CQJP progress

Since my CQJP blocks are going to be in book form I need to back each "page"  I put old corset ads on the backing and took them on the trip with me and edged each ad with lace and added greenery..










































There are twelve of them.  It was the perfect travel project as it was easy to start and stop and not to complicated as to supplies.....

I had Nov and Dec. almost done when we left for London and  hopefully will finish them when DH is out of town next week.  I have started assembling some of the earlier months and taking them along with me to trim them in lace... I am still playing "catch up" with jet lag, holidays and obligations so hope to get London stuff photographed tomorrow or Thursday.

I might need a "Dowager!"

Now that I can actually see the corset cuties getting finished I can start thinking about the finished pieces...as there will be two books from these blocks. ... one each for my youngest granddaughters.
On the lining or back side of each "page" will be a vintage ad or two.  I began collecting them when I started the suffrage project as they were so much a part of women's lives at that time.
Some are elegant, some are humorous and some are frightening.  The ones I didn't save are the ones advertising corsets for pregnant women and corsets for young children.  Here are a few that will probably make the cut for the books.

How about the "Princess Hip" or the "Dowager" that will properly reduce stout figures to correct proportions.  What's with the spider element?

 Or how about the ad showing the old out-of-style silhouette vs. the newest look?

 And heaven forbid that we have brass eyelets.... haven't the foggiest what a "Paris clasp" was...

And there were a lot of whimsical ads which I'm sure were meant to target the young ladies with romance on their minds.....

 

Just the ads themselves would be a great set of blocks. I even gave that a thought at the beginning but opted for the "real" girls but happy to find a way in incorporate the ads into the project.

Choosing and editing images....

 

I have about 50 images to narrow down to 12 and to edit (cropping and resizing) .. Some are already shades of sepia like this one on the left but I prefer a warmer toned sepia.

Some are more black and white like this one on the on the right..









 And some are colored.  After working  with the suffrage photos and lots of trial and errors, I found ways to get the best results and I will share the steps with you as I go along...







Then there are the media ads....   which are   either black and white or various shades of antiqued paper.

I never try to hurry through this process as I know unless I take my time with it, I'll never be happy with it.  The first step will be finalizing my choices which will not be easy because I have some great ones.  I started collected these in 2011 so there are many.

Don't miss out on CQJP2015! - Post # 1497

It's time to register for the CQJP2015 (Crazy Quilt Journal Project) and you want to do it soon so you don't miss out.  Because 2014 was devoted to the finishing my suffrage quilt I didn't participate in CQJP and missed it all year.. I like having the structure and focus of a monthly block  and ending the year with a body of work. 

When I started collecting photos of suffragettes, I also collected photos and ads for corsets..  The whole constrictive aspect of corsets versus the fight for personal freedom seemed like an obvious connection and I originally planned to make a collage of the corset photos on the lining of the suffrage quilt.

But the corset photos really needed to be a project on their own..

But  now I want to do something with that collection and the CQJP2015 will provide the perfect opportunity..  The ads are so bizarre and this one makes one wonder how a corset can be the embodiment of grace and what made "flexibone" unbreakable.

In 2012 my theme was my dog Morris and in 2013  my theme was cottages and I love them both.  I not only like working with  a theme, I try to include specific techniques to experiment with.  This year I want to experiment with more floral surface embroidery than I usually use and I want to really make a dent in my stash of lace with these blocks.  I want to use this project to really go through and sort out my laces.. As I think it through I will post my final goals.

This journal project was founded by Kathy Shaw.  There is a blog site to register, see the rules, check out previous years and also a page for questions and answers.  There is a time limit to register so do go now and don't miss out... http://cqjp2015.blogspot.com/