Olympic ROD Journal : Progress Report 2

Workin', workin', workin'!! Yesterday I chose the photos I wanted to include in my Olympic ROD journal and sent them, via the Internet to be printed. They were ready within a 1/2 hour-how convenient is that?!?

Once I had the photos in hand, I went and made colour copies, reduced to 50% of the original size so that they would fit nicely into the journal.

While I watched a movie last night, I cut the sheets apart and trimmed the copies. Then I sorted them into pile by subject.

This morning, I was up early, so I came right into the studio and started gluing the images in my journal. It took me an hour and a half, which was pretty fast!

Here's a shot of the signatures sewn into the fabric cover.

This is what the cover looks like. The whole thing is about 1 1/2 inches thick!



The next step is for me to go back into my blog archive and cut and paste the parts of my entries about the Olympics and Paralympics to Publisher, format it and then print that out to be included. Once that's taken care of, the rest of the journalling will be done by hand.



I am pleased with how much I've managed to do in just one week. I didn't work on it every day, so it's really less than a week, but the point is, I'm making progress!


I had to show you this: it's some gum that were were given in our "welcome kit" when we picked up our uniforms. I just got around to opening it because I wanted to sew the packaging into my journal.


It amuses me that there were "official" Olympic candies-gum and chocolate bars. I sewed the chocolate bar wrapper into my journal as well. I've seen the bars still for sale in a few places and I will probably buy a few more before they're gone, just to have. It's a Snickers bar, in case you're wondering.

Little Star ROD Journal

I couldn't help myself. I just finished sewing together my Olympic ROD journal last week and I had to jump right back into sewing another one. I've realized that for me, the best part is the making part, more so than the actually journalling part of the journal. (Go figure!) I like sifting through papers and ephemera bits and cobbling together the pages and signatures.

I've had this fabric in my stash for a long, long time and always liked it. I think I was saving it for the "perfect" project and I finally found it. I had just enough to cut two journals, so I've made this one for a gal pal (she doesn't know it's hers yet!) and the second one will be for me.

This journal is small, just enough to fill your hand. It measures 3 1/2 inches square. I love working small. It's my thing.

Here's the first page.

I love this image I clipped from a magazine.

I added some bits and pieces of my art. This was an ATC I made some time ago.

Another page.

A paint chip sample.

Another piece of my art.

Some magazines have such wonderful images for using in this type of journal.

Another of my ATCs.

The last page.

It's another chunky monkey. I love packing the pages full of good stuff. It's so relaxing and freeing to throw bits together and make it work.
I just want to keep sewing journals-it's so addictive.

Now I'll package this one up and mail it off to my friend. I am excited about surprising her!

The Bessie Series For Girls

So this week, I've been dealing with this. And by "this" I mean 3 days of IV steroids, which has not been fun. It never is. I've been pretty wiped out. On the good news front though, I had something amazing show up in the magic mailbox, which lifted my spirits.

Back in January, I posted a little Flip video I made of an ROD journal I sewed for Mandy Fariello, for a private swap. I just received the journal she made me and it was *so* worth the wait!

Her journal came in this cool jacket, which reminds me so much of a black Persian lamb coat my grandmother had hanging in her closet for years. This cover is not made from Persian Lamb, but it is fabulous!

The base of her journal was made from an old book, which I've instantly fallen in love with. I love daisies. I see them growing on the roadside in completely random places throughout BC. My Gramps hated them-he'd always be mowing them down, so it amuses me when I see them-it makes me think of him and his little quirks. For someone who planted so many gardens all his life, it's always amused me that he had such a hate on for daisies!

I have no idea how Mandy cut this cover down to size so cleanly, but she did a fabulous job. Isn't it pretty?

Inside the jacket, was a small strap to hold the journal in. The interior is wool.

The journal slides out of the jacket easily, when I want to work inside.

See how chunky it is? Love it!

Mandy filled it with all sorts of odds and ends. This page with architecture is wonderful. I have a "thing" for architecture. If I were a math whiz, there's a good chance this is what I may have chosen to to do with my life.

I love ephemera of all sorts. See? She even included a map piece of BC!

And old bank deposit slips from days gone by. I like how they punched number shaped holes in them.

Mandy makes these great post box stickers. I am pleased she put one in my journal. She has them available for sale in her Etsy.

More fun! One of the best things about these types of journals is that nothing goes to waste. I love putting disparate things together to create something new. It's so relaxing to make do with what you have. I can spend hours sewing paper. It's like a Zen meditation and really doesn't require much thought. Even on a day when I'm not feeling up to snuff, I can usually manage to make a few pages.

She also included one of her Moo cards. I have quite a collection and one of these days I want to frame some of them and hang them in my studio. I started collecting them when they first came out and wrote an article for Somerset about making 3rd generation art from Moo Cards. I've been addicted to them ever since. I now make "faux" Moos-moos from scratch that I print and assemble myself. Not that I don't still order real Moos, but sometimes when I need them in a hurry, the faux method does the trick!

Anyway, I wanted to share all of Mandy's hard work and to say THANK YOU to her for such a wonderful swap. It's great making new artist friends and being able to share our art with one another. This is a journal I will really enjoy using and treasure always. Thank you Mandy, for making my week!



Olympic ROD Journal : Progress Report

So in my last post about my Olympic ROD journal, you saw my desk and surrounding area piled high with ephemera. It was very overwhelming! After posting to the ROD group about not knowing where to start, I got plenty of good advice.

One thing that was suggested was that I take the piles and sort them more specifically. I function best when things are organized (anyone whose seen my studio gets that right away!) so that seemed like a good idea.

I pulled out some baskets and small boxes and broke the piles down further and further. Of course I needed somewhere to put the baskets, so I hauled out a folding chair and plunked it down next to my desk. That worked really well!

Here's the sorting in one of the baskets. It's food ephemera (yes, really!), tissue ephemera, clothing tags and some larger papers.

This basket held Olympic postage, tickets and envelopes. Some of the tickets were ours and some I recycled from events where I am volunteering. I can't believe people just tossed them on the floor! Oh well-their loss was my gain!


These piles are maps, stickers, photos (just a very few-I haven't printed mine yet) and postcards.

Then there was the Paralympic pile with stuff from torch bearing and a Canadian pile on the keyboard pull out on my computer desk.

I sewed like a madwoman all weekend and this is what I have to show for it! Three completed signatures of about 10 pages each! On the advice from Mary Ann Moss, I edited the piles as I went along, only including those things which meant the most to me. It allowed me to weed out a fair bit, but I still had plenty to work with.

It's a very chunky monkey and I love it. It's so satisfying to hold this stack in my hand! Now I am going to work on the cover. Usually I would make the cover first, but I wanted to be sure I would have enough room to fit the signatures in, so I elected to do it after I'd sewn them.

I didn't have time to keep a paper journal when the Games were going on-I was working 14 hour days and was far too exhausted by the time I got home to do much more than catch a few minutes of Games highlights on the news, say hello to my guys, grab a snack and go to bed.

Luckily though, I did post here (which I suppose is its own form of journalling) so I can go back to my posts to remember what happened each day and write more in depth about my experiences. I am excited about the prospect of this, as there were days that seem like a blur now.

So onto designing the cover, which I am going to start this afternoon. I Have some ideas about what I want to do, so I need to sketch it out and figure out the measurements. I'll keep ya posted on my progress!

Odds N' Ends

Revisiting my 40 Things Before I Turn 40 list:

1. Make some new art friends (workin' on it!) 2. Get a tattoo (though first I have to find out if this is feasible, given my health.) 3. Go to the Olympics 4. Meet some athletes 5. See Barenaked Ladies perform 6. Write & publish another zine 7. Keep my ROD journal till it's filled up 8. Brush up on my Spanish 9. Work on a large canvass 10. Learn a new art skill 11. Go swimming in the ocean 12. Go on a picnic with my sweetie 13. See the Olympic Flame 14.Watch the Olympic Torch Relay 15. Cut my hair short again 16. Host an art project over the summer 17. Take a day trip somewhere local but fun 18. Carry the Paralympic Torch 19. Ride the Zip line 20. Purchase and teach myself to play a harmonica 21.Make a journal out of my Olympic ephemera and journal in it. 22. Submit something for publication 23. Host a swap or two (Just wrapped one up.) 24. Photograph my favourite trees in Stanley Park to show the progression of the seasons 25. Create a calendar from my own art for 2011. 26. Print photos that I have taken from the Games so I can use them in my journal. 27. Do one project that's outside my comfort zone this year 28. Host an art party 29. Spend a weekend playing with paint 30. Take an online class (I am just starting two with Mary Ann Moss.) 31. Make and send away some RAKs (Sent one out so far!) 32. Discover some new magazines/zines and buy/read them regularly 33. Take my laptop and/or journal to a funky coffee shop and write 34. Sew myself some cool pillows (I bought the fabric.) 35. Clean out the closet in my studio and reorganize it. 36. Plan a trip for our 20th wedding anniversary (In progress.)

I think I've cut a good swath through it so far. I still have 4 things to add, but like I said, I like to leave room for the unknown. There will be 40 things on there before the year's up!

We had some reno work done here yesterday-new double paned windows in the living room. I discovered a 1/2 inch gap in one during a storm. The wind was blowing and and that simply would not do! Our new ones are fabulous-we have a static pane in the center and a slider with a screen on either side.

Now we're just waiting till next week for our fix-it guy to come back and do the cosmetic touch ups and hang a new blind. I am deliriously happy about the new windows. They will help keep the house alot cooler this summer. Last summer, temps soared to 35C in the house. If you know anything about Multiple Sclerosis, you'd know that hot weather is the enemy. Hopefully we've managed to win half the battle with the reno.

Betty commented on one of my previous posts and asked what an "ROD" was. It's shorthand for "Remains Of the Day" which is an online class taught by the fabulous Mary Ann Moss. Some of my posts about these journals are here and I have a video of the first one I made here.

Okay, gotta fly! Time's a wastin'!

ROD Journals for SALE!!

So a number of people have asked if I would have ROD (Remains of the Day) journals for sale. At first I resisted the idea of making RODs to sell, because they are the brainchild of Mary Ann Moss, but Mary Ann is a very generous soul-apparently, several folks who have taken her class wrote and asked for permission and she posted to the group and told us everyone had her blessing to do so.

These journals take a considerable amount of time to put together, but the more I worked on mine, the more I realized that I LOVE making them. I just like digging through my scraps and finding ways to give them new life. Sewing paper is very meditative and addictive.

That said, I've been sewing pages here and there in between my own projects for the last couple of months and finally had enough
to make two wee journals!

Without further ado, here are the pair that I completed:

Journal #1 (SOLD!) is in my current colour way obsession, aqua and brown. The closure is made from a vintage brown button with a flower design on it, which echos the flowers in the fabric and a length of pretty aqua seam ribbon.

The journal has been bound by hand and measures 3 1/2 inches square and is 1 inch thick. There are 3 signatures, giving plenty of room to add your thoughts and ideas.

The fabric on the inside of the journal is aqua polk-a-dots, another favourite from my stash.

I've included bits and pieces of my own art, like this collage...


and some of my photographs, along with all kinds of book pages and other wonderful ephemera.

I've even included some vintage images here and there. It's chock full of artsy goodness.


Journal #2 is in this playful alpha-numeric print. The closure includes a bright orange vintage button from my collection with the original threads still in it (I love that!) and some fun fibres in aqua and rainbow colours to match.

Journal #2 has also been bound by hand and measures 3 1/2 inches square and is 1 inch thick, with a trio of signatures. Mmmm!!!

The fabric on the inside is this FUNky circle pattern. I love circles, don't you?

There's all kinds of wonderful bits inside, just like the first journal.

It also includes snippets of my art. Here's a favourite photo of mine, taken in my garden.

There's wonderful old ads and all kinds of fun places to write your thoughts.

More little art bits I made-a marbled ATC from my collection and look at that cool map oval-old maps have such great colours.

Magazine pages (this one features apartment buildings in Vancouver)
and labels and..well that's all I'm going to say because I don't want to ruin the surprise!

So..if you just have to have it (or them!) here's the purchasing info:

The journals are $40/each which includes shipping to the US & Canada.

I will accept payment by Paypal and ship upon receipt of funds.

To purchase journal #2, please email me.