Collage and Cake

Most of the things that I’d made to sell in the Rosebud Country Store at Wheeler Farm where I work have sold, so it’s been time to do some re-stocking.   I still have several children’s upcycled denim-bibbed aprons to make (they all sold), but I wanted to start with something fall-ish, nostalgic and easy.  What I didn’t expect is how much fun they’d be and what instant gratification!  Although my first love is crazy quilting, CQ is definitely not quick!   

On a recent walk one evening, Bruce and I headed over to the Farm instead of our usual 3-mile route through the neighborhood.  There I gathered twigs (for hanging collages) and some assorted grasses (foxtails, cattails).  Bruce ate wild grapes.  :-)    I gathered up my old laces - just the bits and bobs that were either leftovers or in pieces too small to sell.  Some vintage rayon seam binding got a coffee bath to stain it slightly.  After I wrung it out and it dried, I loved the scrunched look and decided to leave it that way.

The next step was to find a good picture of the farmhouse and play with it.  I decided on sepia with a black matte.  I had to print it on paper a couple times to get it right - at first it was too dark, even for my original intentions of making sinister, Halloween-y themes.  I decided instead to keep these rather light-hearted in feel, with a nostalgic, historic look.   There are other plans for the more macabre images I’ve collected, LOL.

So these are the first two I came up with.  The picture were before I added the twine for hanging.  I was rather pleased, although I’m still questioning the foxtails (or whatever they are) in the one above.  I think I’ll leave them out of the others and just use them instead for fall decorations around my house or office.

So, I have a question, which do yo think looks better - the black or the brown lettering?  Or is either OK?   Other sentiments I’ve come up with are “Yesteryear”, “Times Past”,  and the like.   But using the “Wheeler” ties it in to our farm and makes it a travel souvenir for the many visitors we get from all over the world, so I’ll probably do some of each type.

My plan for the weekend (after a visit to Farmer’s Market this morning) is to pick grapes (some of our varieties are ready) and then to make a dozen more of these.  Then I start on some sachets (the pumpkin-scented potpourri is ready) and perhaps a couple macabre altered bottles.  Then some aprons and..... MY BATHROBE!!  Yikes!  It’s been cold in the mornings, and I don’t like wearing Bruce’s ugly man-plaid!
And then another Art Nouveau block to stitch and preparations for the CQI Retreat in 2 1/2 weeks!

Oh, real quick..... here is a picture of a Day of the Dead pillow I made, too.  Had some fabric left over and figured this was a good time and way to use it.

And finally, here is a picture of London eating some of her birthday cake last weekend. Again, I was too busy with family to really take more than a couple pictures, and for some reason I’m the only designated photographer.  Why is that??  Anyway, she appears to have leftover strawberries on her arm, too, LOL.

 
Have a nice weekend and enjoy this glorious autumn weather!