Forest Path - Day 3 - A Little Grass and Moss

It's looking as though I need to completely finish each tree as It appears. Otherwise I can't anchor the leading edges until I slip the moss or grass into place.

That includes having to add in the leaves as I move forward. Know that I really haven't decided how I'm going to stitch this all down.

 

Forest Path - Day 2 - a Little Bit of Paint

 and a bit of black marker. Tree edge has a bit more definition.

Still more to add, moss and lichens.....

Forest Path - Day 2

I added 4 more trees this afternoon, but I will take then off tomorrow. I had thought I would add the shading and some moss/lichen colouring at the end but I see now it needs to happen as I go along. That detail is really the only thing that visually separates the tree trunks from each other.

These trees went much faster today. I played with the pleater over the last few days and worked out a method to make multiples in one pass.

I don't think I like the fellow on the left. The grain is running the wrong way.

Day1 - Forest Path - Images in your mind

There is nothing more annoying than when an image pops into your mind and you can't unsee it. 

That happened yesterday as I started on the first layer of trees and vegetation. I'm not surprised though as in a past life I taught Biology and Sex Ed. During construction all I could see was a green vagina........ (sorry)

That's another reason I hang my work at the end of the day and photograph it. I gives me a much better sense of what I'm seeing (and helps to get those little worms out of my head!  😆 😌.

Today I'll move past the anatomy and head back into the woods. 

Auditioning Fabric for Tree Trunks

 It took a little while to master? (haha) the pleater. After looking on line I came to the conclusion I have a 'baby' pleater with a very limited number of needles. There are a few little tricks the instructions don't tell you about. 

As I need a strip pleated much longer than the width of the machine I needed to run the material through a couple of times. It is getting easier.

So here are the result of 3 materials . I thought before I pleated them they had the most promising colours and designs. 

Finishing the Old Man (cheesecloth construct/Mary Pal)

It's taken much longer than I expected to make a decision with this Old Man. He was smaller than I like so in order to enlarge the piece I used black denim.

How much? I wanted him offset and pushed down by the 'storm'.

Then I was stuck with how to show the snow. Last time I used paint, but it was a much larger piece and the smallest line on that would have been overwhelming on this rendition. Bits of Cheesecloth, string or wool?

I tried them all. After rooting through the attachments I found one with a grove that would guide and hold the piece of thin wool while it was stitched. I ended up unravelling a 4 ply poly yarn and used that.

I went ahead and totally finished the piece with a pillowcase binding and a hanging sleeve.

I still may add more 'snow' and /or a black binding. I'll live with it for awhile.

Playing with the Smocking machine

I know now this machine doesn't like batiks. It eats the needles. But it did manage to give me a fair sized tree trunk. Roughly 30"x1"+ Time to refine the materials and the method.

Time for New Work

There are a couple of images that are sitting at the back of my mind. Idle brain cycles are spent planning and musing the details, the hows and the materials.

This one has hung around for several years. Love it!

I'm planning a technique I haven't tried.

But on a morning walk along the Eramosa I stumbled across this big fella. Unfortunately I didn't have a camera and by the time I returned with camera and sketch pad his gnarly shape was hidden, softened with a burst of foliage. Not all is lost though. 

I made two sketches trying out a series of indelible pens ranging from a brush to micro nibs.

I'm not a strong water colour artist so I used some Prisma colour water soluble pencils to fill in the foliage.

I just have to stay out of the garden long enough to get started with fabric in my studio and then I know I'll be hooked on one or the other.

Gallery Show

This WAS supposed to be open to the public but thanks to Covid it's not. The venue is my public library. It may open in a few weeks. We just have to wait and see.

The art works are my work and my friends. We all have different styles and interests but we all love colour.

I did try to take a video but the light contrast in the building was just too much for my small tablet.

M.Anne Smith

As this piece was under glass the glare spoiled the image.

Ann Jeffrey

Ann Jeffrey

Mary Hopkins /Ann Jeffrey

Naomi Klasse

Mary Hopkins

Nellie Hanuta/Ruth Jennison

Nellie Hanuta

M Hopkins/A Jeffrey

Dawn Labelle

Mary Hopkins

Quilters gamble

 I hadn't worked on a quilt this big for a long time. While I'm sure other have used more thread, I did clean myself out of Orange #20875 all 2400 metres.