something for myself

well, now that i've finished with the major baby book project, i finally got around to executing one of the many ideas i've had floating around in my head lately. this was a really quick embroidery project (it took one and a half evenings to complete).

i didn't necessarily want perfect lines, such as the kind i strive for in my baby books. i made a rule for myself that i couldn't undo any stitches. if it looked wrong or awkward, i just had to keep going forward. (okay, there were two or three stitches that i re-did.) i think the result gives it a sort of lively, hand-drawn quality. i absolutely love the natural linen that i found at a value village. i need to find more!

i draw the image on the canvas with a disappearing ink pen. is that cheating? i don't know, but i really like the look of the sketched ink on the canvas...

the image is one of possibly more to come of what i guess could be called a diary series? words and images that may or may not shed some light on what sometimes goes on in my brain.

not really sure what to do with it now. i don't feel inclined to hang it on the wall, but i do like it. maybe i'll sell it on etsy one day. but the important thing is, i finally got to produce something for myself. and that feels pretty good.

birthdays!

one of my friends recently had a japanese themed birthday party-- everyone contributed amazing japanese food, and donations for the disaster relief fund. in keeping with the theme, i whipped up a super simple japanese flag birthday card in about 2 minutes! i cut a piece of white cardstock to size, traced a circle (from a spool of thread) onto red cardstock, cut it out, smeared a bit of glue in the centre, and then sewed it on. super super easy!

remember to open the card before sewing! i forgot the first time, effectively sewing the card shut! *facepalm* but, a second card took NO time to reconstruct!

that same weekend, one of my dearest friends, a cycling enthusiast, celebrated her birthday so i made this tshirt for her! (well, i didn't make the shirt, but i stenciled it.)

it's a take on the classic 'I <3 NY' tshirts.

and while we're on the subject of stenciled tee's, here's another one i made a few months ago for grant, the lead singer of local band behind sapphire. the story is, i've seen them play numerous times (one of my amazingly talented friends often plays trumpet for them), and at one show, i noticed grant had created a sapphire out of blue painter's tape on the back on his shirt. (it's a sapphire on his back. 'behind sapphire', get it?) but since blue tape is low tack, it eventually fell off. i admired his ingenuity though, and promised him, sort of jokingly, that i'd make him a real shirt.

ironically, i used blue tape to stencil the lines. it works beautifully!

close up: nice crisp lines.

grant was a real sweetheart when i gave it to him at their tour kick show at st james hall. he wore it like a cape that night! i highly recommend you give them a listen, they are delightful!

drumroll please!

after six months, i've finally finished THE BABY BOOK! well, i started it six months ago, but i can't say i spent the entire six months labouring away. it took me a good month to sketch out the concepts for each page. then the cutting, and the sewing, and the embroidery... but the most difficult part for me was coming up with dynamic environments for each setting. also, i took a couple of breaks from this project, to work on painting/decorating/setting up my house, and a preparing for a few fun birthdays :)

anyways, the pictures!

i like this one, but i was a little disappointed that the pink cloud doesn't line up exactly. it's something i'll need to be more careful and aware of the next time.

i had a lot of trouble with this one. i'm not super satisfied with the apes, and it took me a long time to figure out how to create a simple, yet effective image that conveyed the jungle.

one of my favourites, but again, the cloud doesn't line up :/

my favourite page!!

i prefer the monkey on this page, to one on the 'ape' page. i was blatantly inspired by the barrel of monkeys toys!

the end! i was in such a hurry that i forgot to stitch the author's name, but whatever! i brought it to work yesterday, and my co-worker/client absolutely loved it!