Paper love... six ways.

and of course .. my personal favourite ... 

A few facts ... a few tips ... and a quick catch up...

FACTS

I love paper. I love all kinds of paper.... however the heart races for delicate tissue thin writing paper (and if there's a water mark within it.... swoon) anything handmade, linen finish card stock and of course - as is evidenced in this post... pages from just about any vintage reference book I can find. 

There are an abundant number of abandoned books filling the shelves of thrift stores world wide. This fact simultaneously saddens and excites me. The digital era brings with it great convenience and many an environmentalist would argue the decrease of forestry pillaging, yet it also leads to the orphaning of thousands of truly stunning encyclopedia sets and reference books.

There are innumerable ways to recycle these exquisite pages and I'm on a mission to try them all. 

(Aside - Pinterest has been most helpful in my achievement of this frivolous goal)

Christmas is around the corner... I won't give you a minor cardiac episode with an accurate day count, however I will add that little compares to the pleasure of knowing your festive plots and plans are progressing along at a stress free pace.... she says smugly whilst scribbling a foreboding list longer than her arm.

TIPS

You need very few tools to transform paper into handmade loveliness. I find double sided tape, fancy edged scissors and stamps are the only "luxury purchases" required to go from basic cut and paste to... hmmmm ... how can I humbly state this... unique brilliance?? Might I add that all the brilliance lies in the delightful typography, alluring illustrations (think Websters pictorial peoples) and yellowing ageing of these parchment treasures.

Handmade is just hands down (see what I did there) a superior touch when it comes to gift giving. 

(even if the gift is store bought, the effort put into personalising ones wrapping rarely goes unnoticed)

You need not be a crafty bod to have a bit of fun with paper and you don't even have to tear out the pages (sacrilege I hear many of you scream) since the magic of scanning and/or photocopying allows you to duplicate as many of those captivating medical journal images (a gory personal favourite of mine) as you please. 

For those of you who do not have any thrifted books on hand fear not - The Graphics Fairy  is a modern day super heroine whose efforts to share vintage images in convenient down-loadable clip art form truly renders her Nobel peace prize worthy. Her website is a cornucopia of visual pleasure and well worth a visit. Obsessed with foxes and rabbits peoples ??? 

I cannot even bear to part with the corners and scraps of the paper I'm using so as you can see I sew them together (the music paper bunting) and/or turn them into mini cake flags. I'm always trying to come up with new ideas so if you can think of any other uses for these leftover bits do let me know.

I made the Monopoly money bunting for my son's room  - a token of visual abundance for all his lofty plans and dreams. Usually I turn vintage children's story books into bunting (and gift it to new mums for their nurseries and kiddies for their rooms & cubbies) yet I have found that just about any paper treasure can be turned into bunting and as for shape/size, uniformity etc ... well they're all silly rules that must be abandoned.

Even if the word "craft" has you running a mile I still think adding a personal touch to gifts and cards goes a long way to making someones day. Hand made cards are especially sacred and too easy when all you've really done is "steal" a page from an old dictionary and hand stamped the message - quick but completely unique.

CATCHING UP

Again thank you for your lovely comments and emails on my last post. I am still pretty inactive however it's only ten more sleeps and I'll have an operation that will put and end to all of this nonsense.

I am enthusiastic, optimistic and ever so grateful. Not only for the kindness and care of loved ones but also for the ability to distract myself by making and creating... twas very cathartic! 

We are back to school and Young Prince will be tackling exams pretty soon. He's at that bold and brassy age where he doggedly believes that study is for the birds and I'm trying (unsuccessfully I might add) to school him in the benefits of regular revision. Hmmm.... we shall see.

My hero of a Hubby made THIS and THIS yesterday (adapted with lemons) so I have no reason to complain about being couch bound with a couple of magazines, a pooch and a new period drama to enjoy. 

We have grandiose veggie plot and garden plans which will swing into action AS SOON as I am able to wield an axe and dig a hole. I. CANNOT. WAIT. In the meantime I swoon whilst looking at these.

How has your weekend been peoples? Have you been crafting lately? What about Christmas? (I know, I know... too early some might say) but have you begun preparations? Stocking stuffers, gift purchases, jam making? (a dream I have yet to tackle) Are you excited about summer days at the beach or are you stoking fires and donning socks? Are you out and about on a jaunt or home bound with cosier activities at hand? Do you have teenagers emptying the fridge and filling the washing machine or are yours of the littler persuasion... nappies, teething, racing around in dress-ups?? Will you be vacationing soon or will your festive season be a local one with family and friends? 

Do tell. 

♥♥♥ 

PS - The chicks are doing really well. Roz is still fiercely protective but hopefully we'll be able to move them into the bigger run soon so that the other gals can get used to them. 

Cheap & Easy (and I mean EASY) Bunting....

Ok so you want results and you want them now right?

Alrighty then - Instant buntification comin up....

Take a lovely tea towel...

... I got mine from Freedom for only $2 ....

(also the pattern was reversible)

.... cut the tea towel lengthwise into 4 strips of even width ...

... I used pinking shears 

(or as I call em zig-zag scissors) 

.... and the lines on the fabric made it easier to cut. 

I will add though this project is not for the fundamentalist craftsperson.

Indeed 

"devil may care"

is the more suitable approach here...

Cut these strips into triangles 

(again use the zig-zags)

and don't worry about perfection... clock is ticking...

Ok now find some ribbon - I used cotton twill and

it worked very well...

Then all you need to do is patiently feed the ribbon through

your machine and attach the triangles as you go.

You shouldn't need pins since the sections are quite small 

and easy to keep straight.

Keep going until you've attached all the triangles

and there you have it....

... rustic and rough....

... especially if you look closely ...

Which I will not.

Indeed I loved it so much I made more

in another colour...

Now let me just reiterate a few simple facts:

In UNDER 2 hours

1 tea towel was cut lengthwise into four strips

*

4 strips were then cut into (approx) 40 triangles

*

40 triangles were then attached to (approx 4 metres) cotton twill ribbon

*

4 - 5 metres of twill ribbon at $1.50 a metre is $7.50

and

1 tea towel at only $2 makes this bunting ....

THE EASIEST & CHEAPEST EVER!!

You simply must try it!

Paper Bunting....

Will the digital age bring about the demise of the printed word?

I hope not

Yet a visit to any thrift store will tell you that books are being given up by the boot-loads.

Not just any books either.

New, old, rare, torn, frayed (my favourite), foreign, written in, fictional, referential....

Literally thousands of books that can be purchased at bargain prices.

For me this represents sheer hedonistic delight

and...

... the opportunity to "bunt" 

Not so sure this is the correct terminology used 

when referring to the act of "making bunting" (??)

Anyhoo... moving along.

My favourite - children's story books.

So here's how I make bunting by recycling old books

First I remove all the pages 

(as seen above)

Then I trim the pages so the type and the illustrations are centred

(for accuracy I use a line trimmer - you can purchase these from any good craft store)

I like to keep the pages in order so that when the bunting is complete it still 

makes sense to follow the written word and the art work

Then I take each page and fold in the outer edges...

 (equally & one side only)

.... in order for the paper to form an equidistant triangular point

(I like this shape for paper bunting more so than that of an isosceles triangle)

By bringing the edges of one side in and meeting them in the middle

you help to eliminate unequal sides and you have a straight line to cut on.

Once all the pages are trimmed to this shape 

I turn them upside down 

so that I can apply double sided tape to the wider end.

(I used quarter inch d/s/tape but it would depend on your page size)

Use string (or twine/wool) and allow for an extra metre on each end so that 

it can be easily fastened to a post or hook etc 

Note - do NOT pre-cut your string just lay it down as you go.

(Nothing worse than running out before you're done) Alternatively though, 

you could measure the width of each page and multiply that by the total pages.

This would give you a rough guide as to how much string you'd need.

Remove the back of the double sided tape

 (one page at a time)

and lay the string down on the edge of the glue line (as above)

This gives you the "fold line" for the edge.

Allow a small gap between each page - it hangs better this way.

Voila! I made this lot for Christmas so the littlies have something sweet to look at when they visit.

You can even make "advent bunting" and attach a lolly (or stickers) to each page.

I also plan on making some bunting for my deck area and I'm thinking

I'll laminate the paper for longevity

 What I love most about doing this is knowing that I've recylcled

a beautiful item and given it a new life simply by changing it's function.

Why on earth should these priceless treasures collect dust in a thrift bin when 

all they need is to be "read" a little differently.

*******

PS

Bloomin busy weekend so far - and ahead!

(not even enough time to sit and read all my favourite blogs....

no cup o tea in bed... no cake ... sigh)

I have things to make and people to entertain.

Since we are away from family for Christmas this year 

we are hosting a (very) early festive celebration tomorrow.

'Twas my suggestion so I cannot exactly complain about lack of time 

(or organisation) instead I shall knuckle down and make haste.

Hope your weekend is swimming along blissfully peoples?

A gift complete...

Hooray!

 I have finished my handmade/homemade gift.

(For the lady who conjures the magical jams)

I had the idea that I would repay her kindness with a 

selection of things that I too had made. 

Now since I'm no good at jams 

(have yet to master the art of that one)

I thought it best to stick to the more crafty arena.

So here's all that I made her.

String tags to label pressies - I bought them in bundles from the news agency and 

hand stamped them on one side leaving the other side for her message.

Then I sewed an envelope from thick brown paper to house them in.

The envelope is decorated with left over bits of fabric and ties up with twine.

Then I made some cards for her to use - also using leftover linen

(from the tote bag) and stamps, ribbon & twine.

I'm still looking for a good fabric ink 

(any suggestions?)

I believe Versa Craft make one so I'll investigate this option.

Still the images that I did stamp came out quite clearly.

Then there are my clay tags.

I'm really happy with the way they turned out.

I've used this clay before for Christmas tags.

It's very easy to work with and you can paint or varnish it if you prefer.

My little muslin food covers should come in very handy for outdoor

entertaining or picnics. I finished them in the same material I used for the trim on the tote.

Some miniature bunting to hang in a little window

or above a work space.

These hand stamped labels took me quite a while to do.

(I stamped each letter individually)

However I think they'll come in very handy labelling her wares.

Along with some self seal bags 

(I bought them from a supplies store)

I have put them all in a homemade envelope - which I sewed and decorated with

stamps and vintage dictionary paper.

They have a young son so thought it might be nice to make a little something

for his room. I have been making paper bunting from vintage children's books.

This one is made from a Little Golden Book called Make Way For The Roadway.

I love the colours but...

.... hopefully he loves all the cars and trucks.

And then to finish it all off, and add a touch of luxury,

I've included a French Pear Candle by Wicked Wix.

(I know - not exactly homemade but in fact these soy based candles are 

hand poured in Western Australia. The company began with two mothers

looking for a job that would give them flexibility with family - too cool)

I'm so excited. 

I cant wait to see her face when I give it all to her! 

********

PS - It's Friday Peoples!! 

Hope your weekend is filled with ...

AWESOMENESS!