Full Tilt - but in what direction?

One wonders about where ones head is sometimes.  Know what I mean?  Yesterday, while thinking I knew exactly what I was doing, I glued all my beautiful water colour signatures together BEFORE I punched the holes in them for binding.  Definitely the wrong order of things.  It means I had an entire book of pages to punch holes in, instead of one signature ... more or less a wrestling match!

I posted an emergency post to our fearless Craft Monkey leader Mary Ann, expecting some magical mystical answer to my dilema.  The answer?  Just Do IT!  You can do it the same way ... JUST DO IT!  (She did add she thought a cocktail before hand might assist me in the process.)

Today I mustered up all my courage and attempted the binding process.  It was awkward .. however, it was doable .. and YES, I did it.  The journal is complete.

Finishing touches:  I added jewels and milagros to the binding and the closure.

The journals I have been making so far, have been an exposed binding.  This week we are learning how to do a journal with a covered binding.  Lucky I brought my albums with me .. I think this one will be perfect.

A Victorian Era celluloid, binding in good shape, complete with clasp.

Mary Ann did mention we were going to learn how to make a strictly writing journal which really interests me.  These have been visual (art) journals we have been whipping up.

So this coming week, I may skip the hidden binding and go straight for the writing journal.  We will see.  

I had such a great mail week.  Received the books from Lenna's little book swap.  Had a lovely package from Valerie in Germany.  I will post all that tomorrow.  In the mean time ... "Have a drink and do it anyway".  That's my new motto!  Thanks Mary Ann ... Chief Chimp.

I did want to mention one more thing.  Many of us are interested in book making and have just participated in Lenna's Little Book Swap.  I was referred to a very interesting blog today called "365: Make a Book a Day" blogged by a woman named Donna Meyer.  Have a peek HERE.  I think you will find it most interesting.  More about that tomorrow, when I show you my bootie from the book swap.

Thanks for stopping by to see what's going on at Quinta de Luz!  Love it when you knock on my door.

"Far better to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs - even though checkered by failure - than take rank with those poor spirits, who neither enjoy much, nor suffer much … because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat."
— Theodore Roosevelt

Yeah!  I'll have another cocktail to this quote, Mary Ann!