Fifth Handmade Winner: Trinket Box

This little trinket box was made for my friend Hannah, who was the 5th winner of my handmade giveaway. She loves pink, so when I saw this bookcloth at Sam Flax a couple months ago, I bought it knowing I'd use it to make something for her!

 

I decided on a little box because we've always shared a love for little containers, and I was reminded of that when she visited last year and purchased some little dishes to use for her jewelry. I thought I could make something that would be a nice addition to her current collection.

 

These book earrings weren't included, but they give a good idea of how big the box is.

It took me nearly a year, but all of my winners have received their goodies! I'll share the final winner later this week!

Secret Quilting Part Three

 

Now here we have fitting scenery for a quilt! I took photos of this quilt the day after Christmas at my in-laws' house. I finished the binding during our car ride up there, so that's why this one didn't get the volleyball court and pool glamor shots!

  

This quilt had a pretty different look from the other two since I used a darker background fabric. The alternating border strips stood out quite a bit more than the others, since the flowers were such contrasting fabrics.

  

I was so pleased with the binding fabric I found at Quilter's Cove. My favorite part about this blue was how it was a bit more bold and framed the quilt so nicely.

  

Above is a close up of my stitching in the ditch. This is something I first learned a couple years ago from my Aunt Joyce. When I started the quilts I put my aunt in the position of secret keeper! She's an amazing quilter and I thought it would be helpful to have such a guru in the know, in case I needed help! It was especially fun, because I got a sneak peek of the lovely quilted table toppers she made for her sisters (my mom included) for the holiday!

 

 How great is that porch? It wraps around almost three sides of the house!

Secret Quilting Part Two

Here is the quilt that I made for my brother and soon to be sister-in-law! I wanted it to have color in it, but be neutral enough that it could find a place in any room of their new house.

The example quilt used bold colors in floral prints, which is part of what attracted me to it. Even though I love that type of color combination, I settled on a fairly monochromatic scheme for each of mine.

Each of the quilts has a paisley theme. On the quilt I posted yesterday, every other rosy square was a paisley print and the tan backing fabric was also a faint paisley. On this quilt the centers and cornerstones of each square are a bold and more modern paisley, while the backing fabric has a faint traditional print in green. Paisley, paisley, paisley! That gets a little bit tricky when you say it three times fast!

While I was taking these photos, one of our apartment complex maintenance workers let me know that I'm not allowed to dry blankets on the volleyball court. Good to know!

Secret Quilting

On this too gray and rainy day in Florida, I thought it would be good to look back at these photos I took in December, yes sunny December!

Back in September, as I was thinking about what I might like to make for our families for Christmas, I thought of the sewing machine that my husband gave me for our first Christmas. I had been using it here and there throughout the year for small projects, but I thought it deserved a good work out!

My mom has shown me the ropes on her sewing machine, and I also took a sewing class in middle school home economics. (A project I remember was making a pair of long elastic waisted shorts out of a blue plaid flannel material) As far as quilting? When I was in 5th grade or so, I took a quilting course, where I learned some basic quilting skills. I am a saver, so I still have some of the worksheets from the classes. Armed with all of that and thoughts of snuggling in a winter wonderland I went on a Jo-Anns date with Lisa! We found a quilting book full of lovely photos (Material Obsession: Modern Quilts with Traditional Roots), I chose a pattern from it, and we got busy picking materials for the fronts of three quilts! I wanted to make one for both of our parents and for my brother and his soon to be wife. We magically chose a day when the quilting department was boasting a 40% off sale!

The quilt in these pictures is the one I made for my parents. The pattern is called "Smuggling Letters" and it's by Kathy Doughty. It's a pretty big one! The book calls it a large twin and it completely covered our full bed. When it came time for the batting, backing, and binding fabrics I went to Quilter's Cove here in Orlando, again with Lisa! The ladies who work there are so sweet and helpful. I'm looking forward to my next trip to the Cove.

The binding fabric ended up being one of my favorites. Possibly because I saw the least of it! I shouldn't say that, because I never got tired of any of it! I loved my nights of quilting during those last months of the year. Although it was hard to talk to my mom on the phone without letting the cat out of the bag!  I'll share the other two quilts with you soon, and then I can share the quilt I'm working on right now. I've been using scraps from my Christmas projects with a few bits and pieces that I've saved throughout the years.

Custom Recipe Book

This custom recipe book was made for a chef named Seth, as a gift from his sister and her husband.
Aside from having a spot for ingredients and lines for directions, her only stipulation was that it look manly and measure around 8.5" x5.5".  I used a mossy green bookcloth, rich brown endsheets and cinnamon colored endbands. I sought Josh's help for the "manly" type treatment! The recipe pages are printed on a thick smooth paper, and the title was printed on a cream Fabriano Tiziano.

Paper Swap!

On Tuesday, Jen of A Red Pumpkin Studio posted about her love for paper. She posed a question to the bookbinding team curious if anyone would be interested in a paper swap. I sure piped up! And here it is the end of the week and it's already in the works! Thanks for organizing it, Jen :) Above are my 9"x12" papers that I'll be sending for swappage! I've included some favorites & am crossing my fingers for good swap karma.

Postcard Box

Here's another project that hatched in the bindery during the holidays. The box was a gift from a wife to her husband for a collection of postcards that will continue to grow throughout their marriage. This cute couple picks up postcards when they visit new places and jots down the details of their days on the backs, so they can have simple & meaningful keepsakes from their adventures.

 

This sweet wife is a designer, and she'll be making a label for the front of the box. I'm guessing the label will look something like a postcard, and have a vintage-traveled feel. Maybe I can post a picture of that in the future (hint, hint)!

Boombox Bindery Interview on Bookbinding Team Blog

This morning, Hilke, one of my bookbinding friends across the world has posted an interview with me on the Bookbinding Team blog! It was such an honor to be asked, and I had a really nice time corresponding with her this week. She's such a neat person, I felt like I should be interviewing her! Here are a few things I know about her:

Hilke also goes by buechertiger, which translates to book tiger. She lives in Germany and has an awesome blog called Verzwirnt Und Zugeleimt: Into the Realm of Book Arts by Trial and Error. I love her blog because she does such a good job of sharing her recent work, and she manages to give a snapshot into her daily life, which is so fun! Also, her recent paste paper tutorial is excellent and very thorough, so if you've been wanting to give paste paper a try - check it out! The photo to the left is one of her papers. She has a wonderful gallery of work, and she also has an Etsy shop full of lovely books.

Many thanks, Hilke!

Itty Bittys: Santa's (tiny) Bookshop Part Two

There were a couple of tiny books in production during the holiday. Aside from the center quote page, all of the pages in the book above were made of various black & white decorative papers.

 A set of familiar rag doll earrings for a gal who volunteers with children.

Happy New Year! & Santa's Bookshop Part One

Happy New Year One & All!

It was a busy December in Santa's Bookshop (as Boombox Bindery came to be known during the holidays!), so I have lots of things to share! The wrapping above was for the books below, that were ordered by a friend for some of her special coworkers.

Each book is a long stitch with a wrapper cover. The pages are perforated for easy note taking, and each cover was made to match the personality or interests of the recipient. The top left cover is a Snow & Graham paper enhanced with some decorative stitching. Centers of several cranes on the Japanese paper on the top right were cut out to reveal kanji underneath. I had enough material left to recreate the polka dot/flower combo that was originally used for one of my handmade giveaway books. And finally, on the bottom right, some gorgeous Claire Maziarczyk paste papers. Lori of Elvie, does that hand look familiar? My friend and I were inspired by your heart in hand!