A Creative Bibliophile - July 2024

I haven't written a  Creative Bibliophile post since September 2021. But lately I have been feeling the need to post about books again and I also have some fabulous book sleeves to show off !! I love any and all kinds of book - "real" books and the virtual versions and every so often, an audible book .  I have cute cases for my Kindle Fire and my Paperwhite . But I wanted a padded sleeve for them too . And hopefully ones that could hold my "real" books also . So basically, that is why I am back . To show off - I mean show you ( LOL ) - my wonderful finds.

I'm in several book groups online and also check out links when someone recommends bookmarks or book sleeves or even book stickers.  I happened on a link to a Facebook Group  - CAM Creations Booksleeves & More and found the most amazing selection of booksleeves.. They have a fantastic variety of fabrics to choose from - book-related, true crime, cartoon characters, tv shows, dogs, cats, flowers etc....  I bought 2 already and just ordered another one today !!  And you'll soon see why I can't get enough of this fabric 📕

These fabrics are even more beautiful in person .

This is a large and a Kindle Paperwhite sleeve . 

A hardback book will fit in the large.

 

FRONT

BACK

I just started reading The Spellshop and will write a post about it along with a new handmade bookmark in a few weeks.  I hope you will go to CAM Creations and join to take a look at all of their fabulous sleeves ( and other bookish products ). The Featured tab will give you info on sizes and prices. The Albums with all of the themes can be found at the Media tab. I do not work with or for Melissa and I am not getting any freebies for writing this post .. I am just a nerdy bookworm who loves to share fun bookish items that I am lucky enough to find !!

Until next time --

Read a book 🕮

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

A Creative Bibliophile - June 2021

This month I have a book review, a bookmark, a new Book Club to tell you about AND a bit of Happy Mail to show you !! I hope that you have been reading some good books lately .. I chose a random commenter to send a bookmark to from previous posts, so Julie Blackburn will be getting something in the mail soon.. 

I recently purchased some digi stamps  from Angie Blom Digital Designs with a gift card that I had won in a Blog Hop . One of the stamp sets was just what I needed for this post - A Warm Hug . I can't think of anything more perfect than being snuggled up in a blanket with a cup of coffee and a good book .. The DCWV Humble Abode paper pad was used to paper-piece the blanket, to mat the stamped image and also on the back of the bookmark .

My book this month is another "domestic thriller" and also a newly published quick read .     The Serial Killer's Wife by Alice Hunter . I really couldn't put this one down and it surprised me until the very end. Beth and Tom Hardcstle are the perfect couple - or are they ??  Tom is wanted for questioning about a former girlfriend's disappearance and this sets into motion a twisted story about how well we really know those we love and what we would do to protect them and ourselves . The characters drew me in and I stayed interested in the developing storylines, which included nosy neighbors, a widower and involved police officers. I'm hesitant to say more so I don't give things away - I hope you will pick this one up and try it. 

Last week I went to a meet-up of the Silent Book Club, sponsored by a local bookstore Read Books .This independent bookstore is located at our local Museum of Contemporary Art . Everyone brings their own books that they are reading,  we introduce ourselves and tell about our books . Then we find a cozy spot, read for an hour and head home. Of course, we had to look around the wonderful Read Books before we left . Its owner, Kristin couldn't have been  more friendly and welcoming. When COVID first hit our area, I had ordered a book from Read Books and things were starting to close down along with a crazy hospital schedule for me. They actually drove to my house and delivered the book to me, which I thought was so nice and I will never forget their kindness !! The Silent Book Club will meet om Tuesday mornings through the summer . It is "the book club for introverts" and I am their newest fan !!

The Atrium at MOCA

Read Books

You can also read in the Chihuly room

Last but not least, I have to show you a card sent to me by my friend, Crystal O, Minkler.. It's no secret that I love books and she was sweet enough to send me this card that she made recently !!  I love it .. 

I'm reading a few more books now so will have fun picking one to review next month . I'm already thinking of bookmark designs too .. It's good to plan ahead. I hope you liked hearing about my new book club that I attended. Do you meet up with any groups ?? I'd love to hear about them if you do .. 

Until next time, stay safe and read a good book !!

A Creative Bibliophile - April 2021

I will admit that I have had a problem lately finding a book that keeps my attention .. I haven't had a problem finding books I want to read, but then I just can't seem to get into them and stay interested !! In the past I used to feel like I had to finish every book that I started .. But now there are too many on my To Read list - so I just close that book and move on to another.. This month I will tell you about 3 books - one I read and loved, one I started and wish I could have loved and one that I am loving now..

I came across a stamp set from 2016 when I was searching for something else ( and that happens every day !! ).It was perfect for my post .. I stamped the images from Coffee Donuts Friends by Darcie's Heart & Home onto 3 bookmark-sized pieces of mixed media paper with Memento Tuxedo Black Ink . The images were colored in with my COPICS. I added some book-themed and floral washi to the bookmarks and then adhered them to another layer of mixed-media paper to make them sturdier . As in previous posts, I also placed a piece of ledger paper on the back of the bookmarks for book lists, notes or reviews .

A book that I wanted to love is If I Disappear by Eliza Jane Brazier.  I waited months for this book from the library and after much anticipation, I could just not get into it. The storyline fascinated me - a true crime lover and podcast listener searches for her favorite true crime podcaster who has gone missing .. I tried reading it several times and it never pulled me in .. I am keeping it until the due date and might try again, but no promises ..

I am sure many of my fellow readers are familiar with Jojo Moyes and her books.  I had actually never read any and one day this book - The Peacock Emporium - was the featured Nook book . I get e-mails daily with great deals on a particular book or sometimes a few titles. This one caught my eye and I bought it for $2.99 .

To look at this cover, you would never know that the book is about a coffee shop  - The Peacock Emporium. Full of characters, settings and details, this story begins in the 1960's and continues in 2001 with Suzanna Peacock . Her Emporium serves as the backdrop for several storylines with an eclectic cast of characters. Suzanna's mother Athene begins the book with her role as 'the Last Deb" and is a complex, spoiled character who lays the foundation for the rest of the story. At times, I did wonder how certain elements were going to tie together, but I feel that Moyes did a great job with that . I was drawn in to the cast of characters and looked forward to finding out where the book took them. The legacy of Suzanna's mother is a large part of this book, coloring many aspects of the storylines. I enjoyed learning the "real" story of their mother/daughter relationship. It was surprising and not at all predictable. I now have a few other books of hers on my TBR list - The Giver of Stars is at the top . An interesting fact - her book Me Before You was made into a movie starring Emilia Clarke .. A real tearjerker - I loved it !!

A book that I am reading now and loving is The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James . This is a ghost story about a woman who disappeared from the Sun Down Motel in 1982 and her niece who decides to try to find out what happened to her in 2017 . She actually gets a job at the same hotel --- sooooooooo, what could go wrong ?!?!?!  Let's just say that I do not read this book in bed at night .. It was sent to me by a fellow book lover and I started it but never got too far into it ... Not sure why, but I think I put it into one of my book bags and forgot it was there !!!

I hope you have enjoyed my book craziness this month !! Leave me a comment about a book you loved or one you hoped you would love but didn't or one you are loving now  - I'll randomly choose one commenter and  send them one of my bookmarks .. Until next time, stay safe and keep on reading ...

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

A Creative Bibliophile - January 2021

I have been a lover of books my whole life.. I'm sure I got it from my father who was also a book lover. Even before I could read, I would either sit next to him on the couch or in my own little chair and "read" my Little Golden Books or whatever else was handy. As I got older, there were weekly trips to the library in my hometown of Mahanoy City, PA.It was only several blocks from our house. The head librarian - Thelma Faust - was a friend of our family . After I devoured the entire Children's section,  I was allowed to take out any books that I wanted . There was even a note in my file so the other librarians were aware of this. I remember reading many books from the Encyclopedia Britannica - I might even have read them all from A-Z. Each year, I would impatiently wait for the yearbook to be released. I can't remember a time when I didn't carry a book with me - just in case.  I couldn't imagine being somewhere without a book to read if I had an extra few minutes. Fast forward to 2021 and I am just as much a bookworm as I ever was ! I also am a lover of bookmarks. I am not one to dog-ear pages ( the thought makes me cringe ) but I have been known to use the occasional receipt or piece of junk mail. But only when there is NOT a bookmark handy. Because as much as I love books, I am also a lover of bookmarks. So when I decided to start a monthly blog post about books, I instantly knew that bookmarks would play a part also. Each month I will review a book or 2 and also make a bookmark for the post. And that is how "A Creative Bibliophile" was born. 

My logo will be the gorgeous gal from a fabulous stamp set by Unity Stamp Company - Part of the Story . I made 2 bookmarks with these stamps and some washi tape.  I used Strathmore Watercolor Paper , Gina K Jet Black Amalgam Ink and my COPICs. The stamped images were adhered to a thick mixed-media paper and then lined ledger paper was placed on the back. You can keep track of books you're reading or keep a To-Be-Read list.  I sometimes use it to keep track of characters in a book. While making these bookmarks, I used a cool new tool - a Mini Stamping Bug . It glides across the MISTI that I use when I stamp,in order to apply pressure and get a clean crisp image. You hold it in  your hand and move it across the stamp platform  - takes the pressure off of your hand and wrist. There is also a larger original version of this Stamping Bug but this smaller one was perfect for my bookmark images. And to celebrate my new blog post, I will be giving away one of these Mini Stamping Bugs that Robin Hill - their creator - was kind enough to send me !! All you have to do is comment on this blog post if you would like one of your very own.. I will choose 1 person at random  and send them a Mini and also a bookmark !!

The Struggle is Part of the Story

The 2 books I'm reviewing today were the first 2 I read in 2021. Without knowing hardly anything about either book, I was pleasantly surprised that I absolutely loved both of them and their overall messages. 

Photo from Red Nose Studio

All I knew about this book  - The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune - was that it was about an orphanage with an odd bunch of orphans . And truth be told, I chose to read this book because I fell in love with the cover !!  In this wonderful book, a  man named Linus is sent to investigate to make sure the caretaker, Arthur is providing a safe home for the strange group of orphans . What Linus discovers about Arthur, the orphans and also himself creates a magical story about putting aside our ideas about people being "different" and also letting people into our lives that we really never would have dreamed of. I fell in love with every character in this book . There are gnomes and sprites and other surprising characters in this book . I do highly recommend it !! 

Have you ever wondered what your life would be like if you had done something different, made different choices ?? I think that we all have had these  thoughts  about one decision or another. From the big decisions like your career, a big move or who you married to the smaller ones like which route you would drive or store you'd go into , The Midnight Library by Matthew Haig introduces us to Nora, who is terribly depressed and decides to end it all. But that is not the end of the story, it is just the beginning. She finds herself in the Midnight Library, where every regret she's ever had lives and the bookshelves are filled with books about how her life would have been different if she had made another choice at that time.  Having had some of those regrets myself and wondering what things would be like if I'd made other choices, this book intrigued me and I wasn't disappointed.  I think that I also chose this book initially because of the cover. Have you ever done that ?? 

Thank you for joining me for my first book-themed blog post .. I am definitely "A Creative Bibliophile" and look forward to sharing more books and also bookmarks with you .. Is there a particular book you would like to recommend to me ?? Next time I will talk a bit about my To-Be-Read list and my favorite types of books. Don't forget to comment if you would like a chance at some blog candy -- a fun Mini Stamping Bug along with a bookmark. Thank you to Robin Hill for sending me an extra Mini Stamping Bug  to share with someone !!

Mini Stamping Bugs

Until next time, Read a Book & Stay Creative !!

Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas / December 2020

It is so hard to believe that Christmas is here !! This is our last post of 2020 And then it is on to 2021. I don't think anyone will be sorry to see this year in our rear-view mirror . On to bigger and better AND happier and healthier !! Michael and Lisa and I will all be back for another year of Crafty Elves . But for this month, we are each posting 1 card and then choosing our favorites from each other.  And believe me, that was a hard task because all of their cards were amazing !!

If you know me at all, you know that I love to read.. I have been a bookworm my entire life !! I am in several book groups on Facebook and love keeping up with everyone's latest reading list.. I actually met several like-minded readers in one group and we actually created our own group - Novel Characters . Last year we started a Christmas Book Exchange and my card today is the one I sent with my book to my fellow reader this year ..

• I stamped the READ Bookshelf onto watercolor paper with  Gina K Amalgam Jet Black ink  and trimmed it, leaving room on the right side and the bottom.
• The image was colored with my COPICs  and Faber-Castell Pitt Artist pens.
• A thin strip of gold washi was placed at the bottom of the watercolor panel and then a strip of book washi above that, ending near the bottom of the book shelf.
• I used planner stickers to add the 2020 to the panel.
• A piece of pale green patterned paper was adhered to a light green card base.
• The completed panel was adhered near the top of the card and a Tim Holtz sentiment sticker finished the card perfectly.

I also made a bookmark to send with the card - using a great stamp set by A Jillian Vance Design - Coffee and Books . The bookmark is backed with thick cardstock and then a piece of lined ledger paper  so the reader can take notes or keep a book list. I love this card and bookmark and can't wait to see what the recipient thinks !! Hopefully  the USPS won't let me down and the card will delivered safely ..

What can I say about Michael's cards ?? They are always colorful - they are beautiful - they are always amazing !! I actually chose one of his more "subdued" cards as my favorite . It is absolutely beautiful and you can read all about it here in his July 2020 post . When I look at this card, the word I think of is "SERENE" - something that this year was sorely lacking.. This card is perfect !!

Lisa has a knack for creating the most intricate scenes in many of her cards !! I am envious of her talents .. But for my favorite, I chose a slimline card that she created that just explodes with Christmas Spirit !! The colors POP and the glitter washi along the bottom adds just the right touch of shimmer. You can read all about her card in her October 2020 post .

I have a few more to send but otherwise, I am done with my Holiday cards.. I am working a 12 hour shift at the hospital this year so we will be celebrating  Christmas on the 26 with  a spiral ham and all the fixins !!! And sometime during the first week of 2021, I will be starting on my Christmas cards oncc again !! I hope that you will join us throughout the New Year, But for the last posts of 2020, please take a look at what Lisa and Michael have created for December and also their favorites of their fellow Crafty Elves..

Michael Trent - World of Michael Trent

Lisa Reynolds Bzibziak - Life of a BZ Scrapper

Until next time ( in 2021 ), Stay Creative !!

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Fairy Orbs & Fairy Hugs

I've been busy with work and on my days off, I'm not feeling very creative. But Lavinia World is now carrying a new line of stamps - Fairy Hugs . They are not part of the Lavinia Stamps line - they are their own fantastic collection !! I was lucky enough to be sent several to create with and I decided to make a few bookmarks. I used the  Fairy Orbs stamps by Lavinia World along with several of the new Fairy Hugs stamps listed below .

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• Fairy Hugs Stamps -    Net, Mini Oyster, Mini Nautilus, Mini Turtle, and Mini Shell
• Lavinia World Stamp -  Fairy Orbs

I stamped the net twice on watercolor paper and then cut them into 4 bookmarks.  The Mini Fairy Hugs stamps were also stamped on watercolor paper, then fussy-cut. The Fairy Orbs were stamped on various scraps of Lavinia World papers and then cut out or paper-punched .  I adhered nautical-themed washi to the left edge of each bookmark.  The shells, turtle and fairy orbs were adhered to the bookmarks with thin foam tabs. They add a bit of dimension to the bookmarks but aren't too thick when you close a book on them .. On the backs of the bookmarks, I adhered lined paper and more nautical washi . I like to keep track of books I've read or sometimes characters in books  and I can easily do this on the backs of these bookmarks ..

I had such fun making these bookmarks !! Thanks again to Lavinia World for allowing me to work with these new Fairy Hugs stamps. Take a look at these and all of the wonderful products here . I was Guest Designer for Lavinia World in June and will be back for their first challenge in August.

Thank you for visiting Meticulosity .

Until next time, stay creative !!

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

I { HEART } Books ( and bookmarks )

Yes, that is exactly what it says -- I { HEART } Books !!  Apart from my absolute love of card-making, I am also quite fond of books. From the time I was a child and would walk to the library with my dad, I have had a fascination with books. Growing up in a very small town, we knew everyone, and the town librarian was a friend of our family. After I had read all of the children's books in the library, my father wrote out a permission slip for me to be able to take out any book that I wanted. Miss Faust kept it in my file so I never had a problem. I remember going through the card catalog alphabetically and just finding topics of interest, then taking many books home on that 1 subject. That was in the days before computers when we relied on the Dewey Decimal system  ( now I am really showing my age ).. More info on that at the end of my post of you are interested.

So where am I going with this, you might ask ?? Well, with a love of books comes a love of bookmarks. I have used the occasional slip of paper to mark a page  ( have never been one to dog-ear a book !! ). In the past, I have even cross-stitched bookmarks for myself and as gifts. But lately I have been seeing these cute ones made from envelopes and just had to give it a try.

Any book-lover MUST get this amazing book that is an alphabetized reading list that I refer to often. Nancy Pearl is an American librarian and author who shares her love and knowledge of books with all of us. And isn't my cute owl just perfect in that corner !!

I used the Going Wild stamp set by Susan K Weckesser co-branded with Unity Stamp Company. After stamping the images with Susan K Weckesser's  Clearsnap Colorbox Color POP Dye ink in Mystery , I colored them with a variety of markers ( Distress, Stabilo and Stampin' Up ). I fussy-cut them and applied Ranger Glossy Accents ( if you don't own this, you need to run right out with a coupon and buy some ).. On the owl, I applied the Glossy Accents to the glasses. There are also a few strips of feather washi on the back of this bookmark.

The fox image also came from the Going Wild stamp set. I added a strip of grass washi to the bottom of this bookmark, then gave this cute little fox a cup of coffee cut from a fabulous roll of Paper Studio washi. A few cups were also placed on the back of this bookmark along with a favorite stamp of mine from Paper Angel. Glossy Accents were applied to the ears, paws and polka-dots on the bow tie. The fox and owl were adhered using my TOMBOW Mono Aqua Liquid Glue -- my bookmarks get lots of wear and tear and TOMBOW is my go-to adhesive !!

For those of you as OCD as I am, and who could not just cut a corner off of an envelope to make these bookmarks -- this is how I made mine. I used a 5 x 7 Kraft envelope because the Kraft paper is sturdier. On the bottom corners of the envelope, on each side I measured 3 inches in, made a dot with a pencil, then drew a straight line connecting the 2 dots. I then cut across the line and erased any pencil marks that remained. Use your imagination to create any kind of bookmark that you want !!

I hope that you enjoyed hearing about my other LOVE- Books !! I love all kinds of books and finally did get a nook which now has about 1000 books and samples on it. I still love the feel of a "real" book in my hands but also love the ability to have so many choices with me at one time.

My current reading list includes :
1. The Fireman - Stephen King
2. The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend - Katarina Bivald
3. Packing for Mars - Mary Roach
4. Collage Playground - Kimberly Santiago
5. The Woman in Cabin 10 - Ruth Ware

And who says you can't use a bookmark with an e-reader ?!?!?!?!

And for those of you who have never seen how I used to find my way around a library, here are a few pics. Now I wish I had a card catalog like that for my craft supplies !!

 Dewey Decimal System

Thank you for visiting Meticulosity !!