Kristin St. Clair's Fantastic Book Creation
Kristin St. Clair, who works in our TV Crafts Department, made my granddaughter, baby Jude, a very, very special Christmas present. Perhaps you saw the episode of my television show about the fabulous arctic tapestry that I made along with my talented TV crafters for Jude. Kristin was inspired by that amazing scene and set out to design and create a large-sized fabric 'picture book' made from cashmere fabric, felt, felting, and silhouetted felt animals. Each scene in this book is fascinating and extraordinary in its details. Here is what Kristin had to say about this undertaking:
This book was a year in the making, so there was a lot of time, research, inspiration, and backbreaking work that went into this project. Even though I am a crafter for Martha, I admit that I am a novice sewer and this was my first big machine and hand-sewing project. I learned many, many things while making this book—it educated me, gave me skill experience, and focused me to finally finish a large project. I haven’t spent this much time on one thing since art school and it consumed me, excited me, and then relieved me when it was done. It also gave me a great sense of accomplishment. In crafting, there is usually a lot of waste—leftover useless materials and projects that fall apart, or break, or wind up in the trash. This craft, I am proud to say, is lasting and something Jude can have forever. What else can you give Martha Stewart that she doesn’t already have or can’t get herself? It makes me smile to think that with this gift, Martha can create endless stories for Jude while turning the pages of my book.
1 This is the cover of the book, which measures approximately 18-inches by 24-inches. I love crests and I use this one as my 'logo.'
2 The inside cover
3 Scene 1 - I was so inspired by Jude's Arctic tapestry, that I set out to create a book.
4 A detail shot
5 Once I designed all the animal silhouettes, I arranged them on a blank page to think about the composition and how I wanted to design the background. I cut the iceberg shapes out of paper first, before jumping into needle felting.
6 Should the Polar Bears have their own page? But, what about the penguins?
7 Scene 2 - Under the sea
8 To create details in some of the creatures, I used the Martha Stewart Crafts screw punch, as for the holes on the pink sea urchin. http://www.hsn.com/martha-stewart/martha-stewart-crafts-screw-punch_p-6039656_xp.aspx
9 The screw punch was used for the Octopus, as well. All the other details were cut with a craft knife and a pair of really sharp scissors.
10 Laying out the ocean: With each scene, I stuck to a particular color palette. In the end, I opted for not including the bright orange piece of coral.
11 This shot was taken right before all the sea creatures were glued down. I realized that I was missing the large Sperm Whale!
12 Okay, there he is.
13 Scene 3 - The jungle scene combines habitats from two parts of the world—rainforests on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra and also rainforests from Central and South America.
14 There are many layers and techniques on each page. In the jungle, wool felt, wool roving, and felted wool fabric were applied to the cashmere background.
15 A toucan
16 Laying out the background of the jungle with felted wool fabric - If you wash wool fabric in hot water, the fibers fuse together and become 'felted.'
17 Laying out the jungle - I used pieces of cord to envision how I wanted the jungle vines to look.
18 The jungle in process - I needle felted most of the vines and then re-laid the page to make sure it was coming together properly.
19 Scene 4 - When I think of the continent of Africa, I see something similar to this spread. Although the background depicts the Sahara Desert, I chose to include some of the most symbolic animals in all of Africa.
20 Acacia Trees against a needle felted sunset - The lazy lions are waiting for it to get dark.
21 I had to include the Chimps, whom I support through the Jane Goodall Institute. They are one of my most admired animals.
22 I laid out some of the African animals to determine how many more I might need to complete the scene.
23 Experimenting with Africa's layout - I realized that these animals would need water in this desert!
24 They would also need more shelter from the sun in the form of another tree.
25 Scene 5 - Antarctica
26 Antarctica detail
27 I find Penguins to be anthropomorphic––They seem to have comedic personalities and I absolutely love watching as they waddle along.
28 The black on the penguins was all hand painted.
29 Before painting the penguins, I arranged them in various ways along the icebergs.
30 Another arrangement
31 In the final arrangement, I let the 'dangerous' iceberg penguins free. I'm not sure they would actually risk climbing that slippery slope!
32 The back inside page
33 My tag and logo
34 I wrapped the gift in craft paper and tied it with a blue ribbon and a simple tag.
35 A closeup of the grizzly bear tag
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
what a wonderfully creative and thoughtful gift. i love all the details in the silhouettes. i just imagine all the hours that went into this! thank you for sharing it.
Posted by: ana | January 12th, 2012 at 12:29 am
Kristin, I love your segments on TV. Your fresh, relaxed, chatty style is totally engaging and wonderful. You are a natural, and Martha is very lucky to have you on her team. (I know Martha agrees.)
This book is a real labor of love. Enormous in scale, beautifully designed, sooo detailed! I know Alexis and Martha and Jude will treasure it in the years to come. It was fun to see the book briefly on TV, but it is a real treat to see it again here with all the detailing.
Posted by: MC | January 12th, 2012 at 1:00 am
Martha,
Yes, I did see the episode when Kristin showed the book. It has so many details, I can just imagine all the questions a two year old Jude will have.
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Kristin,
Great job on a most thoughtful book.
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Thanks for sharing this blog.
Posted by: KLBrown | January 12th, 2012 at 1:02 am
Thank you Kristin for sharing this beautiful book that baby Jude will treasure forever. Obviously, it was a work of love and you should be proud of your accomplishment.
Posted by: stephanie Bullock | January 12th, 2012 at 1:18 am
This has got to be the most creative piece of art I have ever seen. Wow! What a perfect gift for a young child. Kristin, kudos to you, this is fabulous. Im sure Jude will it enjoy for years to come.
Posted by: mona c | January 12th, 2012 at 7:35 am
As we say in Italy, è stupendo!!! It's wonderful!
Posted by: Stefania | January 12th, 2012 at 8:24 am
What a wonderful keepsake for baby Jude. I am sure it will be in the family for many years to come.
Posted by: Bonnie Venresca | January 12th, 2012 at 8:35 am
I did see this beautiful gift by Kristin given to Martha on the TV show. It is wonderful to see the up close product. Jude is getting a head start with her literacy. Besides loving children and providing food and shelter, reading to them is fundamental. Thanks for the inspiration!
Posted by: Teresa Touey | January 12th, 2012 at 8:39 am
Wow! What a labor of love! Great job on a truly thoughtful gift!
Posted by: Rachel @ Simple Girl | January 12th, 2012 at 8:50 am
Wow! What a creative person Kristin is! Jude,Alexis, and Martha are all very fortunate to have received a wonderful gift.
Posted by: Brian | January 12th, 2012 at 9:15 am
JUST SIMPLY AMAZING AND BEAUTIFUL!!!!
Posted by: Maureen | January 12th, 2012 at 9:20 am
so well done, thought out and executed. good job!
Posted by: darrell white | January 12th, 2012 at 9:23 am
What a treasure baby Jude has to enjoy for many years! I'm in awe of your talent Krisitn, the attention to detail is amazing. Although you did a wonderful job with all the animals, I can tell chimps are your favorite. The details on the animals cut with a craft knife and sharp scissers were extraordinary but with the chimps they seemed a little more special. I have to say my favorite scene is the African one. Love the colors, especially the sky and I like how you layered the land. Thanks for sharing the process of this project Kristin!
Posted by: Cindy F | January 12th, 2012 at 9:36 am
W.O.W. What a gift! A-MA-ZING! Thanks for sharing~
Posted by: Jane M | January 12th, 2012 at 9:37 am
Making a book from cloth for my nephew Aaron, gave me insight into the hours that went into this book. I remember each page even though it has been over 30 years since I gave it to him. Martha truly does inspire many and Kristin can always be proud of her gift.
Posted by: ann | January 12th, 2012 at 9:53 am
Hi Kristin, WOW! You are one fantastic, creative, inspirational crafter! How great that you have been at Martha's company for 7 years and your creation of this awesome, special book for baby Jude is spectacular! I love all of your photos and comments about creating this book and how great it would be if you created more! I would love to have one to give to my niece who's baby girl is due February 11th! I love seeing all of those beautiful animals and your backgrounds are beautiful and so colorful! The websites Martha shared here about you are superb! Tell Martha I loved seeing her on the Today show yesterday and that food looked so delicious! Have a great day! Jan PS-Gloria, I miss seeing your daily comments. Hope you are OK! Jan
Posted by: Jan Erickson | January 12th, 2012 at 10:27 am
Kristin,
How very thoughtful of you to make this beautiful book for Jude! The animals are so realistic and the arrangements on the pages definitely depict your creative talent. Scene 4 is my favorite. Thanks for your great pictures and captions. Trish
Posted by: Trish | January 12th, 2012 at 10:55 am
Kristin,
Brilliant! It belongs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art or perhaps a museum of natural history. I'm sure this will be a special treasure to Martha, Alexis and Baby Jude. Jo Ann
Posted by: Jo Ann Donahue | January 12th, 2012 at 12:27 pm
Kristin,
What an over whelming task. Only an art student would be so focused. Or at least I would have done one page and then decided Jude would have to investigate the rest of the planet on her own. Congratulations on thinking realistically regarding "oh the animals need water and hmmm why would a penguin be on that steep iceberg".
Very very nice.
Posted by: Margie | January 12th, 2012 at 12:56 pm
Amazing and so beautiful gift for baby Jude. Kristin done a wonderful and creative gift, love it.
Posted by: Rowaida Flayhan | January 12th, 2012 at 2:18 pm
Kristin..Wow! What a special and creative gift for Jude! So much thought went into every detail. That will be a gift to be enjoyed and passed down as an heirloom for the next generation. Very impressive work! Jude is a lucky baby!
Posted by: Judy | January 12th, 2012 at 3:52 pm
What a wonderful gift/heirloom...absolutely amazing. This is something that will be enjoyed for a long time from babyhood on; I can see my 2- and 4-year-old grandsons enjoying this - they love all kinds of animals. Thank you for all the detailed information; a lot of us may not be able to duplicate the whole thing, but you have definitely inspired!
Posted by: Trish Calabrese | January 12th, 2012 at 9:16 pm
Martha, I thought this was a beautiful gift for you and baby Jude! You so richly deserve all the good things in life. You are always giving to others.....it's so nice to see your happiness when others give to you!
Posted by: Sandy DeBolt | January 12th, 2012 at 9:27 pm
How precious! I can't imagine all the long hours that went into this book. What a truly thoughtful, heartfelt gift. Handmade items always make the nicest, most treasured gifts!
Posted by: domesticallyinept | January 12th, 2012 at 10:19 pm
What a wonderful present!!!! Handmade gifts are alway special because they come from the heart;)
Posted by: TiffaneyHernandez | January 12th, 2012 at 10:19 pm
The most lovely book Ever, it shows it was made with love and dedication like a mother would make for her child the author most have a great heart
Posted by: Ana | January 13th, 2012 at 12:12 pm
Kristin, with this creation you have taken "crafting" to an entirely new level. Amazing.
Posted by: Sandra McCurry Chitty | January 16th, 2012 at 4:51 am
Any way I could buy the templates for the book? I have the Arctic and Antarctic animals you shared with the ornaments, but I would love the rest! Thank you for sharing!
Posted by: Jennifer C. | January 17th, 2012 at 10:47 am
masterpiece . . . a simple treasure!
Posted by: bonnie | January 17th, 2012 at 4:55 pm