Embroidered flowers

I picked up a book called The Art of Embroidered Flowers from the "free" table at my quilt guild meeting a couple of months ago.

It was written by Gilda Baron, who I googled and found out she had recently died.  There are several YouTube videos out there that she had done, showing demonstrations of her techniques, and this book is wonderful.  I'm sure most of you already have all the materials necessary to try some of these techniques.

I had already painted some pieces a few years ago using an assortment of Dynaflow and Jacquard fabric paints, so I dug them out and finally put them to use for this project:

First I drew some lines using fabric markers:

And of course heat set with an iron.

For a backing, the book recommended just using batting (wadding) but I have found it not to be stiff enough in the past, so I used some pretty heavy pellon interfacing.  I didn't use a hoop, but some people feel more comfortable using one, it's really not necessary if your stabilizer is sturdy.  

Then I started free motion stitching some lines to suggest grasses using an assortment of threads (rayon, cotton, polyester):

For the blue background, I painted some bubble wrap with purple paint then pressed it onto the fabric, then stitched some vertical lines: 

And finished them both off with some simple hand stitching, mostly french knots and flowers.

There was some minor puckering on these, so I asked my friend Jenny Williams (an extraordinary thread sketcher) what I could use for backing to eliminate some of that problem.  She suggested regular cotton duck, so I tried that for my next ones.  It was a lot easier to do hand stitching through than trying to get a needle through the pellon.

Also, if you're doing a lot of lines, it's smarter to add some zigzag stitches in first, as they fill up the background a whole lot faster than straight lines do.

Here are two more simple techniques from the book, using a zigzag stitch to suggest a flower like delphiniums or larkspur:

And cutting out  some little circles, which I glued to the piece before stitching--

Then took to my machine and made a quick series of zigzags which I later clipped--

With some french knots added:

And I tried out a different stitch for foliage here:

Just need to add a few french knots--

Next time I'll show you an easy way to finish them for framing.

To Art Quilting and Beyond - Week 4/Part 5

I can hardly believe it is over! I hope you all enjoyed this month as much as I did planning, making and posting it. Have to admit I did learn a few things about me and my art quilting. And especially about hand stitching and quilting. Somehow I think hand-stitching a binding will never seem like that much work again! Sounds like a piece of cake at the moment!

So here is the finale. The last act. The end....or is it? Perhaps it is the beginning of a new direction to enjoy from time to time. Something to stir the creative juices if they ever become stale.

After the final layout, I felt like it still needed something to give it a bit more interest. I have a HUGE piece of netting that has sparkly circles embedded into it. So I cut out circles to keep with one of the connecting themes and I think it really sets off some of the "snowflakes"  And I also have a piece of organza with blue shiny circles on it.  I cut out a few and put those on this piece as well.

Winter Garden

So here are all four seasons together.

So now you know that even when disaster strikes, power is out and zombies are roaming the land, there is art to be made! 

It's been a fun month for me! Thank you all for your kind, encouraging and insightful comments.

We had our first little bit of snow today so I'm really looking forward to Wil's Snow and Ice Dyeing coming up for November!!

To Art Quilting and Beyond - Week 4/Part 3

Now the extra quilting has been done and I settled on how I wanted to make the tree.  And I even added another tree.

I am loving the way the snowy ground undulates and is not straight and even. It looks more like some of the fields up here in the upper midwest in the winter.

And of course, I HAD to have a purple tree! When I teach art to young kids, I tell them they can have purple trees if they want to because it is THEIR art! So I needed to practice what I teach! It is the purple leftover from the first piece, Summer Garden.

And now it has a title as well..."Winter Meadow"

Get ready for tomorrow. Perhaps it was inspired by all the ads for scary movies this week, or just a weird turn of mind. But does it matter....really???

To Art Quilting and Beyond - Week 4/Part 2

Now that there is finally a direction in which to head, everything seems to fall into place.

As I was playing around with the bits to put onto this piece, I felt in the first layout some of them didn't

show up very well...so I combined them with some other bits and I like what happened with that. A litle more depth and a little more texture.

  

The second layout looks a bit better. Getting there at least. I also added the bottle cap for some pop of color there as well. Plus, I knew the girls would get a kick out of it.

Tomorrow it starts to look like the vision.

Then on Thursday....another surprise.  It's a little scary I'll tell you that much! 

To Art Quilting and Beyond - Week 4/Part 1

As you might imagine...since I've now done Summer Garden, Autumn Migration and Spring Pond...the next piece has to be a Winter piece. Only makes sense, right?

As I noted on Friday, I did not have much fabric to work with but with the blue fabric the girls chose and the connecting fabric I had just enough to make it work! Believe me...I was sweating this one.

Because I have the pond with an upward arc I wanted to do this one with a downward arc. So that is how I began.

The blue fabric is the snowy blue sky of a winter evening. And the downward arc finished off the balance of the background. So I had a beginning.

And this is how it sat for almost 2 days. I looked at my bag of items and thought and thought of how to make it blend with the other three pieces. Finally I decided the connecting fabric looked like a valley of snow and that is the direction I settled on.

I started by stitching a tree on the right side but when I put it with the other 3 it looked very  different and like it didn't belong. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it!) I did not get a photo of that stitched tree. It did not turn out like I had wanted anyway.  The one thing that came out of this mishap was noticing that I definitely needed more stitching on the background. Which I did later on as you will see in the coming days,.

So I cut a paper template to use for the tree fabric I had found. I laid that on the background and played with some of the bits in the bag of items just to get an idea of what it could look like.

Here is the first layout.

This one took a little more "marinating" than I'm used to but once I got the vision it evolved fairly quickly.

This process was a bit different than how I usually work. Usually I have a fairly well formed idea of the final product. Granted, it often changes a bit along the way but it ends up near the original vision at least. On this one, I only knew I wanted it to be a winter theme AND that it had to go well with the other three pieces.

So, let's see where this one ends up now!  See you tomorrow

To Art Quilting and Beyond - Week 3/Part 5

Now to finish up the Spring Pond!

Played with all the bling and had so much fun with them. Yes, I know it is weird rain but hey....you never know right?

I stitched down the raindrops which are stitched into the connecting fabric. Then added some of the bling.

Also in the collection of stuff to use I found 4 porcupine quills!  Hadn't seen them earlier.  So I put them at the edge of the grasses like reeds or cattails.

And after all that....here is the final piece

Spring Pond

Only one more week and one more season....winter.

Here is the collection of stuff from my little darlings for the last piece. This one is going to be a real challenge...perhaps the most difficult so far. First thing I notice is that it is woefully short on fabric! I might have to troll my stash to add some to this pile for it to work. Ideas are already swirling around in my head. I'll start on Monday!  See you then!

(Thanks Wil for letting me know. One of the downsides of scheduling posts! )

To Art Quilting and Beyond - Week 3/Part 3

Now for the pond part of the background on Spring Pond.

The fabric is a sunprint I did a while ago. I think it was what really inspired the pond part of this challenging collection.  While the silver tinsel inspired the rain.

When I chose it for the pond, I saw drops of rain landing on the still surface of the pond and ripples spreading out and crossing.  Here is what it looks like.

Now I'm really getting into hand stitching I guess...We took a short trip to see the grandkids today and I took this in the car and stitched some of the ripples. And yes....I even threaded my needle several times in the car!  THAT was a totally new experience. But one of the great things about hand work...it is usually portable!

I added some of the rusty metal and other bits from the collection of stuff for more ripple centers. I also used the blue/silver cording to give some grounding to the pond.

Now I place the raindrops where I wanted them.  Just need to stitch them down.

See them on Friday! Because tomorrow is another surprise.... a little spacey one.

Till tomorrow then!

To Art Quilting and Beyond - Week 3/Part 2

Spring Pond begins.

The background fabrics are for the sunset sky, grasses surrounding the pond, sand/dirt at the edge of the pond...and the pond itself.

I started with the sky fabric. It is already pretty busy so I just stitched around the random patterns made on the fabric. Would love to tell you how I got this pattern but this fabric has been around a while and I have no idea how I did it. It is dyed is about all I can tell you.

Here is a close-up 

The next layer is for the grasses surrounding the pond. I stitched vertically but not straight on purpose. Wanted the lines to look like the various directions of the grasses.

For the sand/dirt at the edge of the pond, I used the connecting fabric and stitched it in wavy lines to give it some texture and movement. 

The next part of the background took a while to complete. I'll tell you all about it tomorrow! 

OK so this hand-stitching novice has a question...I remember from a hand quilting presentation I attended once...long time ago...that there is a way to "bury your knot".  I can't for the life of me figure it out again. Is it

difficult (if not impossible) because I'm working with embroidery floss rather than quilting thread?

Inquiring minds want to know!

To Art Quilting and Beyond - Week 3/Part 1

Week three already!

Ready for another week? With a surprise later on??

OK, first I want to post again the photo of the stuff my granddaughters picked out.

Since I have already done Summer and Autumn, with these colors it has to be Spring! The puzzler at first was the silver tinsel. I was thinking of how to make it into rain...spring rain. Plus I had to get the connecting fabric incorporated into the piece somewhere. After a bit of playing and inspiration that just appeared in my head when I woke up one morning....here is the initial layout of where I want to go with this batch of stuff.

The title will be "Spring Pond"  The concept of the rain (tinsel stitched into strips of the connecting fabric) and the drops of rain landing in the pond and creating ripples. I'll share more of the actual stitching and other bits as we go along.

So now to find my needle and get to work! I hope some of you are willing to give this a try. It is especially fun when you get someone else to pick out the stuff!

To Art Quilting and Beyond - Week 1/Part 4

With the background finished, not I get to play with the fun bits!

So I put the background down on the table and piled all my fun bits next to it to see what fit where. I think this is so much fun...seeing it start to take shape and when you can see the actual final piece in your head.

Before I started quilting I auditioned things and found pretty much what I wanted.

Then when I finished quilting and laying out the actual size of the finished piece, I made some adjustments.

Here is the next audition session.

Now I can reveal the title of this piece. OK...here's where I'm headed.  I plan to make 4 of these little challenge pieces and then put them together in one art quilt. After seeing how this one was coming together, I decided on the four seasons.  This one is "Summer Garden"

Of course, a summer garden needs some summer sun. No yellow paint but who says the sun can't be light green? I used the metal mesh piece as a stencil.

Then some of the darker green as a brush stroke for some subtle movement in the corner.

When looking at it, it became obvious that the "flower" with the puzzle pieces was way too much like a snow flake so that had to change. Stitched the puzzle pieces down with an X of embroidery floss. And added one of the larger buttons in the box.

The painted piece of Tyvek seemed too dark so I flipped it over (fortunately I had painted both side of this one) and liked that much better. I stitched it down with random Xs 

Then I braided a piece of the fabric in the box and stitched it as the outside of the flower. A pearl-esque button in the middle added to lighten up the space.

Now for the flowers on the ground and seeds under the ground.....

This one has both. One flower just popping its head above the ground and a flower-to-be under the ground.

I actually had buttons that went with three of the colors of the stripes in the "top soil" I love the pop of color they add.

So...now it is complete. I'll show you the final piece all together tomorrow!

OK...while I can't see doing a whole quilt by hand, not yet at least, I have to say I have more of an understanding of the process and appreciation for the calmness of it all. I can actually imagine making pieces even without electricity and all my equipment. I enjoy the challenge as well. I hope you are as well!!

Techniques, tools, materials

Penny Gold again here, with my last guest post.  Many thanks to Beata and the other guest bloggers for all of this month's posts!

I know I appreciate hearing about specific techniques, tools, and materials used by others, so I thought I'd share some of my own favorites here.

TECHNIQUES:
Stitching without a hoop or frame:  Learning to quilt without a hoop or frame made a big difference to me.  I like hand-stitching to be portable, so didn't want to be tied to a frame, and even a hoop is awkward to carry around.  I learning the method I now use from Suzanne Marshall.  I have not seen it described in her books, which focus on applique, but this Youtube video shows the method I learned from her.  The key thing is that most of the movement is in your left hand, moving the fabric up and down, rather than in your right hand that holds the needle (reverse for lefties).  One key thing that the video doesn't show:  When stitching in the center of a larger work, with too much fabric to gather in your hand and still keep your thumb on top of the work, you can move your left hand underneath the work and grab a kind of pocket of the fabric near where you're stitching.  You can see a photo of what I mean here (Suzanne Marshall) and here (Tonya Ricucci).

Stitching in limited stints:  For the first few years that I was doing hand-quilting and hand applique, I would stitch for an hour or more at a time.  I started developing hand pain, then numbness, and also a ganglion cyst on my wrist.  I was reassured that the cyst was not dangerous, just ugly, and I could live with that, but the pain and numbness were troubling.  I learned a number of hand and wrist exercises through physical therapy, and that helped a great deal.  But I was also instructed to stitch for shorter stretches of time.  It was hard to cut back, but I knew that keeping hand function was important!  So, I started timing my stints of handwork to the length of one side of an LP record, treating myself to listening to some old albums while I sewed.  I continue to limit myself to about 20 minutes of hand-sewing a day.  It is a little island of quiet for me.  The work goes slowly, but it progresses steadily.  I have accepted the slow pace, knowing that the work still will eventually be complete.  Here's a link to a substantial piece on hand health for stitchers.  It focuses on arthritis and carpal tunnel syndrome; my issue was repetitive strain injury.

Threading multiple needles at once:  The part I like least in hand-sewing is having to thread the needle time and again.  I find this annoys me less if I get multiple needles lined up with thread at the end of a session, so I'm all set to go when I sit down to sew.  This also serves as another way for me to time a limited stint--sewing 6 needles is, for me, about 20 minutes.

TOOLS & MATERIALS (needles & thread):
When handquilting with thin quilting thread, I've used a size 8 or 9 between needle, with most any make satisfactory.  But I've had more trouble finding a needle I like for doing bigger stitching, with heavier thread or multiple strands of thread.  I like a needle thin enough to go through the fabric easily, with a big enough eye that I can thread it without a needle-threader, and a comfortable length (not too long).   The two brands/size of needles detailed below fit all three criteria when I'm using DMC embroidery floss, up to three strands.  In my current project, I'm using one strand of 20/2 pearl cotton from Halcyon yarns, recommended to me by a weaving friend as a thread that dyes well (as I was dyeing thread to match the fabric).  The roundness of this thread (as opposed to embroidery thread, which seems flat) prevents it from easily going through the eye of the needle, so I've reconciled myself to using a needle threader with this thread.  I did try a needle with a larger eye, but since the whole needle was larger, it was a lot more difficult to push through the fabric.

Mary Arden Embroidery needles--in a packet of assorted needles ranging from size 5 to 10, there seem to be three sizes.  I use the middle size.  I bought them at Colonial Needle.
John James Embroidery needles in a dusky pink "pebble."  I also use the middle size needle in this pack.

I would be very interested to hear about what type of needle you prefer to use--please leave a comment (or e-mail me directly) if you have one you like!

And here's Beth Berman's great tutorial on dyeing thread, including how to make up the skeins from a larger ball/cone of thread, and how to take individual threads off the dyed skein.

Letting go

Penny again here.  As I talked about in my last post, the drawing class I took several years ago taught me that letting go of control could yield interesting and beautiful results.  But even though I went to the class with the intention of applying it to stitching, nothing much happened on that side of things.  I knew I wanted to do something different, but had no idea of how to go about it.  Then came Dorothy Caldwell's "Human Marks" workshop in May 2013, which opened up a whole new arena in stitching for me.  I have written about the week at the workshop and about work influenced by it in my own blog.  Some of the photos below also appear in that post, but have added new reflections here, focusing on the notion of "letting go."

A number of the exercises in the workshop were directed towards opening oneself up to chance or accident, encouraging us to pay attention to what was happening under our fingers, even if it wasn't intentional.  Here are two new directions in my stitching, both stemming directly from the workshop.

Blind stitching

The photo below shows the results of a blind stitching exercise, where Dorothy would read out a word, and the students, blindfolded, were to make a row of stitches with that word in mind.

When I took off my blindfold, I was enthralled with the second row from the top, made with the word "dialogue" as the prompt.  (I intended pairs of stitches, but sometimes I couldn't remember whether I'd done one stitch or two, so sometimes ended up with three stitches together.)  I asked Dorothy, "If I want to do a stitch like this again, do I have to be blindfolded?"  She answered no, likely not--a good thing, as sewing with a blind-fold on was not something I'd be eager to incorporate into my practice. Looking at the work as it develops is one of the joys of hand-sewing.

Last fall, I tried out the stitch as one included in a sampler piece (more on this piece here):

It is not as "loose" as the stitch done blindly, but that's fine--I like it very much as it is, perhaps even more than the stitch done in the workshop.  I think of it as my "conversation" stitch.

Looking at the back
One of the major lessons I took away from the workshop was reinforcement of the idea to slow down and look carefully.  To be open to accidental beauty.  To look for serendipitous adjacencies/relationships (this last most in play when we were making our small books, looking to arrange pages with interesting juxtapositions).  For example, on one of my cloth-book pages, I sewed a trapezoidal piece of fabric I had brought with me.

But when I turned the page, I found I was more enchanted with the line of stitches that showed on the back:

Looking at the back came into play when I turned to a large quilt that had been lined up for machine quilting for some months, but I had been unable to make a decision about the quilting.  It struck me that  my "conversation" stitch--could contribute to the meaning of the quilt, which is about regret--a state of mind that has much to do with conversations, missing or gone astray.  And that sitting with the quilt on my lap for the months it would take to hand-quilt it would be more therapeutic for me than machine stitching.  (More on this quilt here.)   I started by making the stitch in irregular rows in the upper right black figure (charcoal thread on black fabric).  When I looked at the back, I loved the irregular dot-dash lines that were created, and decided to use that as the main stitch on the rusty/red/orange background sections of the quilt.  So, for those sections, I am stitching with the back of the quilt facing up, making the conversation stitch onto the back.  In this photo, you can see the conversation stitch in the black and it's "back" in the background (this shows about a quarter of the whole quilt):

Here's the back side, showing stitching from the top right and some background:

And I've also varied the stitching on the front by sometimes doing the stitching from the back as a random seed stitch rather than in rows, which yields the stitches on the bottom right on the red side.  (This is a lot less confusing if seen in person!)

When my friend Mary Beth was visiting a few months ago, she asked me how it felt to do the more improvisational stitching--did it take more attention/thought than a standard, regular quilting stitch, or less?  Interesting--it actually takes more, and I find this to be true of making compositions improvisationally as well.  There is an early stage when the point is not to think so much, to let go of concentrated intentionality.  This is what generates the free-form stitches or compositions.  But once those elements are in place, and one wants to repeat them or work them into a composition, one has to think about it.  In repeating the conversation stitch, I had to take care to make it not regular.  After months of repeating the stitch, it now comes pretty naturally to vary it without thinking.  But there is still more conscious thought involved.  It's different from the kind of meditative state that I am more likely to enter if doing a regular, repetitive traditional hand-quilting stitch.  I like both.

My last post is scheduled for later this month.  In that post, I'll talk about techniques, tools, and materials (including the thread that I hand-dyed for this last project).