Blog Header Part Two

Hello friends,

In my previous post, I started to describe my process for making my new blog header (version 2 is below), but I wandered off the track a bit to tell you the story of the background - a texture from the wall of the Yarralumla Shearing Shed stands in Canberra, Australia.

My new blog header is a celebration of things I make and love... collages, fairies, old books, vintage laces, luggage, cabinet cards and ephemera. 

The second version here was too large, so I had to cut down its depth while trying to simplify the clutter a little. (I get inspired and want to include everything!)

Below is one of my collages made for a friend's wedding anniversary.

Some velvet forget-me-nots...

Some old letters I have collected and tied with seam binding ribbon...

Embroidered flowers from an old linen table cloth...

A metal heart which I covered with scrapbooking paper...

A gorgeous vintage bridal or bridesmaid's headdress from Lakeside Vintage in Burrill Lake...

A vintage hat or head piece...

My vintage  Fairy book with a vintage card tucked inside...

Vintage buttons...

A birdcage with a real nest inside...

My nest fairy...

A vintage suitcase with a faux leather pattern...

My lace and fabric book started with Suzy of SuziQsthreadworks...

A vintage box of old laces with fabric flowers on top...

What fun I have had fiddling with items to make different versions! I tried out some Photoshop brushes...

Here's the final version, cleaned up with spot healing brush... I'm very happy with it, and look forward to doing another in the future.

I am joining Wen on AppleApricot for Simply Neutrals Tuesday #44, where you can see beauty explored in a neutral theme.

Thanks for dropping in. Feel free to subscribe or follow me, as I will be posting regularly at least weekly in between Simply Neutrals Tuesdays.

Have a creative and happy week!

Jesse

Fairy Garden - Simply Neutrals # 34

Hello friends,

Fairies have dwelt in my garden for quite a few years before they migrated indoors to my craft room where I display them among my found treasures...

This is a collage of one of the fairies from my garden which I made using Photoshop elements - it's my daughter when she was much younger. Sadly, her fairy stage is well past.

    

Finding the right wings in a suitable pose or shape can be tricky. Here I added wings and used a photo of a toadstool in our garden for my little fairy to stand on...

As a child, I was always fascinated by fairytales, and fairies absolutely captured my imagination. My family moved a lot when I was growing up, and I would devour the 'Fairytales, Myths and Legends' section of each new school's library.

One of my favourite books was my (paternal) grandmother's copy of 'The Fairy Book' by Dinah Craik, originally published in 1863. 

I never knew this grandmother, as she died when my Dad was only about 10 years old. I treasured her book, and read it over and over, hidden in a tree or cubby so nobody could interrupt me. My Dad passed the book on to me. Sadly, the title page is missing. I think my version was published in about 1910. The only illustrations my version had were in black and white - a header and illuminated letter at the start of each fairytale.

You can read a lovely version of it here, with coloured illustrations by Warwick Goble:

There's another interesting version here:

My fascination with fairytales continues, and I've kept all the fairytale books even after my children have lost interest as I can't bear to part with them.

I became hooked on these little vintage fairies after I bought Dawn Edmonson's  'Fairy in a Jar' tutorial here. I love her vintage child image so much (below) - Thanks Dawn!

 Here's my workbench with a few fairies in process...

I use Photoshop Elements to adapt pretty vintage children's clothes to fit some of the fairies.

Sometimes I add lace, crowns, feathers or flowers.

A fairy display in my craft room...




I think this vintage child image below comes from Dawn of The Feathered Nest, but I couldn't be sure. Poor record-keeping on my part, I'm afraid. 



Here are the two fairies that I think are from Dawn in a candle lantern...

 Here's the Princess Fairy Baby - she's one of my favourites.

Here's a close-up:

The Button Fairy...

The Book fairy...

Now for the Gumleaf Fairy Queen...

A box of fairies I've made from copies of vintage cabinet cards and butterfly wings I've prepared in Photoshop Elements...

I'm joining Wen's Simply Neutrals party at her blog, Apple Apricot here. 

Why don't you pop across to see all the drool-worthy neutral artworks, collectibles and photo art on display? You may like to share some too...


See you soon,

Jesse