paper beads and fabric painting

this post from whipup http://whipup.net/2007/01/19/tutorial-paper-beads/ lead me to natasha's site where i found out how to make these:




origami paper and old sheet music, add gluestick and mod podge and you end up with lovely shiny beads (i threaded them on some metal dpns to dry - they make my hands hurt when i knit with them so it's good to be able to use them for something!)

then i did some playing with linen and cotton fabric and fabric paints - cerise and ultaviolet with a dash of indigo and some gold

then inspired by helen cowans i did some free motion quilting on calico and, liking the result, decided to paint this too. it is obviously a work in progress but off to an exciting start.

i got some lovely goodies in the post today but that will have to wait until next time

and the last photo is my first bunch of "flowers" picked by w this evening and solemnly presented "just for you mama"