Chapter One: Letters

I am sharing with you a project that completely overtook my imagination. 

Upon receiving Meg's new Junk Journal collections, I started with no clear plan or idea in mind, just to enjoy creating with these wonderful papers and embellishments.

It wasn't too long however, that the stunning imagery in the Cut & Create pages started telling me a story, thus taking me on an entirely different direction for this project.

And the end result is something I am incredibly proud of and will treasure.

The diary of a young lady. Decorated with metal trinkets, a wooden frame and ribbons. 

Beautifully vintage. 

She, an avid writer of letters and poetry. Sharing her musings from Australia with a pen friend who happens to be a Frenchman. 

He, a young man and equally talented with his penmanship. Enjoying his last days of freedom before rejoining the battle at the front.

I created three sections within, each hand-sewn onto the leather cover. 

The sections are a mixture of textures, colours and functionality - on almost every page is an interactive element, inked to add age and show it is lovingly worn - all adding to the story.

This is Chapter One: Letters

The beauty, and the detail of Meg's papers helped me piece together my story. Taking the one dimensional imagery of a stack of old papers and making it three dimensional - adding a real paper clamp with lined and written papers from Meg's previous collections. The beginnings of my young lady's writing compendium. 

She keeps everything, and notes everything. 

Her first letter, including a lock of her hair, and his reply.

The first section is in bright colours - a happy time, excitement and joy - just what possibilities could this pen-friendship bring? And who is this man, simply known as "R"?

I gave my young writer her magic wand by winding ribbon around an old pencil and embellishing with feathers. Using the ever versatile Art Tags, I created a lace loop to secure the pencil, so she is never without, and can easily be removed to write her next letter. 

Art Tags feature heavily throughout the chapters, decorated to pull out or sewn in to form one of the many layers in the sections.

Smitten, my young lady is keeping all of her correspondence and the little extras she is starting to receive from France. What does the white rose symbolise, she wonders.. And was that a mention of meeting in France written in this letter?

Using an envelope as one of my layers, I kept its true function by enclosing one of the handwritten letters from a Cut & Create sheet, which pulls out when opening the envelope flap. 

Over the months, she starts sending him more photos of herself, and encloses small pieces she has made for him.

I took inspiration from the many divine Vintage Journal Cards as my lady's photos throughout the chapters, and for this page I have made them into pockets. Tucked in behind I have used another Art Tag, embossed and embellished.

In this chapter, the sections include Meg's papers along with a variety of embellished mediums - doilies, vellum, Art Tags  - all complimenting and all available from Meg's Garden. One of my favourites is definitely the small vellum envelopes. Here I have enclosed more Cut & Create pieces into the envelope. Tokens and trinkets from France.

Another rose - sent with love! 

The rose slides in perfectly behind the Cut & Create piece, creating another interactive element. 

It looks like he sent her a bottle of beautiful French perfume along with the rose..

As I gave her a pencil, I couldn't resist giving her a notebook too. 

It is kept safe inside the pocket, ready to pull out for all her stories and poems, and letters of course..

Made from two Vintage Journal Cards folded in half, I hand sewed in the lined paper and also decorated the inside covers. 

The last page of the first section.. What is that tag hiding?

 I have clustered together many coordinating pieces, from Art Tags to Cut & Create images, embellishments and finished with hessian ribbon. 

The closing page of this chapter again was inspired from the Cut & Create imagery, with so many French pieces it can only mean one thing.. 

But first, let us swing the Bon Voyage tag aside.

And open the book to reveal, our girl is off to France! 

Complete with a Cut & Create passport and documents, swing tag and stamps. 

The pop out letter says it all. Bon Voyage, Mademoiselle!

Julia's Video:  https://youtu.be/Y411eJDTd_A

Until next chapter,

Julia