Decorate A Bag Fundraiser - 2 more

 I picked up 2 more bags when I delivered my 3 pieces of art for the Four Seasons Member show on Saturday.

You can find the details of the first in this post. 

I was gifted the batik embroidered leaf squares by a fellow quilter a couple of years ago.  I made a quilt with several of them.  Check out the details - Applique Leaves Quilt.

I added a 2" wide strip of black cotton fabric around the square.  I was thinking of making a pocket but I felt the leaf had to stand up straight so that idea was out.  I pressed the edge over and pinned it really well and appliqued it to the front of the bag.

I found on the first one it helped to have a strip at the top to stabilize the top edge.

Here I added a strip of black.  I cut 2 inch strips, sewed them together to have a strip at least 30 inches long.

Sewed it up and turned it inside out.  Once well pinned I appliqued it along the top edge of the muslin bag.

There is a tab of strip which is held down by the blue button.  This gives a place to hook something should the need arise. 

Again, the strip provides some stiffness to the top edge which is helpful with such a light bag.

Love the wonderful blue colors in the leaf.  

The black sashing really makes the leaf the focal point.

The blue button picks up and repeats the blue in the leaf.

I just love the watercolor effect of batik fabrics.  The background as well as the leaf are this type of fabric.

 

The button is simply decorative.

On this third bag, I did put a pocket.   I used leftovers from a man's shirt which I turned into an apron a couple of years ago. 

The pocket was cut from one of the sleeves.  Wonderful navy and burgundy stripes provides a bit of a different style to this one.

Tacked the upper corners well.  Added another strip along the top edge.  I wanted the stripes to go up and down so I had to combine several pieces to make all the way around the bag.  I chose 3 buttons to go on the strip. The center one is shanked to accommodate the loop from the pocket.

I am really happy with these contributions to the fundraiser.  I will deliver them to the gallery later this week.

I like that fact that the loop is long so it will accommodate a book or something a little taller than the 8" pocket.

The loop is just a piece of fabric folded the edges to the center then onto itself and I put one line of stitching down the edge.

The bags are about 13 inches square with fairly long handles.

Makes a great bag for all kinds of purposes. 

Decorative Magnets

I had fun a while back making liquid acrylic paint backgrounds using 4x6 photo paper. 

I lay drops of liquid acrylic color on a piece of glass, spritz it with water and then lay the photo paper on top.

It always creates wonderful colors in random patterns.

Great abstract art.

Almost always the ink is completed absorbed by the photo paper's front layer as it is meant to be.

This time I found some of the inks acted a little differently, in that some color lay on top of the surface instead of being absorbed.  It may be that I had took much liquid and it could not all be completely absorbed.

With Christmas just around the corner I have decided to make a few small gifts this year.

With these wonderful papers I chose to make decorative magnets.  Since it is photo paper I decided that I could easily print on it with the inkjet printer.  I set out find images and sayings I thought would be compelling.  I have used some sayings I gathered from the internet. I love the flip magnets which you turn over to indicate something.  Like the Clean/Dirty one for the dishwasher.  I have used some of  my Stampin Up digital sets as well.  Again, I had to keep my images and fonts to thin lines because ones with too much surface area did not absorb and stayed wet which was a bummer.  These will make great stocking stuffers.

Exchange Cards - Warm Spattered Paper

I made a couple more cards with the spattered paper I created on this day.

  This paper featured some simple brown geometric repeated squares pattern on an ivory background.  It is by Creative Imaginations - Art Warehouse - Danielle Johnson. It needed some sprucing up so I chose some brown and red acrylic color and spattered it. I did add a bit of black which looks charcoal here.

I chose a terra cotta colored card base for this card.  I created a floral accent from yellow, red and orange flowers and a black sequin.  The large handmade paper was colored with the same red color from the spattered paper. Matches well.  The accent is held together with a yellow tiny brad. 

I ripped the piece of spattered paper which left a space for the card color to show through. I tied a piece of black thread around the top piece before adhering it to the card front.

The floral accent was adhered to the card front with 3D foam tape.

 

 

This card features a deep red card base.

I created another floral accent with silk flowers and small black sequin. 

I taped the ends of the black sequin string to the back of the spattered paper with tape. I then positioned the floral accent to the left of center. The paper was then adhered to the card front.  I added 3 black sequins on the right hand side. 

These are in the mail tomorrow morning.

Exchange Cards - Spatter Cardstock

I made a couple of cards with the the great spattered card stock I made a while ago.  I loved how I was able to get ink splotches!  The original 12x12 card stock is by Teresa Collins - Giving Thanks.

I started with card bases in Stampin Up Bermuda Bay. 

I used Nick Bantock's Cerlean Blue and Chrome Yellow liquid acrylic as well as white pearl Gleams acrylic paint on this card stock. 

I found some large die cut flowers in aqua.They needed a bit of a texture so I used the same colors again on the large handmade paper flowers.  Then I added a pearl white flower die cut made with the Stampin Up Flower Fair thin-let set.  I layered a deep teal flower then a smaller deep yellow one held in place a deep teal mini brad.  This was assembled into an accent.

I cut the spattered card stock to 4.00 x 5.25 inches and adhered it to the card front.  I added  a ripped strip of silver metallic card stock.  I then adhered the flower accent with 3D foam tape. I added a quarter sheet insert.

 

 

This card as very similar pieces. 

The ripped strip is pearl white cardstock. It was adhered to the card from then trimmed it to the card edges.

The flower accent has a deep yellow mini brad in its' center.

I love the swirls of grey in this card stock.   I chose their layout to determine where I was going to place the flowers.

These are headed out to the mail box.

 

Sylvia's Simple Shots

I have had to remind myself recently to Not Give Up!  I have had challenges with the car, the house, creatively with cards and photography and then there is the pandemic! 

I took a picture of a park bench at a church yard in my neighbourhood. Plastic ends with 5 pieces of painted 2 x4 and lickadee split you have a bench. I was inspired to use it as a quote back drop.   Here it is!

Things are hard and hopefully we are not all down at the same time.  When you feel better be sure to encourage those around you!  You don't know who may need it so just give it when you can.

I have had quite a few flying creatures appear on my balcony recently which is quite unusual.  I have had a couple of sparrows just sit on the rail for a few minutes just where I can see them.  They never stay long enough for me to get the camera but I enjoyed them anyway.

This large dragonfly staying for quite a while and I was able to get the camera. I wondered what it was doing.  Upon checking the photo on the computer you can see a set of wings right next to the corner.  I checked on line for what they eat and they are carnivores!  I expect it was eating a fly.  Wow!  I did not see that coming.  

I think of them as pretty and mild kind of creatures!

I  have been filling my face full of ripe chokecherries on my walks in the last few mornings.  They are always better after a freeze which I hope is not near. 

Canada Red Chokecherry trees are full of them and I can pick the bottom ones and leave the high ones for the birds.

I finished "The Paris Orphan" by Natasha Lester this week.  It was a great read. 

Set in the 1940's during World War II and then in modern times.  The main character Jessica May goes from model to photojournalist covering the war in Italy, France and Germany.  Victorine is the orphan that Dan Hallworth, an American soldier has rescued and "adopted" as she has no one else.  Dan is a good man and a great leader so is being promoted during this conflict.  He is working hard to motivate his men, protect the women (journalists and nurses) and children. There are many twists and turns in the story so keeping it all straight is a challenge.  Great characters which are honorable, trustworthy, prepared to do the hard stuff and love with all their hearts!

After talking with my sister yesterday about the papers I posted here I decided to give it one more try.

I made this one this morning and it comes much closer to what I had in mind.

I used liquid acrylic ink in teal, chrome yellow and silver metallic on this grey patterned designer paper.  I was looking for ink splotches.  I achieved this by knocking my wet paintbrush against another directly above the card stock from about 2 feet.

Really happy with this one.

I have found several window paintings during my walks around town.  These are reflections on windows of building where the glass creates a distorted image of the reflections.  The panes around it are flat and reflect the objects quite realistically but these are different.   I don't know what accounts for one pane being less flat than those near it but it does create nice images!

Flickr Macro Monday's challenge this week was "water". That should be easy!  Again, I don't know if it is my head space or what but it was another challenging week with hundreds of photos taken and not really meeting the concept in my mind.

On the left is a bubble showing off all it's color. You can check my Flicker SMDPics photo stream to see which one I submitted.

I am sharing with Angie who hosts Mosaic Monday #92 and with Mersad who hosts Through my Lens #252.  You can check out my Instagram SMDPics100 for a photo a day!