There shall be / Eternal summer in the grateful heart. - Celia Thaxter
Recently we visited the old neighborhood and our friends across the way to celebrate a birthday. I don't miss my house as much as theirs. Probably because it's still the same in many ways, memories waiting there on tabletops and walls as if I just ran home for a cup of sugar. Handmade gifts, photos and favorite toys long outgrown are now cherished relics of what's past. This time of year is especially rich with that nostalgia- the greenest days in the back yard when our children were toddlers pretending in the playhouses (theirs and ours), the evenings on the back porch while they ran around in the darkness and then made pillow beds on the floor. Candlelight. Music. Laughter and friends.
After dinner and a few glasses of wine, I wandered around the house with my camera and took snapshots of those favorite vignettes- in the candlelight. No wonder that the combination effect made them look all blurry. A little disappointed when I uploaded them. But, aha, the magic of photo-editing. I used an edit effects command which tweaked the color and pumped the image with contrast. And suddenly they looked so beautiful. Soft and dreamy like those sleepy babies- now grown, briefly joining us on the porch.
A lot to admire in these images, and it's their house after all, so I assembled this accordion thank you card to send. A sheet of 12 x 12 cardstock cut into 3 strips, accordion folded to four 3" panels and those attached at the ends with zigzag stitching.
Printed the 12 images, trimmed and attached one to each panel. The toile envelope came about as a way to manage the thick accordion fold.
It is just a length of fabric, torn to size, folded back onto itself and stitched along the 2 sides. Then add a button and string to wrap the fold shut onto the button like a document case.
Someday I'll go back for a visit and it will be sitting there, on a tabletop, waiting for me to pick it up again. Which I will- with a happy sigh and a grateful heart. xoC
Your creativity is beyond bond :-) What a great gift idea.
Posted by: Britt-Arnhild | June 23, 2007 at 07:15 AM
beautiful photo book...just beautiful!
Posted by: julie (jane's apron) | June 23, 2007 at 07:53 AM
Memories... aren't they just beautiful? Sometimes sad, but definitely treasures to fill the heart with joy!
Very lovely idea, Charlotte!
Shannon;)
Posted by: Shannon J | June 23, 2007 at 08:03 AM
Old friends as precious as memories, a wonderful gift.
Posted by: carolyn | June 23, 2007 at 09:40 AM
My new camera does this too! All blurry if the light isn't right. Almost like it's sticking it's tongue out at you and saying "haha, naaaahh, that wont work".
I do love the colors though, even if the blurriness makes my head wonky! :)
Glad you had a lovely time.
Posted by: lauren Mumford | June 23, 2007 at 12:55 PM
Beatifully put.
Posted by: tiffany | June 23, 2007 at 02:17 PM
What a thoughtful gift for friends that sound like they will truly appreciate it. I'm glad you had the chance to stroll down memory lane.
Posted by: Jen | June 25, 2007 at 04:03 PM
What a beautiful idea! I love the little toile bag.
Posted by: Sadie Olive | June 27, 2007 at 10:07 PM