Here's a new one....or three

I've recently been creating more clutches.  I used to make a lot of these, but took an unintentional break.  Here's three of my latest.  (Of course, they all feature trees!  Nothing unusual there!)



I love this aqua canvas.  The color makes everything really pop out, especially browns, which I use a lot of.  

How to Turn All Those Magazines into Something That Looks Good

If you're anything like us, you have tons of past issues of magazines laying around. I usually go through them and rip out any recipes, stories, or inspirations that I might want to reference later. I put these in folders, which keeps it pretty organized. Then, Kinsey usually goes through them for materials for his collages. More often than not, that's the end of the journey for them. Very few get thrown out until it gets to the point where I get tired seeing them and purge a lot of them. Now I found a reason to keep them around a little longer.



These trees are made from a magazine that has been folded a certain way on each page. Actually there are three different folds on every page. I saw a how to video on Martha Stewart's website (who else would have this? Actually it's on Reader's Digest's site, too.) At first I thought it seemed great, then I watched the video and thought it seemed like a bit much...it seemed like a lot of folding and that it would take a while to finish. I decided to give one a try anyway. I don't know what it is, but it was very relaxing to do. I suppose it's because of all the repetitive motions, but I actually enjoyed the process of folding.



I used Bon Appetit for the larger tree and Everyday Food for the smaller one. Martha spray painted and then glittered her trees. I kept my plain, at least for now. I like that they look like magazines.

You can see a detailed how-to here.

They look great in small groups! Maybe even include an origami deer with them?

saving trees and embroidering trees....

The other day I was in Urban Outfitters and picked up a set of stationary that was on sale. As the cashier rung the purchase up, I noticed she placed it in what looked to be a bag made from that soft reusable bag material. In fact it was a reusable bag, or tote to be more exact. I was thrilled and surprised. Has this been going on for a while? I don't often shop at Urban Outfitters much, but loved this idea!



The back of the bag is black with a dark logo of the store. Definitely beats walking around with a plastic bag!

Today's the first day of autumn (my favorite season), and I can't help but think about trees. Conifers to be exact...which are more winter like, but still. I recently embroidered a new "Study of Conifers" which is listed in our shop.



Here's a close up of two tree branches.