November 4, 2013
Composition Book Covers with Vintage Art
It’s been a busy month and I am glad to have some down time. My Composition Books with reusable covers have been very popular and I wanted to share a few of them. I used Vintage images that I collaged in Photoshop then printed on fabric to decorate the covers. When combined with Batik fabric and coordinating felt they came out quite lovely.
Some of the graphics used in the collage process come from online sources. The Cherries and Butterfly came from The Graphics Fairy. The Roses image is from The Old Design Shop and the background writing on the roses came from Mudbay Images. It is a contract from 1792. All other art came from my own collection. One of my favorite sources is a copy of Ben Hur that I picked up at a little book store in Lake Gregory, CA for $20.00. It was published in the 1880’s and was called the General’s Edition. There are illustrations on nearly every page. The wreath is one of them.
It is a favorite pastime of mine to search Antique stores, Old book stores and swap meets for the treasures that I can scan and use in my digital artwork.
The pattern for the Neat & Nifty notebooks is available at my Etsy store as well as a number of prints and when available the finished notebooks. https://www.etsy.com/shop/ShelleysDesignWorks
October 1, 2012
Time for Tea
I attended a Tea at Georgia’s Quilting Obsession and put together a series of Tea Collages for use with the charms I was planning to demo.
I thought they turned out pretty well and wanted to share them. The Tea pot came from The Graphics Fairy.
The background includes a letter and roses from late 1800’s vintage art that I have collected.
Click on either image to see them on Flickr. You are free to use this collage, just right click on the Flickr image and “Save as”. Enjoy!
August 2, 2012
Old Papers
This collage isn’t perfect but I like what I came up with. I digitally layered vintage documents, a post card and some envelopes inside an old book cover. When I finished all that I added the embroidered piece and the key. The flowers on the linen Twiltlet are folded on an Octogon paper base and then gathered. My silk ribbon students learned how to do them a couple of weeks ago.
I also added the French Knot Roses I love so much. Click on either image to see the high resolution version.
July 16, 2012
A Note in the Garden
I could just picture a turn of the century lady sitting in her garden with a cup of tea and her postcard from a dear friend, as I put together this collage, “A Note in the Garden”. I combined a number of vintage elements, a turn of the century postcard, an old deed, a vintage flower image, the etching of a wreath and the etching of roses in PSE6.
I enjoy the digital collage work almost as much as collecting the vintage elements. Swap meets, used book stores and antique stores are my obsession these days and I have found some wonderful things. I was up in the local mountains for a friends birthday and visited a used book store. I found a copy of Ben Hur from 1881. Each page of the 845 page book set included at least one black and white etching. It was a fabulous find. The etching of the flower ring and the rose etching are just two of the images.
This turn of the century post card is the image I want to share with you today.
I think the card dates from around 1900 but it’s hard to read so I can’t be sure. The fact that it only allows for an address on the front and no additional writing dates it from the that period as well.
February 2, 2009
Back From the Brink
It has been a long time since I had small children and I was surprised at how much work a three year old girl and a one year old boy can be. I just spent the last week babysitting two of my adorable grandchildren, Layna and John, and I have to say, “My brains are fried”. I am in awe of mothers everywhere. This was preceded by a visit from my older daughter, Becky and my grand dogs, Booth and Tempe and their falcons, Anakin and Sister. The Brittany Spaniels inadvertently terrorized my cat, Myke, who never left the closet shelf during their entire visit. It was Chaos, man!! All of this is my explanation for not letting everyone know how Road to California went. Road was FABULOUS but I need one more good nights sleep to recover…..More to come.
January 7, 2009
See You at the Show
On January 15th the Road to California Quilt Show opens and I will be there doing demos for my sixth year in a row, my second year on the faculty. Although my classes are full I hope you will come by and see me at “The Quilt Attic” booth on Thursday, Friday or Saturday. Road is always such a fun show and I hope to see lots of you, old friends and new.
This blog is something new for me. I hope everyone will feel free to let me know what they are doing with my techniques. If you have any questions or suggestions drop me an email or comment here.
I hope to see you at Road!!
Snips and Bits from Shelley's Studio 