mistake.  Held up to the light reveals the error of my ways.  

I’m sending this postcard to my bicycle riding partner who put up with all my riding plans all spring and summer long.  

I am very lucky that this woman has a great sense of adventure.  All of our rides inadvertently turned into an adventure of some sort.  Loads of fun was had!

And this is how September was for me.

Happy Fall.  It’s the spooktacular month of October.  Creepy good decorations inside and outside are so fun to see.

Fabric Postcard Mail Art

I’ve been in the mood to make fabric postcards lately.

An idea or two for designs presented themselves and I didn’t resist.  

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This snail simply had to be turned into a snail mail postcard.

The image of the girl has been in my stash of printed fabrics for quite a long time.  The sentiment that it sometimes takes all day to get nothing done spoke to me.  It seems like that is a rather common occurrence for me.  LOL. The other pieces on the postcard are all washi tapes.  I’d already started sewing them down on the edges before I thought to glue them down for extra security.  My hope was that they wouldn’t get caught in transit and tear.  I know the postcard arrived but I haven’t heard yet how the tapes survived.

And here’s my life in August.

While I wait for some new fabric postcard inspiration to pass by, I’ll just keep myself busy working on finishing up other “started” projects.

Happy September...already!

Calendar Journal

Catching up on sharing my life with my calendar journals.  My nosey blogging friends have made requests.  I’m glad to know I’m not alone in being a Nosey Nellie.  I love reading what other’s are doing in their daily life.

Hmm, I wonder what I did on the 31st besides work.  Obviously nothing noteworthy.  And forgot to go back and fill it in with something that means nothing noteworthy happened.

Busy Doing

Hello!  Yes, I’m still here.

I’ve just been “doing” a little more rather than computing so much.

I created little tags to add to my sewn gifts.  Such a fun little detail to make and pin to gift items.  Three sizes can be made.  It’s the little things that thrill me.

This puzzle has sat around for a bunch of years waiting for me to put it together.

With my long time love for mail, I recognize so, so many stamps from over the years.

Birthday card for one of my creepy loving family members.  Each one of them (four) are getting a birthday card with a skeleton on it.  Each skeleton different.  



Of course I’ve kept up with my calendar journaling no matter what.  Just behind with sharing the completed months.

I loved having the space between the weeks to add little extra happenings.  

With less computing, I’ve had time for more reading.

Okay, I think that was an excuse...the real reason is so many of the stories just grab my attention and won’t let go until I know the ending.

Work days (Tue, Wed, Thur) don’t leave much time for notable happenings to document.  That’s okay too.  I sure don’t mind looking around for something a little fun to put into those day blocks.

I’ve prepared a couple of new months.  They just begin to sneak up on me so fast!  

I’ve been sewing some but haven’t gotten anything finished to share yet.  

So little time to do it all!

Fresh Calendar Journaling

I’ve found a fresh new calendar journaling system.

I’ve always thought it was the system I grew tired of.  But now I think it’s the monotony of the same old, same old.

I sometimes want to stop calendar journaling.  It must have gotten into my blood stream...as I cannot let it go.  And that’s okay for me right now.  This is the 6th year I am documenting my daily life.

For 2019, I have found Dyan Revealey’s Dylusions Dyalog System.  You can google it to see how this system works.  There are a lot of options for all types of journaling.

I’ve chosen this canvas Dyalog journal cover.

And I’ve chosen the Backgrounds Dyalog Insert Book.  The pages are colorful and blank.  You can add whatever type of artwork you choose.  I have chosen to use the pages as a calendar.

There are several insert book styles to choose from.  There are enough blank pages for me to journal 2 years in this one little book.  There are twelve page designs repeated twice.

For January 2019 I’ve used washi tapes for my grid and as collage art for the bits of blank areas.  Opened, the page measures 8” X 8.5”. A bit smaller than I am used to.  I think it will work out great.

The only troublesome part of my new system is that the book paper did not like it when I wanted to reposition “some” washi tapes.  The paper stuck to the washi.

But I think it works out okay as part of the charm of collage art.

Now to see how it goes as I’m back to designing the calendar pages.  I hope I don’t hate it.

My ultimate wish is that one of these awesome background artists will design a calendar journal completely each year so that I just need to buy it and enjoy their artwork and simply add my daily words.

I’m looking forward to this new journaling venture.

Happy TwentyNineteen!

Calendar Journals

Have a peek at what I did during August.  Just barely by the end of the month I got back into doing some sewing!  YAY!  

You will notice on the 17th that I began training for the company’s sewing jobs.  Oddly enough, that seems to have been what finally spurred me into action to get back to sewing.  I’d been wanting to, but just wasn’t actually getting at it.  Just small stuff at the moment.  But I will be working on three largish quilt pieces that have been waiting SO long for me.  (At least I hope to stay motivated to work on them).

And September is in the making.

Again I’ve let the scrapbook paper do all the design work.  I just added some die cut lettering, rubber stamped year and some Washi tapes.

I hope to fill lots of day squares with “sewing”.  I truly have missed it.

Calendar Journal and a Gift

There isn’t much arts and crafts going on over here these days, but I still keep my calendar journals.  July is complete.

August is in the happening stages.

This paper did all the designing work for me.

I wrapped a very tiny gift.  I didn’t measure it, but it’s in the neighborhood of the size of a credit card and an inch deep.  That’s pretty much all I’ve done creatively.

I’m putting as many miles on this new bike as I can.  112 miles to date in less than a month’s time.  It would be more if it weren’t so humid out this past month.

I’m not looking forward to the coming cold weather.  I hate it when biking weather comes to an end.  I’m planning on enjoying what’s left of it.

Have a great August!

Cards and Calendar Journal

So many birthdays this month.  But I’ve only made a couple of cards. 

Supplies: Card base, inks, acrylic paints, modeling paste, stencils, rubber stamping, die cuts.

June 2018 is complete.  The year is half gone already!

Working on July

The usual supplies:  scrapbook paper, modeling paste, watercolors, rubber stamping, stencils.

Calendar Journals and Father’s Day Card

My May 2018 Calendar Journal is complete.

There’s a lot of cycling going on these days.  Bicycle LOVE!

Working on June now.

Father’s Day card

The envelope

That’s the extent of my creativity lately.

I’m getting back on my bicycle now as that is what I love doing most at the moment.

April/May 2018 Calendar Journals

Let me see, which day block shall I write...

“I’m becoming a lazy blogger” ?

April is history already!

I became officially old a few days ago... I am now on Medicare.

Living through May now.  

It’s my fault that it does nothing but rain now.  I had my bicycle readied for riding and rode only one single day to work and now it will rain waaay too much to please me.

March/April Calendar Journal

March 2018 was a bit hectic life-wise, compared to how mundane my life normally is.  Still nothing exciting.  Some crafting fun though.

I’m surprised that I find a little something to write about everyday.  I always expect there to be lots of blank blocks.  I was so excited to stumble across that envelope closure Washi tape!  As well as a lot of other new rolls of Washi tapes.

And so April begins now.

What do you want to bet that something really exciting happens on the 12th and 19th and I’ve no room to write it.  The design of this month is definitely lacking. My first plan for the word “April” was a fail but the tree was already there.  I couldn’t just toss it out and start over.  I’m so enamored with the effects of modeling paste.  It’s such fun.

I also sometimes forget to put the date numbers on my master before I copy it to the design paper.  Then I’m punished by having to do them twice.  Argh!

  Having filled in blocks will take care of the lack of designing creativity.  It’s sometimes hard to remember that and visualize it through the entire calendar page.     

Wishing everyone happy April days!

February/March 2018 Calendar Journal

February is now history.

I changed the bottom corner as I wasn’t quite happy with what I had.  Of course I proceeded to turn it into a mess that I was even more unhappy with.  Washi Tapes to the rescue!  Like Duct tape they fix everything.  And just like Duct tape they fix everything — sort of.

Anyway, moving on.  March is here now.  I very bravely gave brush lettering a try.  At least it turned out okay enough.

I look forward to Spring right after Fall.  I am not a fan of Winter and cold weather.  So I’m definitely ready for the season change.  Not that it means it will happen in the Midwest according to the calendar, but I’m always hopeful anyway.
Make your days count!

January 2018 Calendar Journal

January 2018 is now history.  I mentioned that I wish I hadn’t done a little extra embellishing.  That would be the circles.  Well, that wish is history too.

It was a much more fun month with not having to work quite so much.

My dragonfly got lost in the writing, just as I knew he would.  All learning lessons.

Moving on to February with no regrets.  Every month is a new opportunity to begin again.

Definitely another learning experience here.  But fun too.

Happy February!