Friday, January 9, 2015

Shimmering Forest finished

I've been grabbing moments to finish up projects - things that don't involve a big investment of time . Some things I feel so-so about;  some might develop into something better - this was one of them. I don't know if I'll do it again but it was fun to try and a very different look for me. A while back my Fiber Junkies group enjoyed a day of playing with a technique developed by Judy Coates Perez.
 These are the beginnings of my piece.
 There was lots of layering with paper and paint.
An image was drawn on top and filled in with a different color paint. The piece itself is quite stiff. I usually like a softer feel to my pieces - one of the beauties of working with fabric, but this was an interesting way to work and I'm happy with the results.
   I did bind the piece using an organza, but since I was mounting it on another piece of fabric, the binding was brought to the back but not turned under and stitched.

 I did paint the organza with a light wash of Dye-na-Flow paint which dries quickly.
 I cut a piece of black fabric - @ 2" larger all around and mounted the piece in the center. Using a monofilament thread, I stitched in the ditch all around to secure it to the black fabric.
 The stretcher bars were 15" square and the piece only 14" square. There was to be a 1/2" edge of black all around the piece. This was a little tricky as I was working from the back and had to keep it centered so all the black edges were even.
 I then attached a piece of black fabric to the back - hand stitching it to the edge. I put the label on before attaching the back, the wire went on last. This was time consuming but it does make a nice finished back.
And the finished piece I will call "Shimmering Forest" because it really does shimmer! I have to say it feels good to be back in my studio even if only to be finishing up some things. 

8 comments:

  1. Lovely, and such a great way to display these rather stiff paper/fabric creations!

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  2. I love the idea of finishing off the edges with painted organza. I too like the softness of fabric and often stay away from things that will make it stiff but perhaps a little exploration is in order!

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  3. This is absolutely gorgeous. I would have been so afraid to draw an image over that beautifully-layered background, but you pulled it off in spades!

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  4. This is absolutely stunning. I would have been so afraid to draw an image over that beautifully-layered background, but you pulled it off, in spades! Just wonderful.

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  5. Nicely done!!!! Love the way this turned out competed!

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  6. Looks like a fun technique! I really like the polished look you get by finishing with the frame.

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  7. This is beautiful. Thanks for sharing the details of how you finished it.

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  8. What a beautiful tree! I love the impressionistic feel, and the hint of leaves fluttering in the wind in the
    stitching in the background.

    Thank you for linking up with Free Motion Mavericks!

    Love, Muv

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