Earlier this summer I started a new adventure... I became a bee-keeper! In mid-July I drove home from a local apiary (that's a bee yard, or place where someone keeps bees) with a box containing somewhere around 10,000 bees. I will say that I had quite a lot of appreciation for the tape holding that box together as my vivid imagination had no trouble imagining the 45minute journey home if that box should suddenly pop open! Since then, I have been thoroughly enjoying seeing firsthand many of the fascinating things that I have been reading about in books about bees and beekeeping. I have SO MUCH to learn! This year is all about educating myself, learning to observe the bees doing what they were created to do, and trying as hard as I can to help them get through our long cold Canadian winter. You are probably wondering by now why on earth I am posting about this on my sewing blog. Well, when you are a creative individual you can turn most anything into an excuse for stretching your craft-making muscles... and beekeeping is no exception! As a brand new beekeeper, and being the somewhat nerdy individual that I am, I've made it a priority to take notes each and every time I open up the hive. I record things like how often and how much sugar syrup I give the bees to help boost their winter honey storage production, when they have a new frame of wax drawn out or filled with nectar or honey or baby bees, and how my queen seems to be doing. All these notes are written down in a notebook... an ugly notebook. And I don't see why someone who enjoys sewing would put up with an ugly notebook when there is so much pretty fabric around! Especially if that fabric happens to have bees on it. And there you have it... a link between beekeeping and sewing... a Beekeeping Journal that I can smile about every time I see it. This is a really fun little project. It's fast and a great way to use up scraps and small leftover pieces in your fabric stash. And if you happen to like writing in journals, it's a really satisfying way to dress up an otherwise boring or utilitarian notebook. For this project, I used a standard 9.75" x 7.5" 100 sheet composition notebook. These are a great size, quite durable, and (especially at back-to-school time) really inexpensive. Making A Notebook Cover My plan for this notebook cover was a design without a bunch of fancy features. I wanted plain, simple, and fast... but totally plain was a bit TOO boring, so I decided on a quick bit of patchwork for the outside so that I could use (A) more pieces of scraps, and (B) more color. I LOVE how it comes together! So are you ready raid your fabric scrap pile and get creative? First, decide on the order that you want your patchwork to be. You can put the three strips in any order that you think looks best! Remember if your fabric has a directional print that you have them all the right way up. Also keep in mind that the right side of what you are looking at will be on the front of the notebook (eg. on mine, I wanted to make sure that the word "Honey" was on the front of my cover, not the back).
Making notebook covers can be addicting, especially if you are someone that loves writing or keeping journals. They also make really great gifts for teachers or a child that loves to write or draw, and with themed fabrics you can make truly beautiful prayer or travel journals, or a new baby keepsake book. As for me, now I'm all set for my next bee hive inspection! Heidi
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Hi there!Thank you so much for stopping by my little corner of the digital world. When I'm not designing (or, more likely, attempting to keep up with housework or schooling my three rug rats!) you'll probably find me with my nose in a book, escaping for a few precious moments into a world of fiction or learning with single-minded focus about my latest interest. Here, I'd like to share with you some of the things that I'm currently working on and a bit about all the ways I like to keep my creative juices flowing! Categories
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