Book du jour

Handstitching on crumpled tissue paper, using variegated thread. Since seeing this (by Elizabeth Rutt) on Mags Ramsay's blog, and hearing someone else describe it later, I've been wanting to handstitch with variegated thread. Probably the crumpled tissue isn't the ideal background, but it was handy...

The book started as a strip, and the stitching forms the pages of the codex. The spine is a bit floppy - in fact it's not a success structurally. The line of stitching doubles back on itself as you turn the page; for me it's about "the back side of the embroidery" - which in this case is indistinguishable from the front. (Tidying away the thread ends is tricky.) This has potential - if I can figure out what it's meant to be "about", and if I don't run out of stitching patience. Next step is to stitch in an already-made book ... perhaps made of tracing paper ...
The long strip was done "just because" and includes some invisible cloudy shapes, as well as a lot of lines of holes punched by the sewing machine. The paper itself is interesting - it came wrapped round a wine bottle, and proved to be waxy in feel and rather strong. Must go back to the wine place and get some more - unfortunately it was from Borough Market, which is so crowded and chaotic I'm reluctant to return, ever.