Painted Paper Journals

Last week I was busy with some secret projects.  I decided to make some journals for birthday presents. I had a lot of paper that I painted some time ago when experimenting with printing and my Gelli plate.

Here are the two journals that I made.

The first two pictures are Maribeth's journal, front and back.

The next two are front and back of Emily's journal.

The covers are paper, not fabric, but I have added some texture with circles of silk and wool roving stitched on to the paper with my sewing machine.

I did not make a separate lining, but painted both sides of the cover paper.  Where the stitching showed on the inside cover, I used decorative tape to cover it.  I added lots of pockets, bookmarks, tags, and painted papers of all sizes.

 Emily's inside pocket contained a gift card.  We are so excited that she will be having another little girl in September!

That abstract paper with glitter paint is some of granddaughter Charlotte's artwork!

We celebrated both of their birthdays, along with son Bryson and his son Avery's birthdays at the beach last weekend.  Emily's mother Maribeth and her fiance John invited us all to their house at Carolina Beach, North Carolina, right on the Atlantic Intercoastal Waterway.

We went to the beach on Saturday, and were blessed with a beautiful afternoon.  The water was a little cold, but we all had a great time.