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Friday 22 March 2019

Hello Susan...

Hello Creative Friends,

When I asked my Mom for some photographs of me as a child 
I was surprise to find amongst the sorted bundle a letter 
addressed to her from my Grandad written the day I was born.

Today i'm sharing it's journey, project 
and insight into how it came to be...


Using photo copies of the original letter, envelope and chosen 
photograph I gathered elements I felt relevant including broken 
jewellery, die cuts, snippets, buttons and lace to help 
decorate and frame the design.


This photograph was taken in my Nan & Grandad's garden, a snapshot of 
my amazing Auntie and me in the middle being held by my sweet Mom.


Gluing those elements down I painted them all in a layer of Gesso 
leaving the first line of the letter uncovered.  The number 1 
represents my Mother *Susan* the firstborn and me 
the first of 16 Grandchildren.


With Mom being the Eldest of seven children the number 7 also
fits in well with the year this photograph was taken 1971.


A wash of Vintage Photo distress ink brings out the depth and 
dimension of those elements, with a whisper of gilding wax 
and a bunch of die cut wildflower stems. 

*My Mom adores Flowers of every kind*


and finally..

The number 3 represents the three of us in the photo and how we still 
look out for one another just like the day this picture was captured.

Sadly my Grandad passed away when I was only 16 but 
we know he'd be so proud his letter of Thanks is as 
cherished today as the first day it was received.


His letter has been with my Mom for 50 years and now with me, 
who knows it's future and journey over the next 50 years...

Thank you for sharing today's journey.

Take good care everyone.

Creative Hugs
Tracey xx

I'm sharing today with:
Kristin & EVA: PPF WK3 YR9
Try it on Tuesday: Say it with Flowers
A Vintage Journey: Celebrate the Journey - Happy Birthday AVJ
Country View Crafts: Letters and/ or Numbers

68 comments:

Helen said...

What a lovely memory to make from such treasured possessions.

Kokopelli said...

What a great memory! And a beautiful piece of art. Happy PPF!

Valerie-Jael said...

LOve this Tracey, you have captured those wonderful memories so well here. Your granddad would have been really proud to see it. Happy PPF, hugs, Valerie

Brenda Brown said...

Oh my Tracey I love vintage heritage photos and this whole post is so special with your wonderful story. Each element you carefully collected has been placed to build a wonderful display and montage to show off that gorgeous picture of the three of you and to have that magnificent letter from your grandad incorporated gives it even more personal meaning. I love the inclusion of the wildflower stems and the neutral palette with that ‘whisper of wax’ (love that phrase). You now have the most loveliest of keepsakes to treasure. Have a great weekend xxx

sirkkis said...

What a treasure to have memories of old days, Tracey. Your collecting them artistic way is fabulous.
Happy PPF and weekend xx

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

This is undeniably a treasure and a beauty to behold, Tracey. It is so impressive, has that special and very personal feeling, too. It's wonderful that not only can you preserve these memories, you can share them through your incredible art, too.

Redanne said...

This beautiful post made me feel a little emotional Tracey, it is so beautifully written and what a wonderful treasure you have created! How lovely of your Granddad to write a lovely letter to your Mum, no wonder it has been treasured all these years and now it will be treasured further. The frame is beautiful and the understated embellishments let the photo and letter take centre stage. A totally gorgeous creation!

Thank you so much for your visit and lovely comment (sorry if I tempted you again!), I do hope you get some crafty time too. I am off for a crafty weekend with Abs and my other Tracy friend, I am sure we will have lots of fun an laughter and I will hopefully shake off this virus once and for all! Hugs, Anne xxx

BLOGitse said...

I'm sure your grandad couldn't guess you'll make art of his letter! How cool is that!

froebelsternchen said...

So beautiful Tracey ! What a fantastic thing to have this letter and you made something so very specially and artsy with it! This letter and photo became art in your hands! A rare beauty of uniqueness and memory - just WONDERFUL! THANK YOU VERY MUCH for joining us at Try It On Tuesday dear Tracey! I wish you a happy weekend and my thoughts are with you for all the things that aren't so well right now!
Blessings!
Susi

Cath Wilson said...

This is absolutely gorgeous, Tracey - but the story and the process make it doubly so. You put so much thought and effort into making this something special to you and to your family. I bet your Mum will love it. What a fab tribute to your Grandad. I used to love looking through photo albums belonging to my Nan and to my parents, but that's one of the things we rarely see in today's hi tech world, where people rarely actually print photographic memories. This is so very special.
I'm so pleased you shared it with us at Try it on Tuesday.
Cath x

Linda Simpson said...

This is fabulous, thank you for joining us over at Bleeding Art for our challenge and hope to see you next time.
Hugs
Linda xxx
DT Bleeding Art

My name is Erika. said...

Another gorgeous piece Tracey. I love all the details you included. It's really a creatively beautiful way to show off a remembered family photo. Thanks for sharing it with us at Try It On Tuesday. Hugs-Erika

Linda Kunsman said...

Oh this is so beautiful in so many ways Tracey! A wonderful way to cherish and remember this precious photo and letter. My Mom just the other day found a big box of postcards in the attic and I have been going through them. Some are postmarked 1906!! Many little surprises about family and addresses from my father's side.Even some from the French family my mother left behind when she brought me to the states as a baby. Aah, the memories... Happy PPF!

Christine said...

Such a lovely meaningful memory.

Roosterhead Designs said...

Hello Tracey,
No doubt your grandfather would be so proud indeed! This is such a memorable creation.
To think you all have kept this letter safe and now you are creating art with it! I love things that have family photo's and pieces of memorabilia; they have so much heart to them~ The frame is an amazing idea! Your neutral creation is gorgeous. Loving the beautiful textures and layers of 'vintage' days gone by. Looking at all the great detail you made with the beads and flowers! 3D art. Love it Tracey. Have a great week-end. Hugs, karen o

Mrs.B said...

A fabulous memory frame Tracey, The frame is lovely in itself, but including the personal details to go with the photo and that lovely letter from your Grandad to your Mum, just makes it all the more personal. A real treasure and a lovely way to let it's journey continue.
Thanks for sharing this with us at TioT
Avril xx

Meggymay said...

Wow and amazing project full of fabulous details. It was super that you added of so many of your memories to the piece. I'm sure this will be treasured along with the with the letters and photos of your family for many, many, years to come.
Thank you for sharing this with us all at Try it on Tuesdays.
Yvonne xx

https://linsartyblobs.blogspot.com said...

How lovely, so special!

Cathy F said...

What a fabulous keepsake! Thanks for joining us at Bleeding Art!

Soma @ inkTorrents.com said...

That is an amazing find. How wonderful that your mom gave the letter to you, and I am sure it will continue to be treasured in the family. Your inspired artwork commemorating your relationship with the lovely ladies and your grandfather is beautiful, Tracey!

-Soma

Gillena Cox said...

What a beautiful keepsake art. Precious , memorable, sweet
Thanks for sharong with us Tracey

MuchšŸŒ»love

Dorthe said...

Oh it is so beautiful dear Tracey , I love the idea of using the letter your granddad so lovingly wrote your mother, when you was born . The framing of it and the photo is gorgeous, and I love the tones you used - making it very vintage . Such a treasure for you to have been given the letter , and to use it in copy like this , it will be a wonderful keepsake too, dear friend.
Have a wonderful weekend Tracey , I might be late with the answer I promised you today , we are invited out . Biggest hugs from me.

peppylady (Dora) said...

Well done, away to build a memory.
Coffee is on

Astrid Maclean said...

Oh wow Tracey, this is so very beautiful and what a totally superb idea!! I so love the shabby vintage look of it with all those wonderful elements surroundig the perfect way you have combined the photocopied other elements, - what a wonderful way to preserve those memories!!

Interestingly I just recently found a letter from my paternal grand dad that he wrote when I was born, so now you have totally inspired me to do something similar. Sadly I never met him, - my family on my Father's side were Jewish and all immigrated to the States in the mid 1930s and he passed away when I was about 3, but I have some lovely photos of him...

On a totally different note, - thank you for all the wonderful comments you always leave on my blogposts, they are very much appreciated, but I just wanted to tell you that Sheena's faux leather technique uses neither sugar nore glucose! She uses Glycerine and water and I have some faux leather journals made previously that have lasted for years!
Happy Sunday and have a wonderful week!!

sirkkis said...

Tracey, have a sunny happy Sunday xx

Barbetka said...

Amazing piece of art. It's so beautiful:)

sarascloset said...

Tracey, this is so sweet! I love that you have this letter and have given it this special treatment --framed for generations to enjoy. What a beautifully made treasured keepsake! Your embellishments are so thoughtful and allow the photo and letter to shine. A real lovely work of art! Hugs!

aussie aNNie said...

Beautiful Tracey, love your gorgeous makes again..
big hugs

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you Helen, that letter is a lovely piece of personal history x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

I do hope so Valerie Thank YOU x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you Brenda, it makes me smile every time I see it xx

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you, I do not have many but what I have I treasure x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thanks so much Elizabeth as I've said I do not have many things like this but I feel it's important to make the most of them and not hide them away. Happy you like it x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thanks so much Anne that means a lot to me. I still get a little choked up when I read that letter obviously I have only shared a fraction of it on this piece. He was a wonderful man and I still miss him 35 years on...

Bet you've had a fab fun weekend, fingers crossed that virus has left you be now xx

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Oh Astrid sorry about the glucose comment, I did mean to say glycerine. That will teach me to comment on posts whilst having very little sleep and not checking what i've written before pressing enter. Think the longevity thought came to mind as I always remember an experiment we did at school with different food families, sugars and sweeteners. Science really scared me & the Teacher would always pick on me because I was so quiet. Funny how I married a man who's Mum was a science Teacher, I should have asked her she's a mind of information on this sort of thing and not half as scary.. Sorry about my Faux Pas (no pun intended!!) also sorry i'm late picking this comment up, it's not been the best weekend here and online time's been very limited.

Look forward to seeing what you create with your found letter, there's so much to discover if we dig deep enough... Interesting about the immigration, a family member on my Hubby's Scottish side emigrated to America Philadelphia I do believe. Hubby's family know so much about it all but not seeing them as often as we should it's probably history that will sadly become lost and forgotten.
Happy to think I may have inspired you xx

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you.

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thanks so much Sara, Happy you like it x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you dear Susi, my Grandad's letter is a very precious thing.
A pleasure as always to join in over at TioT & Thank you for your well wishes all gratefully received xx

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you Cath, I feel like that about it too... everything surrounding the letter & photograph is really just a blur. I think we all need to take note of the lack of physical copies of our photographs before it's too late x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Your very welcome Linda and Thank you for your kind comments. I'm glad I was able to link up with you all this month at last xx

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you so much Erika x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you. How wonderful to find such things Linda, you will have hours and hours of cherished time just looking at them all. I hope you too may use them in your creations xx

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

It is such a lovely letter from Father to Daughter & to think I never knew about it's existence until a few weeks back is so overwhelming. Makes me wonder what else there is still to discover. Thank you so much for your words Karen, so kind x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you Avril, I'm so glad I was able to find a little time to put this together. I feel like there may be more additions to the frame each time I find something of relevance x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thanks Yvonne, I'm sure it will. A pleasure as always to join in over at TioT xx

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you :)

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Yes, to think my Mother had kept this for so long without me knowing, I feel so honoured to now have this precious letter especially in my possession.

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thanks so much Gillena x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you very very much Dear Dorthe, I hope that when it is my turn to pass it on it will be just as treasured. I feel this will not be the only time I use that letter in my own creations. Thank you for your emails there will be a reply from me as soon as I can HUGS xx

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Oh I do hope so Dora Thank you x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

:-*

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you Annie x

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you.

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

xx

Tracey@Hotchpotchcreations said...

Thank you x

Let's Art Journal said...

Wow, what an amazing make! How lovely to have such a wonderful insight into your family through the old letters and photos, and you have captured such wonderful memories in your stunning art project today - I love it šŸ˜. It's such a lovely way to remember your family! I hope that you had a better week last week and wishing you much happiness for the coming week too! Hugs, J šŸ˜Š x

Corrie Herriman said...

Such a great project ! Thank you for taking part in our March Numbers/Letters Challenge!
Corrie x

Gio said...

Such a beautiful, lovely and heartful artwork , Tracey. Gorgeous details are a perfect match to the beloved pictures and letters.

AppleApricot Wen said...

What a beautiful heirloom piece you created with these precious treasures, Tracey! And how sweet to find that letter with your photos. Thank you for sharing how you created this! Wishing you a beautiful week, hugs xx

Little Artbee said...

Oh what a nice story about that Mail from you grandfather. And you decorated the old photo so lovely in that nice Vintage Look. Really a beautiful reminder piece. Well done.
Thanks for your dear comment at my Blog dear Tracy.
Hugs
Sabine

Jane said...

A fabulous project Tracey. Thanks so much for joining our March challenge over at Country view xx

Mac Mable said...

I so enjoyed reading your post. What a wonderful letter to cherish and what amazing memories. Such a wonderful idea to immortalise it and your design and layout is stunning x.

Lace Age Girl said...

Tracey, what a wonderful project using your special memories. It looks fantastic framed with the white decorative bits and pieces. Have a wonderful week.
Jesse

Karen Petitt said...

It's a truly beautiful piece and your grandparents and parents would be so proud of how you've used it. Just stunning huni, absolutely stunning! xx

Words and Pictures said...

How lovely to have such a personal photograph at the heart of your creation, and wonderful to have that precious letter too. All the embellishing looks amazing with the delicate gilding.
Alison x

Brenda Brown said...

Just popping back to say thanks for sharing this in the lineup for our birthday challenge at AVJ xxx

sarascloset said...

So happy to see this in the Pinworthies at A Vintage Journey, Tracey! Hugs!

Jane Elizabeth France said...

Tracey I felt choked up from the first photo when I read the first line of your grandads letter, how precious is this!!!. You lucky lucky girl, not just to have had a lovely grandad but to have this beautiful piece of your history in your possession. Im sure grandad is looking down and loving what you have done with it. Just beautiful.xxxxx