WILL YOU BE MINE?

HANDWOVEN & WATERCOLORED VALENTINE CARDS

Misc. Scrap Yarns, Watercolors and Papers, Pearl Cottons Size 5 or 8, 

Mixed Media Paper, and both Yarn Darner and Tapestry Needles

This project is a standby when I'm in a hurry,

which I always am.

Ha!

I can do it in one night on watercolor paper at least 140 pd weight.

Using 90 pds. will curl too badly and punched holes might rip.

I precut various sizes of watercolor paper that I knew I'd be folding into cards,

 and using a wet into wet technique,

dripped various colors onto the papers

 that I felt might look nice with my scrap yarns.

Underneath me I had some mixed media paper to catch drips and overflow

which I cut up into various size hearts to be glued inside card

 to cover all my pearle cotton holes, warp thread (pearle cotton) and knots.

This first card went to my new Grandson Easton,

and the yarn was leftover from a skein I had dyed

 and demonstrated with food colorfor my students some years back.

I think I used Kool Aide and Wilton's Cake dyes.

I really liked how the watercolors moved along the wetted surface.

And knowing me I probably dropped some water droplets 

into the color on the paper 

to make the pigment move even more.

This next one I gifted to my husband.

To my long legged,

 big hearted,

 guitar pickin' man.

From his big mouth woman.

Hee hee

Love that Johhny and June Carter Cash hit.

The yarn was a leftover ball of chuncky handspun 

which consisted of wool and Angora Mohair goat fleece.

I really like how it wove up and the way the Mohair curls.

This one I gave to my dear daughter-in-law.

I just love her to pieces

 and ever since her mom Mary passed we have grown even closer.

And this last one I kept for myself cuz it was too funky to give away.

I was using it to demonstrate how to go about weaving the heart.

(to a student in my Tuesday Nite Craft Class)

All my watercolor paper was drying up 

yet still too wet to work on, 

so I pulled this envelop out of the trash (hence stamp), 

and wove a heart into it.  

I was really surprised the thin paper didn't rip as I was puncturing holes,

 warping and weaving.

And this envelop was white with no watercolor

 but I see here it photographed a pale pink.

The Pearle cotton you see embroidered around edge 

was done in a blanket stitch and a size 5 string 

just because I had some leftover on my needle.

Note:  The yarn on the last two cards was from a special scrap ball.

Every year when I taught hand spinning to my young ones, 

at the end of the class period I would go row by row 

and collect all the unspun pieces of wool

 the kids had accidently dropped onto the floor.

At the end of the unit I would load it onto my drum carder 

and make a huge rolag that I would then spin into yarn.

And you would never know what the end product would look like

 until it was spun.

So much fun!!