Whiteley Creek Homestead

Old books. A new friend. 

At the end of August, my life became richer when a young couple from Iowa came to visit. While her husband biked the Cuyuna Trails in Crosby (Minnesota), my newfound friend crafted on the backporch of our bed and breakfast's main inn. I watched intently as she transformed pages in an old book into magical artforms. To embed in her memory and the memory of others who will read the pages in years to come, she records each day's events, emotions, and insights – big and small – using artist's tools, found objects, everyday items to create background texture and pattern, and the written word. Having not, at the time of her visit, been to the Storyhill Fest, which Dick and I attended a week later on Labor Day Weekend, where I was to be inspired to record things I believe in… things that are important to me, I had not conceptualized yet that this would give me the tool I needed to record my thoughts in a creative manner well beyond what I could have envisioned. Then, this project came together even more seamlessly when Dick and I attended a farm show in Albany west of St. Cloud (Minnesota) on Thursday and Friday, September 13 and 14. It was there where I found my treasured books that will become my altered journals… 6 for $1.00. Oh, let's show a little more excitement please. 6 for $1.00!!! My most treasured book, however, is the one I received as a gift from my new friend. She kindly created a helpful tutorial http://kaotickrafter.blogspot.com/search/label/tutorial that details how to prepare a book for use as an "altered journal," then she sent me the book that she used in the tutorial. The very one. So I could get started. And get started I did. 

I will share random journal pages as I go along… here and there upon these pages of my blog. Little snippets that tell a story of my simple life.