Don't forget to fly

"There's always a moment when you don't like what you're making." 

Mom would say that when I was sewing a dress and I got sleepy and frustrated and wanted to toss it in the trash. 

It happens a lot still ... when I'm making anything!

At the beginning of this piece, the bird was the only thing I liked. I stuffed the whole thing in the closet. But the bird kept calling me. So I pulled him out and painted big flowers, and hated them, and more flowers and hated them (Who hates flowers??). Then painted everything black, then dark blue-purple, then .... you get the idea. Now I love it. Thanks, bird!

Don't forget to fly 

(last line in a poem by Al Young)

Mixed-media on board

14" x 18" 

Flower series 3: Artists who mix paint and stitch

Talk about inspiration!  Paint and stitch go together many ways.

Artists who mix paint and stitch:

Maya Schonenberger

Sati Zech

Shelley Brenner Baird

Betty Busby

Cas Holmes

Barbara Takenaga

Katie Pasquini Masopust

Flower series 2: Painting orchids

Wild Orchids
16" x 12"
Paint on cotton, quilted

Detail, Wild Orchids

How I made it:

1. Sketchbook drawing. Inspired by orchid in my window. I drew the flowers and leaves onto white Kona cotton then painted them, thought it too boring, so painted black lines and shapes freehand. (11' x 14")
2. Drew it onto white Kona cotton. Black fabric marker. (11" x 16")
3. Painted with fabric paints. They seeped through. Wondered if Gesso would make fabric less absorbent.
4. Painted over white and green areas with acrylic paints. 
5. Layered over thin white felt.
6. Free-motion quilted along drawing lines. Black thread. You can't really see the quilting, but it adds depth. Decided not to use rayon thread. Too shiny.  
7. Tried adding machine quilting detail to an orchid. Didn't like it -- not subtle. ed Ripped it out.
8. Sew a couple of rows of stitching around edges, using straight stitch. Black thread.
9. Attached to Timtex painted black around the edges.  Timex is about 1" bigger than orchids. Mystifuse
10. Add a piece of muslin over the back. Before attaching, put Fray-check on the edges of the muslin and attach a rod pocket and a label.  Mistyfuse adhesive.

Azaleas

Azaleas

21 1/2" x 21 1/2"

Cotton, tulle, flowers, silk, gilt

stitch, paint

Azaleas detail

Center of large flower is an azalea blossom from our garden

Azaleas process

I started with some azalea drawings I made in my big sketchbook. I enlarged this one (on the right),  traced it, and made a model from buckram, and cut the flower from an old silk shirt.  Eventually this flower was abandoned!

Azaleas process

3 strips of cotton at ratio 1.6:1: 1.6

Paint, print, stencil with acrylics

Testing paint colors and fabric for flowers

Playing with color and placement of flowers

Testing color for backing

You can see a light purple at the top and right edge. Didn't like it!

Attaching Mistyfuse to back of fabric. Flaws are because I removed the ironing cloth 

before cotton was cool

Azaleas process

Backing is Timtex, a stiff support that shows about 1/2" on each side. 

Cut Timtex the same size as completed art. The dark purple Kona cotton is 2” more, so it can wrap around the Timtex and leave a 1" "border" on the back. I added a piece of muslin over this. Before attaching, I put Fray-check on the edges and attached a rod pocket and a label. For adhesive on the back, I used Mistyfuse. 

Halfway to 100 faces

When I told myself I'd draw 100 faces, I thought maybe yes, maybe no. But it turns out I love the landscape of faces, and am already past drawing 50 of them. It's fun.

Drawing

Drawing Lab for Mixed-Media Artists by Carla Sonheim is making me love to draw. Other drawing books are a yawn. This one gives me energy.  I seem to be working away at Sonheim's ideas at a rate of about four a week. I've promised myself to draw 100 faces (three so far). Of course, one of the reasons I love this approach is that there don't seem to be any rules. 

Dog, Picasso-style

Faces in ink, watercolor, marker and colored pencil
based on magazine pictures

People I know who wouldn't recognize themselves here
pencil and marker
based on photos