Birds of a feather stick together

The two books in this post were both custom orders that were given as Christmas gifts this year. They were ordered by two different people in different states, but both customers were drawn to this particular paper for the covers. The paper is a textured, light blue paper featuring brown and gold feathers. (Or maybe they're pine needles? Everyone seems to have a different take on the design, so it's up for debate.) Either way, this paper is one of my favorites and has the ability to make any book more elegant.

The first book, personalized with the initials "CJR," was ordered by a man as a surprise gift for his wife. They both stopped by my booth at a local craft show this fall, and stayed to chat a while about my study abroad experiences in Italy while they learned about my work. The very next day, the man e-mailed me to place an order for a Christmas gift.

The couple travels a lot, and because his wife is an artist he wanted to give her a book that she could fill with her sketches as they visit different places throughout the year. I hope this book turns out to be the perfect place for her to record their travel memories.

I used the same color scheme for both books, but varied the paper choices for the endsheets and guards, using different selections of gold and brown papers.

The second book was ordered a month later at my trunk show in South Carolina. A mother ordered this journal as a gift for her son, who has kept journals all of his life. The book was personalized on the cover with his full name.