red bobblehead

I made this postcard last week at Sewing by the Sea, a sewing retreat in Ocean City, Maryland. One morning Sandy Sapienza, who organizes the annual event, taught a mini-class in muslin-backed paper for artwork. The technique is simple. Saturate a piece of damp muslin with matte medium gel, then affix a photocopied b&w image measuring 5" x 7". Laser copies are suggested but I used inkjet copies of photos I had taken. Cover the image with gel medium and embellish with thread, paper, fabric, glitter, etc. Let dry. When dry, paint with transparent paints or inks. Add more embellishments (collage, stamps, stitching) as desired. When dry, the painted image has a supple, leathery feel to it.

To make a fabric postcard, back the painted piece with a stiff interfacing, such as Timtex, and another piece of muslin and stitch the layers together. (You could also use cardboard and paste.) The stitching becomes another element of the piece. To write on the card, use an oil-based marker. I made two cards. I sent one to Mrpotani and will keep the other as a cool memento of my first trip to Ocean City. For more about Sewing by the Sea, go to www.needlearts-adventures.com.

honda takeshi in tokyo

Ex-neighbor Honda Takeshi is showing large-scale charcoal pencil works at A Piece of Space in Tokyo through December 13. The one above, called Walking in the Mountains, November, measures 260 x 600 cm. For details, go to www.a-piece-of-space.com.

castle in the air

Love this ad card from Castle in the Air. Check it out.

glasgow university

This lovely view of the tower at Glasgow University was sent by a postcrosser who used to live in Thailand.

more stamps

Two stamps interesting for different reasons. The top stamp, from Finland, is transparent as you can tell by the bar code printed on the card. The bottom one celebrates Eleanor Rathbone, a British rights activist responsible for getting the family allowance program put in place, and is part of a series honoring outstanding women. Rathbone was definitely that. Check her biography out on Wikipedia.

view from mt. carmel

An Israeli postcrosser, who loves jigsaw puzzles, sent this view of Haifa as seen from Mt. Carmel.

happy day

A Finnish postcrosser sent this sweet card which captures a carefree moment.

finnish fall

This card is from a Finnish postcrosser who shares my love for autumn.

stereo realist

Dutch postcrosser Ellen went retro with this old ad card. Whatever happened to the Stereo Realist?

yummy stamps

Two stamps, one from Brazil, the other from Finland, celebrate different kinds of food. Yummy, yummy.

here's to anna julia, "just a baby"

Tiny postcrosser Anna Julia, born this October 28th, sent this huggy kind of card from Brazil, though it was her dad who put it all in motion. The card reads: "My daddy has created my account here! Now postcards are my joy too!" That's a wonderful family tradition in the making.

scenes from kaunas

A 15-year-old Lithuanian postcrosser named Ruta sent this pretty card and stamp from her hometown of Kaunas.

flora festival

A Dutch postcrosser sent this scene of blazing glory.

warm thoughts

What a day it was for postcards! Along with the fab card from Taiwan below came this great card from Finnish postcrosser Arja. She knitted a tiny sweater in cheery yellow and affixed it to a card she covered with burlap. The message: "warm thoughts in cold winter". Love it!

simply irresistible

To know this dog is to love him! A young postcrosser sent this fabulous card from Taiwan, with a long message in Japanese (she spent a year in Japan when she was even younger) about her favorite manga and such. She also drew two very different good luck symbols on the card: clover and turtle. Simply irresistible!

walking in alsemberg

Belgian postcrosser Ilse sent this card from Alsemberg, a small village near Brussels. She took the photo on one of her walks about the village. B&W captures the damp gloom of European winters. I like this photo.

moody russia

A postcrosser named Olga sent these greetings from "moody Russia." The card, printed in 1972, shows a bit of the Kremlin.

greetings from iisalmi

A 16-year-old Finnish boy sent this card from his hometown of Iisalmi, located in central Finland. He's busy at school, while looking forward to cross-country skiing. Let it snow!

dragon spruce lawn

First-time postcrosser Sway sent this snowy landscape from China. I've never seen stamps affixed as these were--in looseleaf layers, with each one postmarked separately and again in toto. Amazingly, these large, handsome stamps arrived intact. I've already lifted one off to send to a friend.

new pots from willi singleton

Old pal Willi Singleton will be selling pots from his fall firing at his pottery in Kempton, PA, on December 13 and 14. Willi gave me this card for the show, along with lunch, when I visited him earlier today.