Seascape - a Breakthrough.........FINALLY

I had been so frustrated by this piece. It had been a month and still, every time I looked at it, the shoreline moved or didn't work. I figured out the blockage was caused by the white edge. Everyone had said they really liked it. But it didn't work for me.

What was it? Surf? Cliff? Shore edge? I just couldn't see it.

This piece was definitely NOT Dover but I felt like I was being pushed that way.

So after ignoring it for a long time.........I came home.. first to Lake Huron,

and then to PEI....

to cliffs I HAD experienced to and could readily revisit.
It was as simply as that.

Using burlap and cheesecloth, I got rid of the white edge and replaced it with red "sandstone".

Still a ways to go, but now I SEE it.

Added Value

In consultation with my sister out west, my primary sales locale, we decided to add some souvenir cards to her inventory. If her guests in her B&B (www.lebeausoleilbandb.com), couldn't take home a piece of my art, they could take home a selection of cards instead.
This upcoming event in Toronto seemed like a good place to test the "product".
So my ever supportive hubby has been printing some of my photos onto high gloss photo paper and today I trimmed and mounted a few on card stock.
A little labour intensive, but a nice change from sewing?

(no I haven't worked up the courage yet to tackle the seascape.........sigh....)

Tying up Loose Ends

Now that my initial panic re "the SHOW' has passed I can get back to what still needs to be done.

I'm still hoping to work the seascape in the next few days, but before that I wanted to finish the cardinal pair.

I trimmed most of the bulk of the green buds away, I went with a formal finish.
After micro quilting the entire piece ( that only took a day ) I decided to give it a formal finish, ie a "white mat and black frame" finish. It's the only piece in this current collection finished this way.

Different edge finishes are okay. You chose them according to what you think the piece needs. The white bands highlights the pastel nature of the cloth and the softness of the bird colour. Yes the red is RED, but the female colours mute the whole.
So this guy is ready to go.

I'll have to spend a day inspecting all as I realized I haven't signed most of them.
Or applied labels........

Where has the Week Gone?

I tell you, most of my walking hours these last few weeks have been somehow or another fixed on this event.

This makes it real and now I'm starting to worry about the details, the mechanics of the day(s).
Hubby and I spent a few (funny) hours yesterday acquainting ourselves with the display tent I borrowed. Signage, furniture.....
Hmmmmm. More things to get in my head at night. I guess I should stop creating and start making a list.

😊

It's OK to change things

I made a lot of changes this week. Several pieces are being remounted on frames. One was too wobbly. It just wouldn't lie flat. The fix? Anchor it to a frame.
Another was under quilted and lacked physical substance. I know why it happened and its directly related to the fact I painted my own cloth. I fall in love with the cloth itself and the use is almost secondary. Some can be fixed by stitching after the fact and others can't.
So I've taken the binding off and with hubby's help I'll stretch remount them with stretcher bars. (Stay tuned for that comedy.)

The other thorn in my side has been the piece I started at our group workshop, the seascape.

I'm often the first to finish things but not this time.
It has great bones. The cloth representing the ground offered a lot of possibilities but I just could settle on a path.
When I looked at a photo on the computer screen, I could almost see the line of cliffs and beaches I wanted to dress. When I went to the piece itself, I'd get about a third of the way up the coast and then....... the line was invisible. Even sketching from the computer screen onto a photo and then trying to transfer those line to the quilt.......? It just wouldn't come together.

😀

Today I found a path.
I eliminated the sea at the bottom and extended the cliff edge in the foreground.

Now it makes sense to me artistically and I know I can move forward. ( Well it's about time.. It's been over 3 weeks!)