I have....

....a genuine Bill Lilly holder now.   It was an early birthday present from a dear friend and I'm just stunned.  It's light as a feather and I can't wait to practice with it.  Beautifully turned wood and so delicate.  Why oh why do I have to clean this house????

Time to gather my quilling supplies

The class is Sunday and I need to get my things together.  Roxy's gonna have a kit for us but I thought I'd drag my goodies along so I'll have extra stuff to play with.   I already know what I'd like to try to do and it involves those teensy clear ornaments again.  And calligraphy. 
I need to write a couple of letters too and get those in the mail ASAP.  Got an invite to the next family reunion in September too.  Good times and really good food.  So that will have to suffice for practice today and then I have to get on my chores.  Why can't I have a life of leisure where I can just sit down and play all day?
Here's a look at what I hope to be able to do one day.   Oh...this is not original.  Don't know who did it but it's really pretty.

A time to practice, and a time to clean

A good friend told me once that the motto around her house is you're allowed to write on her furniture just don't put the date.  I like that.  But I have company coming this weekend so I must clean.  Which means I'll have to start putting away my toys, ergo my calligraphy things.  I'm like an amoeba--I spread out to take over the room that's available and there isn't a flat surface in our house that doesn't have something I'm working on covering it.  I know it drives the hubby mad but he's so patient.  
Therefore, I'm resolved to clean well, declutter, then maybe let a few things creep out in one area of organized chaos.  
Deal ?

I got mail!

I received a wonderful card from a dear friend in California.  It's hard to describe how happy I get when there's something addressed to me that isn't a bill, or since I'm in Florida, something political.  It was a sweet note and one of the prettiest cards I've had in a very long time.  She does something really cool with her envies too and I have immortalized one of them on my decoupaged calligraphy suitcase. 

The images is from a Bible I believe done by Franco dei Russi, Ferrarese, from the mid-1400s.  At least that's what it says on the back.    I had an opportunity to view some ancient Bibles at the Holy Land Experience last January and there were some that were illuminated like this.  What amazing works of art they are.  If you find yourself in the Orlando area, try to get over to see the Scriptorium at the HLE.  They have everything from ancient Babylonian cylinders and Egyptian papyrus to Gutenberg and beyond.  It is or was part of a collection assembled years ago and they've done a wonderful job preserving and presenting these priceless objects.  The rest of the 'theme' park was not out of this world, but if you enjoy history and looking at ancient texts up close, it's worth the price of admission.

I have a new gadget

Since I'll be most likely be running around like a maniac in the am I thought I'd post this tonight.  I couldn't find my old battery operated eraser a search on Amazon popped up with this little guy.  

I like it.  It came with the standard cheap AAA batteries but what I really find good is even as small as it is, it has a storage compartment for extra erasers which you can kinda sorta see at the top of the picture.  No more fumbling through the drawer looking for replacements and it's small enough to fit in with my other travel calligraphy items.  I still prefer the old one I have but this will do until it turns up, which it's bound to do since I bought a replacement.  Like Murphy's Law eh?

No penwork today

I knew this week was going to be screwy and I hate that.  But sometimes other issues intrude and you do what you have to do.   One thing I try to do is look for examples of calligraphy or flourishes odd places, and some not so odd.  

I saw this card somewhere around Christmas and thought it was interesting.  I like the simplicity of the curvy lines and thought, I could do that too.   Then there was this stationery...can't remember where I saw it:  

Then there are stamps in craft stores.  Those are great for seeing how someone did the curvy lines of a tree...... 

Or deer antlers.....

Or doodles and squiggles.....

I think by looking at examples like this, we get a better idea of how to space things and see other decorative touches we can add to our work.  I don't worry about people thinking I'm copying because there's no way I can exactly replicate this type of thing anyway.  Once the image goes through the filter of my brain and down to my fingers, it's more likely than not to come out totally different...and totally mine. 

A fun project

Since we love to write and probably have a ton of stationery, why not make a stationery box?   This website has some great instructions and the results are really pretty.  I have a stationery box, really a card box, that I keep spares in.  A long time ago I got this brilliant idea to keep plenty of cards for all occasions on hand.   I usually would remember the night before that I meant to get one for a birthday, anniversary, new pet, whatever so it was nice to have them.   
These instructions are great because after you make your box, there are instructions to fill it with tags, notecards, etc.  And wouldn't this make a wonderful gift for someone?

YAY I made a pen out of a goose feather quill!

Wanted to get this posted tonight as I have something I must do tomorrow.  Just can't stay away from calligraphy-related things.
I finally tried my hand at making a quill pen and used the directions here.    

The trickiest part was the cutting.  I don't have anything other than my Swiss Army knife that has a blade sharp enough and small enough to manipulate but it held up just fine.  After seasoning the quill to toughen it up, I made an initial cut down and away from me.   It was too steep judging by the pictures so I made some additional cuts until I felt I was in the ballpark. 

The edges were so rough though that I found my old battery operated manicure set and used one of the heads to file the edges smoother.  I doubt that would have made a difference, after all, they didn't have those things way back when right.
So the next step involves that last little cut and the slit.  It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be.  I  pinched the tip together until I heard a little pop (yes, it's splitting) and then with the knife, cut the edge off. 

The last step is to see if it writes--after all, it's no good as anything other than a novelty if it doesn't.

And it does!!   It's not perfect, it's not like the metal nibs and it'll never do a hairline but it wrote right from the start and held the ink well!!!   How fun was that?!

It's probably going to be a light couple of days

I am learning to weave.  No really.  And I need to focus a wee bit of energy on cutting some fabric strips for my loom.  Then there's a knitting project I desperately need to finish.  I just thought up a knitting design I want to try.   A mushroom workshop later this week.  And I have to clean the house again.  You'd think with two people it'd be a no-brainer. 
Don't know how much practice I'm going to get in.  I may have to just get out of the house and take my things with me to get away from what else is demanding my attention.  My head's beginning to hurt.
Today is National Handwriting Day so maybe that's a good option eh?   If you wish to celebrate, here are some cute ways.   Enjoy!

Behind on my correspondence again

A dear friend's daughter recently graduated from high school at 16 and has now begun college.   She's wicked smart, as is her mom.  Hate people like that  :)   But anyhoo, thought I'd get her a gift card from Bed, Bath, and Beyond so she can get some things for her dorm room or whatever she'd like.  I had some paper that I knew would be lovely for an envelobox so it was time to get busy.  Did I mention how much I like that gadget?
Anyway, here's the outside of the envie with Anna's gift card.   I really like doing flowers and doodles around names.

And the envelobox

 

And the finished product with mailing label added

Miracle of miracles I actually got the left justified decent!   Sometimes...there is progress.  Until tomorrow.