I'm dreaming . . .

Goose XING

In this town we know that geese are people too.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Something Whispered Snow

Something told the wild geese

It was time to go

Though the fields lay golden

Something whispered "snow"

As a first grader, I learned this Rachel Fields poem. I think of it every Fall.

 It came back to me in September as I walked through this not quite golden field, under a stormy sky that shouted "rain." This is a 5 x 7 card.

The Last Leaf

. A light touch with the blender always seems to yield spectacular results. For this card, I blended several colors of brown paper, then added a bit of red and yellow to the pulp. A quick flick of the blender and presto -- instant Autumn.

Impressive, right?

By pressing string  to just-made wet paper, then lining a straight sided can with that paper, I ended up with a nice design and a very smooth surface on my paper vase.

It was easier to make the string design, then flip in on to the wet sheet of paper.

Undercover

This wonderful packing material cuts like butter. Its about  an eighth of an inch thick and holds its shape under wet paper. The whole thing dries beautifully.

Cushion-y packing material and buttons applied to a stiff background to be covered with just-made paper.

Circles

I was thinking about using these for tags on Etsy items, but I like them just they way they are.

The Denim Papers

If you cut it up small enough and blend it long enough, denim turns into a wonderfully sticky, stringy pulp for recycled paper.

I like to think of denim as more of an accessory than a head-to-toe look. A blend of denim pulp and recycled paper pulp works best for me. Blender-ize the cut-up denim and the recycles paper separately, them pour both batches in the vat and swish vigorously to mix. Pull the sheet using the dip method.

Here are the results:

The texture is smooth and surprisingly light.
I want to cover a bottle with the grey/green sheet.

Speaking of head-to-toe denim, here's a fellow who can really pull it off.

Gloria!

An Angel made of paper. Merry Christmas.

Red Girl

For Christmas, my very favorite card. There's something about the way she is standing and so gently dropping her bread crumbs that I love. And the paper-- sycamore tree and wooly coat as only handmade paper can make them.

Blue Girl

I love the way the colors talk to each other. I love the way the girl and the bird talk to each other.

Blue Jay

Our House

Add bricks, wavy glass, and limestone to the list of things your can conjure with handmade paper.

Two little blackbirds sitting in the rain . . .

One named Fancy, the other named Plain.

Merganser

I saw on of these beautiful birds today. Looks like he's giving Miss Merganser a backward glance.

Geese Family

Mother and Father Goose guiding the little ones on a beautiful blue pond

I nominate myself

Inspired by . . .

 

Like all my cards, this one was inspired by nature, sort of. In my botanical drawing class, I struggled with, well everything, but especially depicting light and shadow. With every exercise I thought how much easier it would be to make some paper, then use the paper to create a picture. And so I did.

Hyde Park Parrots

In my Chicago neighborhood there is a year round population of Monk Parakeets. Their beautiful blue/green and yellow plumage is almost as loud as their squawk. It is still amazes me to see these tropical looking birds perched in a bare tree in the middle of winter. The mottled green and yellow paper that comes in so handy for a dandelion studded lawn works well for these birds.

The Spots!

I knew handmade paper was good for feathers and flowers, but fur? That's a new one . . . for me.