Books, beads and purses

Saturday was the third of four classes about how to make a fabric covered book.  As with the other sessions, it passed in the blink of an eye.  I spent at least an hour assembling my book's cover, which involved using bookbinding glue, that I realised is far superior to regular PVA.  It dries in a fraction of the time, and if I decide to make more books using this method I'll definitely be buying a tub of the stuff.  As always, it's available via Amazon and eBay, so it's not as if you have to seek out a specialist bookbinding supplier to purchase it.  

Once the outer embroidered covers were stuck firmly in place, I added black felt to the inside, choosing that instead of end papers.  I also added a dangly sparkly something at the spine, and a piece of purple & gold braid to finish it off.  There are still a few unadorned pages inside the book, so I've enough to occupy me during next week's final class.  

The book doesn't close fully because of the bulky pages and all their pockets and tags, but that's fine with me.  I may add a closure or fastening of some kind.  Possibly a length of sari-silk-style yarn with beads threaded onto the ends.  

Not having any beads with large enough holes for fabric to be pushed through, I spent a few minutes this morning using a chunky knitting needle and a glass tube that once contained vanilla pods to roll strips of paper around, to make boho style beads.  When the glue's thoroughly dry on these I'll cover them in material & add seed beads or sequins.  Maybe both! 

When I wasn't working on my fabric book, I was indulging in a little slow stitching.  Do you remember these Jan Messent tags from the other day?  I've been making my version, after a fashion.  

The material's a mix of cotton scraps and an upcycled white dress that I dyed with blackberries.  

The pale grey is from a charity shopped table runner, originally from Dunelm.  

I've added clear glass seed beads to the slow stitching on the left, and I really like how the cut-out and factory-embroidered details from the modern dress - it'd never be worn, still had it's original price tag from Peacocks - make this slow stitched piece look old and threadbare.  

While I was in central Leeds on Saturday I browsed the shelves of the lending library and picked out this book, 'Embroidered Purses' by Linda Tudor.  Even if you've no intention of actually sewing a purse, it's still a lovely book to leaf through.  

I particularly like this embroidery.  It resembles 17th century stumpwork, but was probably stitched in the late 1800s and is based on an earlier 17th century piece.  This embroidery was probably larger, but was cut and shaped to fit the metal frame that forms the closure.  Hence the ladybird on the top right losing some legs.  

This Italian purse is embroidered with silk thread and made in sections that're sewn together, a fancy braid covering the joins in the gorgeous satin.  

Made by Maureen King, this walnut shell purse is a modern interpretation of the 17th century novelty purse.  Two walnut shells, covered in padding & velvet, lined with silk, embroidered with couched gold thread and seed pearls.  The 'walnut' inside the shell is an inch across, also embroidered and studded with tiny pearls.  Imagine the hours all this work must've taken.  

Take a look at the purse at the top of this page.  A horse chestnut shell!  Made by Emily Jo Gibbs, it's a mix of silk dupion and duchesse satin.  The horse chestnut shell's 30 spikes are topped with wound copper wire, and there's even a shiny brown conker to fit inside the purse.  

If those pictures have whetted your appetite, the book was first published in 2004 so it may well be in your local library or you can easily pick up a copy secondhand.  The book includes step by step instructions for several types of purses, so it's not purely an inspirational volume but a practical one too.  I hope you seek out 'Embroidered Purses' by Linda Tudor and get as much enjoyment as I have from its contents.  

Okay, I'll finish for today.  I've a quiche to make, otherwise it'll be pasta for dinner yet again and there's only so much of that a gal can eat.  Bye for now.