Day 30 of the 100 Day Stitch Book project

We’re 30 days and 6 pages into the 100 Day Stitch Book with Ann Wood. This stitch Challenge started on January 17.

Pages 1 and 2 of the 2025 Stitch Book.

Using fabric scraps and leftovers

It’s satisfying for me to pair my leftover scraps from various improvisational patchwork projects with improv hand stitching to create these small 5.5” x 7” pages. This project is giving purpose to my improv scraps. I thought these scraps might find their way into another improv patchwork project, but in this little stitch book, they are the stars of the show. It’s so fun!

Pages 3 and 4 of the 2025 Stitch Book.

I’ve got a mix of fabrics for the base pages—a blue cotton/linen blend from Art Gallery Fabrics and a few 100% cotton yarn-dyed wovens from Diamond Textiles.

Pages 5 and 6 of the 2025 Stitch Book.

The threads I’m using consist of variegated cotton sewing thread, perle cotton, embroidery floss, and an 80 wt. soft poly for the appliqué. I’m using basic, familiar stitches: running stitch, blanket stitch, French knots, seed stitch, feather stitch, back stitch, and an invisible appliqué stitch.

The backs are colorful and interesting as well.

Backs of pages 1 and 2.

Backs of pages 3 and 4.

Backs of pages 5 and 6.

This is the start of page 7.

Page 7 of my 100 Day Stitch Book 2025.

I’ll work on this page for five days and then start another one.

Junk Journal January: first Make Nine finish for 2025

Junk Journal January is a wrap! I’m counting it as my first Make Nine 2025 finish to fulfill the “Online Challenge” prompt.

Make Nine 2025 tracker. Online Challenge prompt

Journal format and page spreads

For JJJ 2025 [Junk Journal January 2025], I made a square format, no-sew journal. 

No-sew junk journal.

After getting into the daily process of answering the prompts, I found myself creating compositions in 2-page spreads. Sometimes the composition was in response to a single prompt…

Day 30 prompt: fabric

… sometimes it combined multiple prompts.

Days 24 and 25 prompts: line and modern.

I liked working in a larger, 2-page space. Paint, color, and collage were used to unify the background. Similar marks were made across both pages, and often the spreads incorporated text, quotes, or poems relating to the prompt(s), that were hand lettered on the pages.

Days 26, 27, 28 and 29 prompts: movement, crumpled, sealed, and reveal.

Materials and techniques

For this year’s junk journal, I used techniques that I used in the past: acrylic and watercolor painting, collage, hand lettering, and drawing, and an occasional use of a rubber stamp. I did experiment with solar paste and stencils this time—on Day 18 with the “bright” prompt. Solar paste is a fun art supply and is very effective on a black background.

Solar paste medallions made with paste and stencils.

Starting with Junk Journal January in 2023, and followed by Junk Journal January and Junk Journal July in 2024, Junk Journal January 2025 is the fourth journal in my collection.

Junk Journals from 2023, 2024, and 2025.

Wrapping up the final week of Junk Journal January 2025

Today starts the last week of January and the final week of Junk Journal January 2025 Challenge. This Challenge has been an exercise in “showing up and doing the work.” Travel and long, busy days as a fabric rep sometimes leaves me tired and uninspired… that’s when the commitment to the process kicks in. Paraphrasing Picasso, “Exploration and creativity happens, but they must find you working.”

Day 21 prompt: map

Here are a few of my favorite journal pages and spreads from the month that started off somewhat mediocre, but turned out very well.

Days 6, 7 and 8 prompts: embossed, tuck spot, and antique.

After prompted to use tissue paper on this spread, the tissue paper was used again on other pages.

Days 20 and 21 prompts: tissue and map.

On the recommendation from a friend, I experimented with solar paste, a new-to-me art supply. It was used along with a stencil to create the medallions on the left-hand page of this spread.

Days 17, 18, and 19 prompts: fragile, bright, and bubble.

William Morris is one of my favorite printers, typographers, and designers. The aesthetic of the Arts and Crafts movement resonates today as much as it did back in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Days 24 and 25 prompts: line and modern

A new 100 Day Project: Stitch Book 2025 with Ann Wood

This year, I’m doing the 100 Day Stitch Book Challenge 2025 with Ann Wood for my 100 Day Project. I was debating whether to join this Challenge (that started January 17) because I’m also working on Junk Journal January this month. After realizing the stitch book pages were only 5.5” x 7” in size, however, I thought the two Challenges would be manageable for the remainder of this month.

Day 3 of the Stitch Book Challenge 2025

Stitch Book supplies

The supplies for the Stitch Book Challenge are minimal, easily accessible, and the options are flexible:

• fabric(s) for twenty 5.5” X 7” book pages (this is the base fabric)
• threads for hand stitching
• fabric scraps

Improv patchwork scraps (left) and cotton/linen pages for a stitch book.

I’ll be using a cotton/linen blend fabric from Art Gallery Fabric’s Ink Perfect collection. It’s a remnant from a top I made last year. I was able to cut 12 pages from it.

The scraps I’m using are mostly patchwork strings and trimmings from various improv patchwork pieces I’ve created over the years. I have a small “inventory” of these pieces that I use for improv compositions should a piece require a “spark of something different” or to make a piece of patchwork larger. 

Day 2 of the Stitch Book Challenge 2025.

Improvisational Stitching

The Stitch Book Challenge encourages spontaneity in the stitching process. Starting without knowing, and working without a plan. I think my improv patchwork scraps will be an appropriate complement to the stitching on the pages. 

It will be good to get into a free-form stitching routine for 100 days with this Stitch Book 2025 Challenge.