Junk Journal - Paris in my Heart

Last night, I finished the junk journal that I made for my Mother-in-law for Christmas. After doing the Steam Punk  journal for my niece, I was feeling the feminine and soft feel of the images. I used embellishments, washi tape and various lace from my stash. Various graphics can be found at www.EphemerasVintageGardens.com.

Junk Journal - Steampunk Voyage

Steampunk - a subgenre of science fiction or science fantasy that incorporates technology and aesthetic designs inspired by 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery. A perfect theme for a junk journal! I used embellishments, washi tape, ribbon and lace from my stash. Some shimmer inks and distressed inks. Some images can be found here at https://www.ephemerasvintagegarden.com:

Fabulous Fabrics

I have always loved batik fabrics ever since I was a volunteer in the Peace Corps serving in West Africa. The lure of the imperfections and uniqueness of each print is something that has always kept my creativity and interest flowing. The whole process of wax-resist dying is something that I very much want to try to do myself. A few years ago,this interest in batiks resulted in me buying some fabrics just because I adored them. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with them but I wanted them none the less. When I got them home, I decided that a quilt would be the perfect solution. One issue... I hadn't never made a quilt before. YouTube to the rescue! It took me forever but I prevailed in the end and the I caught the quilting bug. Here are some of the quilts I have made in the last few years. I do believe my confidence is growing by leaps and bounds after each one I finish. They are all such a labor of love! 

The soft color palette of these batiks was a match made in heaven for my Mother and Father-in-law's newly decorated bedroom:

For my Mom's 75th birthday I used my bright batiks to make a disappearing nine patch quilt:    

My sister loves purple and I saw this funky fabric that I thought would look great with a 'double slice layer cake' quilt:

This next quilt is a special one that I poured my heart and soul into. One of our friends who was also a Marine was killed in a helicopter crash in 2016. I wanted to do something special for his wife and two children so I asked her if she wanted a t-shirt quilt made with his shirts and other clothes. This is the first of three that I plan to make. The backing of the quilt is made with one of his flight suits that I cut up zippers, definatlyvelcro and all. This quilt was definitely a challenge. It needed to be as close to perfect and I could get.

Backing for the Hero Quilt

 A friend of mine was pregnant with her first baby and I could NOT help myself and had to make her this adorable 'four patch' quilt:

Here is a batik quilt I did for the Yuma, AZ Officer Spouses Club (OSC) Spring 2018 benefit. All proceed from this benefit go towards scholarships for military families: