Latest Making Mania

I've been in a long, dark creative slump for a couple of years. The past eighteen months have been the hardest eighteen months of my sixty-one year life, and my creativity has not been the only thing to suffer. But! The Lord is so faithful to me, and my determination to trust Him with all the moments of my life has borne fruit in small ways. I am finding joy and rest in Him, and learning how to navigate life with deep grief and pain as my constant companions. They are not pleasant companions, but they are uniquely mine, and I am learning to accept them. Acceptance of circumstances that I cannot change is key to pressing on and choosing joy...and I am pressing on and choosing joy. That's the first time I've written my thoughts down...it is cathartic, and thank you for listening.

I'm part of a Facebook group called Bitty Bookz. A lovely, talented CZT colleague of mine, Chris Titus, created a tiny book using Zentangle tiles, and offered a tutorial on how to do it ourselves. You can find her tutorial here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/707891507/bitty-bookz
I love book making and tiny things, so I was immediately smitten.

One of my granddaughters is a talented crafter, so after I made my own test Bitty Book (pictured first), she and I made five more for herself and four cousins. What fun! I failed to take progress photos, but below are the three books made for young cousins. We all went shopping and each cousin chose their book covers and closures. These books measure 1.75"X3.5". 💖

I loved shopping for fabric for my first book, and found this embroidered Batik
...along with that darling Bumble Bee charm! 💕

One of the beauties of this tiny book, is that it's drum leaf binding allows
the book to lie flat - perfect for drawing/writing in!

For the spine, I used card stock that I embossed with my  Cuttlebug! 

What a blessing to make something again. Thank you, God, for my hands that work well and without pain, for my well stocked studio, for my eyes that still see well...for every good and perfect gift that comes down from You. Thank you.