Spring Mix Media Canvas

Most of the items I created, in the last several months,  have been for my business Isa Creations.  Every once in a while, I just want to create something for my home...for me.

I created a series of mix media Spring canvases in the course of 3 evenings.  Sometimes, an idea comes to my mind and I just have to set aside everything else.  My studio is already full of too many in progress piles, for example:

Vintage Linen Lined Zippered Bags ...

waiting for me to sew

Receipts (Sales/Expenses) organized & sorted ... 

waiting to be entered into a spreadsheet

Vintage Tablecloths & Vintage Hankies washed....

waiting to be ironed and tagged

Vintage Doilies washed..

(Posted yesterday)

waiting to be sorted to become garlands/buntings

Embroidered Linens washed...

waiting to be ironed & put away for future use 

(Pin Cushions/Birds/other)

Despite all of those piles, I just created another pile as I gathered my mix media art supplies. 

Amy from the Pink Attic Cat and I have been discussing several ideas, including decoupaging a large background area in text paper (an idea from Pinterest).  Soon after, Anita and Patrice, of the Checkered Corner, gave me a wonderful book, A Victorian Flower Album.  You can see the post and picture of the cover here.  Over this past weekend, I had an idea I just had to create.  Perhaps it's because we have had many frigid COLD winter days in Colorado and I am ready for Spring.   I love doing mix media projects but it seems I rarely get to do them due to lack of time and other commitments.  This time, I decided I just needed to do it.

On Monday, I went to Kinkos and made color copies of some of the pages in the Victorian Flower Album.   I wanted to use those flowers but I was not going to use the original pages. Then I went to Guiry's where I  purchased the canvases.  I also used vintage Dresden style roses and butterflies (an estate sale find). Monday night I started working on these canvases.  By Wednesday night, I was done.  

They now sit on my living room fireplace mantle.  I am ready for Spring!

Here are closeups of the canvases:

A Mountain of Crochet Doilies -- An Estate Sale Find

In the last two weeks, I had several very successful estate sale trips.  One in particular is a find of literally, a mountain of vintage crochet doilies.  All I could think about is ...

Create more Unique Crochet Doilie Buntings or Garlands

Best of all, it was a bargain!!

It about 66+ Crochet doilies, in a variety of sizes

I also found many lovely vintage embroidered linens, hankies, sewing notions like zippers and vintage buttons (many in their original cards).  A box full of vintage ric rac trims, many I have never seen before. 

 My bonus find was  a mix of vintage watch clocks faces along with watch parts and gears.   All I could think about when I found the watch faces and parts was MIX MEDIA!

Thank You to Anita and Patrice of Checkered Corner

This week I will start to pack up the upstairs room at the Checkered Corner where up until this past weekend, it was home to Isa Creations.

Anita and Patrice have been wonderful to work with at the Checkered Corner.  I received a sweet card along with wonderful gifts:

This book of flower illustrations is one I wanted to purchase from the Checkered Corner.  I saw the book last week when I was setting up for last weekend's opening.  I called Anita last Friday morning, asked her to set it aside for me and told her I would pay her this week for it.

Imagine my surprise this morning, to find this book was now a gift from them! They both signed it on the inside with sweet  message from each of them. I love this book and love my little plant in this pretty tea cup set.

Thank you so much ladies!  I loved being a part of the Checkered Corner this past year.  I have learned much from you both and feel that I have grown as an artist and vendor this past year.

Best of all, I cherish my friendship with both Anita and Patrice and look forward to our friendship to continue to grow in the coming years. 

More Lined Zippered Bags - More J Wecker Frisch & Vintage Linens

I can't  stop sewing.   I have cut so many bags, I want to sew at least one of each.

  I should be working on a spreadsheet entering all my sales and expense data for Isa Creations for 2013

 BUT I am not.

Next week, I will start on the books next week...

In the meantime I keep on sewing, 

and cutting more fabric, fleece, interfacing, linings, matching bags with zippers

and

ordering more of my new favorite fabric...

J. Wecker Frisch's Handmaids Fabric

I need more fabric for the lining for my bags in progress.  It's a good thing I did because some of the fabric is sold out or very low inventory at Fabric.com

These bags are perfect for e-readers and or tablets.  They are lined with a layer of fusible fleece and interfacing for added support.  These are the bags I sewed last night and part of this morning:

My Nook reader inside this bag.

Back of the Nook reader bag

Larger size, about 11 x 11 inches.  This is the style I usually create for the iPad but it is wider than the lined zipper bags I create for the iPad.  I wanted to preserve as much of the girls design on the fabric.  

AND

A few more Vintage linen bags:

This bag will accommodate a reader like the Nook or Kindle Fire or anything else you like.  This is a one of a kind bag with the vintage embroidered linen + pink vintage Chenille.

Since I already have a room full of handmade items at the Checkered Corner, I decided to take my newest bags to the Pink Attic Cat.

The Checkered Corner is open today from 3-6.  It will be open this Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  Please visit their blog for details on location and times.  This will be the last month I (Isa Creations) will be in the upstairs bedroom.  

After this weekend, most of my inventory will be packed up but will  become available again during shows throughout the year.  The first one will be in  late April.

Isa Creations will be a vendor at Sugar Plum Bazaar ... April 26th & 27

at A Paris Street Market ... May 3, June 7, September 6, October 4th  ( I will not be there during the July and August dates)

And

for the first time, I will be a vendor at

Old Glory Antiques Fair  June 13 & 14 in Clement Park

And 

A small sampling of items will be available at the Pink Attic Cat throughout the year.

Hopefully, I will get my act together and add new items to my Etsy shop, Isa Creations Vintage.  which has been seriously neglected by me.

Vintage Linen Lined Zippered Bags

The Checkered Corner will be open Thursday from 3 - 6p.m. and on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  Visit their blog for details on time and location.

Here is a preview of Isa Creations in the upstairs bedroom at the Checkered Corner.  This will be my last month at the Checkered Corner. 

A vintage vinyl tablecloth re-purposed into a bag.  It is lined with a Black cotton print with white french script and a layer of  fleece for extra support.

AND,

These are the vintage linen zippered bags you will find at the Pink Attic Cat , located at 2555 W. Alamo in downtown Littleton.  Visit the Pink Attic Cat's  Facebook page, where you will find many photos from the shop, here.

These are my new vintage lined zippered bags:

Perfect for pencils, art supplies and even cash for vendors  who do shows.  Added a glass ladybug or bee to the zipper pull.

Added  a rhinestone heart to the zipper pull.

Closeup of this vintage print... love it!

Roses...perfect for a Valentine gift.

I have more of these vintage linen bags cut, just waiting for me to get focused and sew them.  I will be working as a substitute teacher this afternoon and most likely go estate sale shopping tomorrow.  Getting at least one of each  type of vintage linen bag was an accomplishment.

Plus, I have to make time to work on my Schedule C for my taxes.   I have been sewing instead of taking care of the "books."   I really don't enjoy entering all my sales and expense receipts onto a spreadsheet.  I do this every year.  Every year I tell myself to do this data entry monthly.... not yearly!  Why do I wait and save all the data entry at the very end?   The accountant in me is not happy with me.

New Lined Zippered Bags using J. Wecker Frisch's Handmaids Fabric

Not surprising my plans to create new lined zippered bags took a slight "creative" detour.  My original plan was to sort through many bins of vintage linens; such as, vintage tablecloths and embroidered linens.  I did do that.

Next, set aside those vintage linens to create lined zippered bags in various sizes and styles.  I have done that but the sewing portion remains very much in progress.

My detour?

New fabric I found ...

J.  Wecker  Frisch's Handmaids

You can find Handmaids blog here.

I simply love these girls so much I had to create an assortment of lined zippered bags.  I have a few done but have many  more cut ...  just waiting for me to sew.  

The smaller lined zippered bags are about 6.5 x 6.75 inches.  They are the right size to fill with small cosmetics and add the small bag inside your handbag.  You can also create a little sewing kit -- just add a few sewing supplies and notions.  

You can find these at the Checkered Corner this weekend:

Size is about 6.5 x 6.75, fully lined with Handmaids coordinating fabric with a layer of fleece for added support. 

Size approximate 11 x 11 inches.  An i Pad will fit inside.

The Checkered Corner will be open 

 

Thursday, February 13th from 3 to 6 p.m.

 Friday, Saturday & Sunday

February 14, 15, & 17

Visit Checkered Corner  blog for more details on time and location. 

This will be the last month Isa Creations will be at the upstairs bedroom at the Checkered Corner.  After this month, most of my inventory will be  packed until the summer outdoor markets begin.  A sampling of items will be at the Pink Attic Cat.

One of this months theme at the Checkered Corner is Sewing/Notions.  So I thought my new lined zippered Handmaids bags would be a prefect fit for this months theme.  Earlier this morning,   I added these new lined zippered bags at the Checkered Corner.  Although these girls are great on their own, I added free motion stitching to these girls, especially their hair.  All of my bags have a layer of fleece for added support and with the freestyle stitching it gives it an added layer of dimension.  More of these girls lined zippered bags remain to be sewed, but this is a preview of more to come.

AND

You can also find them at the Pink Attic Cat, located at 

2555 W. Alamo

in downtown Littleton

You can visit Pink Attic Cat's Facebook page here.

These are the  6.50 x 6.75 lined zippered Handmaids bags you will find at the Pink Attic Cat.

Closeup of the free motion stitching on the hair...

I have a handful of new vintage linen lined zippered bags at both the  Checkered Corner and the Pink Attic Cat.  I will post those tomorrow.