Button Book - part 3

I used a mix of papers for this, one inkjet [my design], one artwork and the spotty was a found paper. I confess that the buttons aren't really buttons, they are faux buttons made from some recycled round foam [packaging?] and covered with my art work. I did a row of embroidery near the middle and used embroidery to hold two pages together.

On the other side is also a mix of papers, my art work to the left and some found papers to the right. The butterflies and flower paper was from a magazine and the spotty was wrapping paper. I painted a heart doily to go on top. The buttons were created from art work and clear buttons.

On this page is my artwork [stamped paper, I used a handmade rolling stamp], recycled gold Christmas hat, gold textured card, dyed lace and recycled buttons.

Once again stitched around the edges.

I'll start by saying that the colours do not look quite as they do in real life. I have used some painted and textured paper for the background. The lump in the middle is made from plastic and layered then painted [browns and various metallics on top], machine stitched and hand stitched. The buttons are bog standard recycled shirt buttons sewn on with metallic thread. I've couched some braid to the edges of the plastic.

Button Book - part 2

The embroidery on the top two pages were for TAST challenge. [blogged here]

I made the buttons above out of card and paper using a piece of the same artwork as the background.

I used purchased buttons on the page below and the background is painted and collaged with a painted doily. I used running stitch to join these pages together.

If you have been following my blog for quite a while you may have seen these two pages before.  They used to be rectangular but I cut them round to include in the book. They were featured in a Cloth, paper, scissors magazine [2012]

I used tiny bought buttons on the fishy paper applique.

The page below was created from an inkjet print of some of the fabric designs I did for a cheater quilt and I made the coordinating buttons to go with it.

Button Book

I've finished my button book and am just starting to sort out the photos so here are the first three.

All the pages are round, like a lot of buttons.

The top cover is made from hand painted and stamped paper, I used handmade button shaped stamps amongst other things. The letters were made from fun foam with art work stuck on top. these were stitched to the background. The 'o's in the book are art buttons, made from clear buttons and my art work. I used blanket stitch around the edges, this joins two pages together and hides all the backs of pages.

I used music and the excess paper from a sheet of postage stamps which I coloured slightly with an ink pad. I created all the different buttons. See the top of the page for an art button tutorial.

Vase on Table with Butterflies

Tablet/digital art. I used three of my previously done art backgrounds for the vase, table and wall. The butterflies are a brush in sketchbook pro.

Cat Woman?

Created on my android tablet. Her clothes are from a page in one of my sketchbooks.

Tulip Collage

I used a photo copy of some text, Caran Dache watercolour crayons, Aquamarkers, Brusho and liner pen.

This is the last page of sketchbook 20, it is a 'pink pig' book and I like the size of it - 16.5"x 8". The aquamarkers seem to work better in this book than the other smaller one I have on the go. That one is not a pink pig book, it was cheaper but perhaps it is better to pay a bit extra for one with better quality paper.

The Year of the Horse

Mixed media collage. The horse's body is made from a recycled envelope, the head was a found image.

Ballet Collage

Collage - aquamarkers/water. Their outfits were made from an image in a magazine, an advert I think.

Skeleton Leaf Web

Another one from my tall sketchbook.

I started this page by applying skeleton leaves that I found in the garden. I drew on the pen lines and coloured in with aquamarkers and water.

I think it could make a nice fabric if I can work out how to make it into a pleasing repeat pattern.

Mermaid and Fish Collage

The top half of the mermaid was a found image from a magazine, the fish I made from papers, then coloured and decorated.  For the remainder - background, mermaids tail I used aquamarkers [and water], posca pens, metallic posca pens.

Pencil Drawings - Flowers

I used digital pencils in sketchbook pro to draw these flowers on my android tablet.

TAST 95-100

It has been a long time since I took part in the TAST challenge. TAST is short for Take a stitch Tuesday and you can find out more about it here on the Pintangle site and also join in too.

I found some aida ribbon and aida fabric that I have had for years so I thought I would use that. My stitching has got really untidy recently so I thought it would help to keep it neater. I did still go wrong in a couple of places, I didn't count the holes properly. The fabrics have been attached to something else but I will leave that for another day.

The stitches above are Linked Chain, Beaded Linked Chain, Shell Chain and Beaded Shell Chain.

Below is Eastern Stitch and two versions of Beaded Eastern Stitch, although I have used small buttons on one of the lines. Click on the images for a closer look.

My 2013 TAST stitches

My 2012 TAST stitches

My 2010 TAST stitches

Herbs in Bottles

Drawn on my tablet. I got the general idea from a picture in a magazine, plants in bottles [maybe herbs in oil?]. These have my own kind of made up plants in them.

Hyacinth

My friends brought me a hyacinth recently as I haven't been feeling well.

I didn't stake it so the flowers are bent over but I like it like that and it's a beautiful colour.

Vase of Flowers

Drawing done on my android tablet, I used the sketchbook pro app.

Weird or what?

Just messing on the tablet with sketchbook pro, no idea what this is below. Looks a bit like a head-dress or viking helmet maybe.

The Other Reef

This is a new swatch from Spoonflower featuring the design I entered for a contest, I didn't win. The fabric is silky faille and I love how it has printed.

Patterns on Drawers

Collage in a sketchbook. I started with a drawing of drawers, below, then applied the collage elements - text from a silk painting instruction sheet and pattern pieces from a magazine.

I used brusho and aquamarkers for colour.

Vases of ......

"Gee Up" Birdy

Another altered collage, I posted the original last Thursday. I digitally altered it on an android tablet by mirroring it and adding the girl and bird.

Paper and Digital Collage

Above is a collage I did in a sketchbook. The flowers are an embroidery pattern from a magazine. I  used a stamp to make marks and coloured in with aquamarkers and water. I drew on the garment pieces with liner pen.

The bird below was drawn on an android tablet and layered onto my collage digitally.

Latest Fabric Swatches

Here are my new 15 fabric swatches from Spoonflower.

Quite a few people liked the tea-towel design that I did, so I thought I would do a fabric without the calendar. The colours have come out a bit different, the birds don't stand out as much, it could be the fabric [I ordered Kona cotton this time].

I did another design using just the birds - all in a jumble.

And one with leaves and background without birds.

This one was for the resolutions contest. The words were created by hand with pens. I used stencils and stamps for some of them.

There was a mitten contest, although I didn't enter with this one.

This one was designed for a cheater quilt contest

And some of the fabrics are available as separate yardage in a bigger scale

The honesty plant was inspiration for this fabric

And this one was inspired by the colours on an autumn tree

Bee eater birds were the inspiration behind the next two

I was working on a floral idea for a border print for this one, although this one is part of a full repeating pattern and not a border pattern

All fabrics available at Spoonflower

The bird and leaf designs can be found here

The cheater quilt fabrics

Autumn Trees can be found in the tree collection

Floral designs are here

Bee Eater fabrics

New Year resolutions is in the miscellaneous collection