Sewing, sunset, moonrise

I made some more bookmarks yesterday to include as thank you gifts with my Etsy orders. I think opening the package should be half the fun, so I wrap every order with colorful tissue and yarn and include a hand painted bookmark with my shop name on the back.

Here's how I did yesterday's batch. I started by painting white cotton with Setacolor transparent fabric paint to which I added a touch of pearlescent paint for shimmer. It dried outside in our desert air in minutes.

Then I sponged different colors onto some stamps ...

... and added more colors directly with a sponge.

Here it is before I fused it onto an 8 1/2 by 11 sheet of Peltex, with a sheet of my shop labels  printed on fabric fused to the back.

Then I cut it up, punched holes with my wool hole punch, and added hand-dyed yarn tails.

I also added a little mandala quilt to my Etsy shop, which is www.sherrielovescolor.etsy.com.

I made the painted, embroidered, beaded and quilted piece when I was vacationing in Sedona, AZ, a few years ago. It was inspired by the desert sun and blue skies.

Speaking of desert sun, we had a spectacular sunset a few nights ago. Here it is reflected in my sewing room window.

And here is how it looked from inside my sewing room.

The next two photos are from my front courtyard. I'll never tire of this! I go out every evening right before sunset and wait for the show.

Last night I had a special treat. I watched the full moon rise above the mountains while on a desert hike with a Meetup group. We hiked a few miles out into the mountains and then stood -- socially distanced -- in awe as the giant glowing orb floated up from behind the mountains. 

Giant saguaros surrounded us in the perfect silence.

After awhile, we turned on our flashlights and trekked back to our cars in the dark night.

Have a colorful day