So when last we visited this project, it was inauguration day, and I was working on iteration two of the wall pocket in a vain attempt to distract myself from the fascist rapist taking over my government. It didn’t work. But it’s a cool project, and I still want the finished piece, so it’s time to revisit it.

Iteration two came out like this. Three rows of pockets with lacing to hold things in place.

And it is…almost right. Closer to right than iteration one. But not quite perfect…

Things I like: the general idea (one spot in which to unite all the little bits of ephemera that accumulate around me as I trip through life), the general scale (this thing is the size of a poster, so it fills the wall nicely and without spending a fortune on a big piece or even a big frame), the concept of grommets and lacing (yup, yup you can guess where this is going), and the bars for hanging it.

Things of which I am less fond: the execution of the grommets and lacing bit (no, the gold is not my favorite, yes, I did learn some things about grommets along the way, yes, I do think the lacing is a little busy), wonky stitching (again, I learned some things about a bunch of stuff, including sewing on paper), the depth of the pockets (too deep, they hide big chunks of the things in them), and the placement of the flaps to hold things in place (hrumph).

So now we come to iteration three, seen here pleated, ironed, and clipped in place.

There are now four rows of pockets, all rather shallower than before. There are also little flaps that you can tuck the top edge of things into to keep them from tipping over. Two of the pockets have one flap, two have two. This, alas, makes more sense when I’m sticking my fingers in and wiggling them about, but this is more or less the gist.

The pink bits are pockets, the orange bits are flaps. So starting from the bottom (closest to you), you’ve got a pocket, and above it a flap to secure things in the bottom pocket. Then you’ve got a second pocket and above it two flaps to secure things of two different heights. Then a third pocket with one flap above it. And finally a fourth pocket with two flaps above it. And yes, the way I pleated it the bottom of one pocket serves as the flap for the previous pocket. Because that’s clever and satisfying.

So now I just need to sew all those creases down. Without creasing the paper. Or losing my will to live.