Heirloom Collection – Buttons

Posted on November 10, 2021 by Salley Mavor

Earlier this year, I took a break from stitching, focusing instead on making assemblages with some of the sewing related objects I’ve collected throughout my life. As I rummaged through old boxes, grouping like things together, I realized that the quantities of spools, buttons and other vintage items I’d accumulated had reached a critical mass, where the whole was more interesting than the sum of its parts. My mind exploded with ideas for how to turn these collections into art that’s as ephemeral as sand painting.

THREAD SPOOLS

It started on Valentine’s day, when I felt inspired to gather all of the old wooden spools of thread that I’d accumulated and arrange them in a heart shape, which I wrote about here. Since then, the thread heart image has been made into a note card and a poster, which are available in my Etsy shop. And I’m especially excited that it’s being made into a puzzle by C&T Publishing sometime next year!

BUTTONS

After Rob took a photo of the thread heart, I cleared the table and put the spools back in boxes. Then, I separated by color the hundreds of buttons I’ve saved for no particular purpose. There were a lot of old white pearl buttons as well as quite a few blue and red ones. It was a mixture of old and new, from shell to plastic.

I wanted to make a simple homey scene, like a child’s drawing, so I formed the house first and built the design around it.

The button landscape took a few days to complete, which is nothing compared to the months I usually spend stitching just one piece. I put down wooden boards to provide a framework to work inside. My supply of blue buttons was limited, so I filled in large areas of the sky with white pearl “clouds”. It felt kind of like making a mosaic, without having to worry about gluing the buttons down.

Once the house, sky and sun were formed, I improvised in the area around the house, using browns and greens for the ground and other colors for flowers.

When the scene was almost finished, I removed the frame so it wouldn’t cast a shadow when the photo was taken. The Buttons image is printed on a note card, which is available in packs of 4 or in mixed sets with the thread spool heart in my Etsy shop

4 Card set of Thread and Button assemblages

The Thread Spools Poster is perfect for a sewing/craft room. It fits easily into a standard 18″ x 24″ frame, which you can see hung in my studio. The poster and cards are available in my Etsy shop.

18″ x 24″ Poster – Heirloom Collection: Thread Spools

After the thread spools and buttons, I made assemblages with other vintage items, including lace and souvenir dolls, which I’ll share more about in future posts.

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Heirloom Collection – wooden spools of thread

Posted on March 7, 2021 by Salley Mavor

Do you have a collection of old wooden spools of thread? Perhaps they’ve been passed down in the family. You just can’t bring yourself to throw them out because they are a connection to people and places in your past. You wonder what to do with them.

They are beautiful objects to look at. Mostly, the spools sit there unused, relics of a bygone era. Some people think the thread isn’t practical to use because it breaks easily, but others say it’s strong and of a higher quality than what you can buy today. A follower who saw my photo of the spools on Instagram summed it up this way, “I have a small collection. My husband asked me why I was keeping them…. well he just doesn’t get it.”

On Valentines Day, I decided to make an assemblage with my collection of cotton and silk thread. I put some spools on end and some sideways, separating the ones with paper labels from the stamped ones. It was so much fun that I surrounded the heart shape with just about every spool I could find hidden away in my studio.

I used my grandmother’s old bread board as a base. That way, I could move it without messing up the design. Doesn’t it look like a box of candy? Rob took a photo of the arrangement and viola, a piece of art!

I am happy to offer note cards, a jigsaw puzzle, notebooks, and a poster of the spool heart image to my Etsy shop.

Thread Spool Heart spiral bound notebook

Gathering the spools and arranging them took an afternoon, which is a fraction of the time it takes to create a stitched piece. It seems that I either work quickly like this or laboriously over a period of months. Nothing in between. Each way feeds a different part of my creative soul.

Making the spool heart has sparked a new series of assemblage pieces made from vintage items that I’m calling the Heirloom Collection. I also made a homey scene with an assortment of old buttons (see below), which you can find out about in this post. A note card of the button landscape (sold in a 4 card set combo with the spool heart or separately) is also available in my Etsy shop.

4 Note Cards Set – Heirloom Collection, 2 thread cards and 2 Buttons cards

Part of the appeal of working spontaneously is that I can come up with an idea, set up an arrangement, snap a photo and then take it apart in a relatively short period of time. I like making ephemeral art because I don’t have to think about mounting, framing and preserving it as a “thing”. The photo becomes the art. My head is exploding with ideas for other collections!

These vintage spools resonate with so many of us, especially sewers, quilters and fiber artists who are old enough to remember using them. This is what they’re saying on Facebook and Instagram:
“Omg I love this! I thought I was the only one who had a collection of vintage wooden silk spools sitting around.” and “I have a box of old thread, passed down through 4 generations. I treasure it. It’s like a magic box.”

To keep up with new posts, please subscribe to this blog (top right column on the home page). Your contact info will not be sold or shared. If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram

the Greta effect

Posted on February 6, 2020 by Salley Mavor

Ever since learning about Greta Thunberg, the 17 year-old Swedish environmental activist, I’ve wanted to make a wee folk version of her. But, the idea of making such an inspiring public figure into just a cute little doll with braids didn’t seem like enough to do her justice. Greta symbolizes the upcoming generation who will experience climate change much more profoundly than people my age and they must be heard. I kept thinking that the real Greta would not like being turned into a passive fetish object, without her strong message and a call to action. So, I figured out a way to both depict her likeness and quote her, while also supporting the issues she is calling attention to.

After making the Greta doll, I set out to photograph her outside in a natural setting. The aim was to take a photo that would have room to incorporate one of her famous quotes. So, on a recent beautiful day, Rob and I went around the corner to Woodneck Beach. The conditions were perfect! The low tide created an interesting landscape and the late afternoon sun gave off the kind of warm glow that photographers can only wish for. The result was the image below, which we are making into prints to sell as a fundraiser for climate science research.

Greta_Quote_6_a_low — 8.5″ x 11″ archival print for sale to benefit climate research

BUY PRINTS and NOTE CARDS and support CLIMATE SCIENCE RESEARCH:
The image of Greta Thunberg with her quote is available for sale in my shop HERE. All profits will go to the Woods Hole Research Center, a leading source of climate science that drives the urgent action needed to solve climate change.
____________________________________________________________
Set of 4 Note Cards – $10.00 – Buy here.
Set of 10 Postcards – $10.00 – Buy here.
8.5″ x 11″ Archival Print – $15.00 – Buy here.

Woods Hole Research Center is an organization of renowned researchers who work with a worldwide network of partners to understand and combat climate change. They have been focused on climate change since it first emerged as a pubic policy issue 35 years ago. Headquartered in Falmouth, MA, they currently work in more than twenty countries around the globe – from the Amazon to the Arctic. World-class science is the foundation of everything they do. They share their learning with scientific colleagues, lawmakers, private sector leaders, and the public in order to turn knowledge into far-reaching action. For more information, visit whrc.org.

The Greta Effect Animation
During the process of making the Greta doll, the partially made pipe cleaner body sat on my work table, looking at me in an intense way. I thought, we have to film her doing just that! So, Rob and I made this short animated film, “The Greta Effect”.

The following photos show the process of making the Greta doll and the video:

To paint a likeness on the round wooden bead, I referred to photos of Greta. In this small scale, I was limited to a few brush strokes to make her face recognizable.

With the exception of a few added details, the Greta doll is made with the same basic techniques that are taught in my how-to book, Felt Wee Folk.
After painting the face, I glued a felt wig to the bead head and let it dry. Then, I stitched embroidery floss hair to the felt, which provided something for the needle to grab onto. It was fun to make her tell-tale braids.

This photo gives you an idea of how her hands were made.

Partway through the process, we filmed the Greta doll sitting on my work table, turning her head to look straight out at the viewer, as if to say, “I’m looking at you!”.

It took 2 tries to do the animation because I messed up the first attempt by kicking the tripod. We started over the next day.

Even though the scene is only 11 seconds long, it took all day to animate. In addition to my turning the doll’s head incrementally, Rob manually rotated the camera and moved it along the slider, one frame at a time (24 frames per second). It brought back memories of our year in the basement, filming Liberty and Justice.

Then it was time to make her clothing. I made her pants and shoes and…

a zippered anorak out of pink felt….

sewing it in place, so that it’s never coming off!

Who knows if the real Greta will ever see this, but if she does, I hope that she approves of using her image and quote to support climate science research. Again, prints and not cards may be purchased in my shop HERE.

Behind the Glass – part 1

Posted on October 31, 2019 by Salley Mavor

An original embroidered illustration from “Mary Had a Little Lamb” in a private collection.

This is the first post in a series that will show what my artwork looks like Behind the Glass. I’ve had to accept that UV glass is a necessary barrier that protects my embroidery from dust, bugs, light, and probing fingers. But, since these loaned pieces were temporarily removed from their frames in preparation for my upcoming exhibition, I was able to get up close to take photos from different angles.

Mary Had a Little Lamb

For the past few weeks, I’ve been gathering my embroidered artwork from local collectors who are generously loaning their pieces for my upcoming exhibition, Salley Mavor: Once Upon a Thread at the Cape Cod Museum of Art (Dec. 12, 2019 – Jan. 16, 2020). The retrospective exhibition will include original illustrations from my picture books, from the first (The Way Home,1991) to the latest (Pocketful of Posies, 2010). Between the borrowed ones and others that I’ve kept, there will be lots of original pieces on display, with a dozen titles represented. This show will be an opportunity for visitors to see the detail and 3-dimensional quality of my artwork in person and also view pieces from private collections that are rarely shown in public.

Close-up photos of illustrations for my first 3 books are shown in this post: The Way Home (1991), Come to My Party (1993) and Mary Had a Little lamb (1995).

Luckily, many of the collectors who bought pieces in the early days live nearby, so it’s fairly easy to round up enough work to display. At this point, I should have 4 spreads from Mary Had a Little Lamb, the most that have been together for over 20 years.

People ask how I can sell my originals, because of the amount of work that goes into them. The simple answer is – it’s not hard to let them go. For me the joy comes from making more than having. It’s good to spread them around! There are practical considerations as well. Selling originals is how I’m paid for my work, since book royalties aren’t much. I also need to clear space to fill with new art, both physically and mentally. That said, I’ve kept pieces that have a special meaning and I’m holding onto some of my newer pieces, so that they are available to exhibit. The original illustrations for my upcoming picture book, My Bed: Enchanting Ways to Fall Asleep around the World will eventually be offered for sale, after the touring exhibition, Salley Mavor: Bedtime Stitches.

Mary Had a Little Lamb

Mary Had a Little Lamb

Mary Had a Little Lamb

Mary Had a Little Lamb

Mary Had a Little Lamb

Judy Richardson loaned me her 2 pieces, one from each of the 2 books she wrote and I illustrated: The Way Home and Come to My Party. Read the series of posts about our adventures in children’s book publishing here.

Judy and Salley with elephant at fair, 1991

The Way Home

Come to My Party

The Way Home

Studio goings-on

Posted on October 20, 2019 by Salley Mavor

After being almost exclusively in making-mode for the past few years, I now wake up every morning with a different agenda. Besides paying attention to my husband Rob and having lunch with friends, I’m photographing my work, organizing exhibitions, and preparing lectures. Making art is one thing, but if you want to share it with the world, you have to figure out ways get it out there. It’s a different creative exercise that not all artists can or want to take on. Although I would rather be stitching right now, I know that doing the promotional part is worth it down the road.

Before showing what’s happening in my studio, I’d first like to invite those of you in the Boston area to an Artist Talk I’ll be giving in Watertown, MA. It’ll be at the Quilters’ Connection, on Thursday, October 24, 2019 at 7:00 PM at St. James Armenian Church, 465 Mount Auburn Street, Watertown, MA. $10.00 guest fee for non Quilters’ Connection members.

I will share the joys and challenges of making art that ranges from precious to poignant to provocative, as well as explain where this doll-infested needle and thread universe comes from. I’ll also bring along some original pieces, including Birds of Beebe Woods (pictured left) and books to sell. I look forward to meeting you!

Over the past few weeks, Rob and I have been photographing a lot of older artwork. My pieces are displayed in cherry wood shadow-box frames that Rob makes. Glass protects the bas-relief embroidery from dust, bugs and curious fingers.

The process includes removing each piece from its frame, taking its picture and then putting it back in the frame. So, why didn’t we take photos before framing them behind glass? It’s a long story involving deadlines, a broken wrist, and consequently being behind schedule. So, here we are, doing the job years later. Many of these pieces will be part of a solo exhibition this coming winter at the Cape Cod Museum of Art.

The family-friendly exhibition, SALLEY MAVOR: Once Upon a Stitch, will feature a wide selection of original embroidered artwork from my 25 year career illustrating children’s books. You can see them here. Several pieces will be on loan from private collections. These are rarely seen by anyone other than the owner’s friends and family. This is a unique opportunity to see the detail and 3-dimensional quality of my artwork in person.
SALLEY MAVOR: Once Upon a Stitch
Dec. 12, 2019 – Jan. 26, 2020
Cape Cod Museum of Art, Dennis, MA
Opening Reception: Friday, Dec. 13 – 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm ~ Artist Galley Talk at 4:00 pm

To photograph the art, we set up the equipment in the spare room, with a light box to minimize harsh shadows. The room’s sky light affected the light balance, so we covered it with another defuser. The camera was propped up on a tripod, facing straight down. To counteract the weight of the heavy camera lens, we hung a bag of stones at the other end of the extension pole. When I asked why the camera had to be so far above the art, Rob told me that the long 100 mm focal lens maintains the correct perspective. I’m glad that he understands this stuff!

For closeup shots, we lowered the camera.

The closeup photos will be used for a treasure hunt for kids (and adults) that I’m putting together for the Once Upon a Thread exhibition.

An advantage of taking high resolution close-up is that the photo quality isn’t lost when they are blown up big. For the exhibition, I’m playing with scale by juxtaposing extra large details with my miniature artwork.

This week, we had a storm and the power was off for 3 days. So, instead of working at the computer, I settled in near a window and stitched, like a character in a Jane Austen novel. Although I’m glad to have electricity back, so that I can write and publish this post, I’m missing the simple pleasure of making things by hand by the light of the sun. That and a cup of tea is my idea of heaven!

Liberty and Justice – the movie!

Posted on April 24, 2018 by Salley Mavor

LIBERTY and JUSTICE: A Cautionary Tale in the Land of the Free

What happens when a pair of lost citizens wander in the deep dark woods in search of a new leader? In this satirical take-off of the traditional folk tale, “Hansel and Gretel”, the wordless story follows protagonists Liberty and Justice as they negotiate the challenges of today’s unique political landscape, while being shadowed by a persistent Twitter bird.

The film is a dark satire, made in the exaggerated style of caricature. It includes a dramatic scene with President Trump dressed in the uniforms of some of history’s most iconic dictatorial rulers. The comparisons are symbolic and are not to be taken literally. They serve as a warning, to look at history for guidance when confronted with a president who exhibits authoritarian behavior. The 13 min. movie is at the end of this post.

The film features an ensemble of old and new cast members from the Wee Folk Players theater troupe, who formed soon after the 2016 election. Other posts about the Liberty and Justice animation project include “Liberty and Justice” in process, All that Glitters, America First Lady, stop-motion in action, costuming despots and innocents and Animated Film Logo. In this Interview on WGBH TV, I reflect on my foray into political satire and describe how speaking out through art has affected my work and life.

After about a year filming in the basement, where our animation stage is set up, my husband Rob Goldsborough and I are thrilled to share the fruits of our labor! It’s the first large joint artistic/technical venture we’ve undertaken in almost 40 years together. We used stop-motion animation to create the narrative, spending countless hours manipulating and photographing the characters and props so that they appear to move on their own when the series of frames is played in fast sequence.

We each had our field of expertise – I made all of the dolls and scenery and did the animating, while Rob contributed his talents in photography, lighting, computers and editing. Rob, a retired engineer from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has had a life-long interest in photography and film-making. He and I have wanted to bring my wee folk characters to life through animation for many years – we just needed a compelling reason to jump in.

For a framework, I drew a basic story board that grew and developed over time. Every night at dinner, we discussed ideas for different camera angles and how we were going to film the next shot. What was supposed to be a fun summer adventure, ended up becoming a big part of our lives for a whole year! The more we learned, the more invested we became in the project. Luckily, we are both detail oriented and not very chatty, so spending hours on end in silent concentration, filming what would become 5 to 20 sec. scenes was not a problem. I calculated that at 24 frames per second, our 13 min. 32 sec. animation is made up of almost 20,000 individual photographs. Even though the project was incredibly time consuming, we loved working this way and would like to make more animated films in the future. But right now, I have to get back to working on a new children’s book, which you can see progressing here.

A highlight of the project has been finding and working with the musicians who produced the original score for the movie. Rob and I filmed about 100 silent scenes, knowing all along that music and sound effects would be an integral part of the finished film. Through friends, we were lucky to connect with Matthias and Carla, a local Woods Hole couple who specialize in this kind of work. I mean, what are the chances of us living just a few miles from each other in a small town on Cape Cod?

We are thrilled with what they’ve created for the soundtrack! They took our movie and ran with it, blending together many layers and styles into a carpet of sound that propels the story along, creating the right mood for each scene. Their sound production company, Stellwagen Symphonette, creates evocative instrumental music for radio, film and computer games. Drummer and pianist Matthias Bossi, violinist Carla Kihlsted and guitarist and engineer Jon Evans bring together many years of experience writing, performing and recording music. If you listen to NPR, you’ve heard their music embedded in stories from time to time. Their clients include This American Life, The Moth Radio Hour, Atlantic Public Media, Transom.org and Frontline Dispatch.

Liberty and Justice was shown in the Woods Hole Film Festival in July 2018 and won the Audience Award for short animation.

I hope that you enjoy the movie! It can also be viewed and readily shared on YouTube here.

To keep up with new posts, subscribe to this blog (top right column on the home page). If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram.

Polly goes to Utah

Posted on December 17, 2016 by Salley Mavor

It’s time we caught up with Polly Doll about the second part of her trip west. In early November she met up with her cousins in Salt Lake City and then headed to their cabin in southern Utah. From there she drove through the countryside and visited Kodachrome National Park (above video) and Brice Canyon National Park. The scenery was so spectacular that she could hardly believe her eyes! The Fall palette featured her favorite color combination, green and orange, with lots of subtle variations in between.

Polly really enjoyed the Natural History Museum of Utah in Salt Lake City. She got up close to some gems, plaster animals and old bones. She’s looking forward to her next trip this winter, where she’s hoping to meet some real live animals up close!

To keep up with new posts, subscribe to this blog (top right column on the home page). Your contact info will not be sold or shared. If you’d like to see more frequent photos tracking the projects in my studio, please follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram.

Polly in Oregon

Posted on November 27, 2016 by Salley Mavor

Polly came along on our trip to Oregon. She was mesmerized by the beauty inside the Lan Su Chinese Garden in the heart of Portland.

She helped the Mavor sisters make Speculaas, molded Dutch gingerbread cookies.

She drove south of Portland to Willamette Valley, Oregon’s wine making region.

It was really gorgeous out in the country. Polly loved Oregon!

road to PEI

Posted on October 2, 2016 by Salley Mavor

On the drive up to Prince Edward Island, we stayed a night in Wiscassett, Maine, which was as pretty as advertised. These photos are from my early morning walk into town from our B&B.

We drove to Booth Bay Harbor, which is right down the road and had dinner with friends.

The next leg of the trip brought us just across the Canadian border to St. Andrews, NB, where I took another early morning walk through the neighborhood.

In the afternoon, we arrived at our friend’s cottage on the south east coast of Prince Edward Island. It sure was beautiful!

One day, we drove to the charming south coast village of Victoria for dinner and a concert.

After a wonderful visit to PEI, we headed home, stopping again in St. Andrews at the Rossmount Inn, where I took this photo of their spectacular background garden.

Remembering Turkey

Posted on July 16, 2016 by Salley Mavor

Five years ago, when we visited Turkey, the world was different. The news of violent clashes and turmoil in the country is upsetting, especially since I had the fortune of experiencing its astounding beauty and the gracious warmth of the Turkish people. I’ve taken this opportunity to review my photos of the trip and have selected a group of my favorites. You can see all of my posts about Turkey here.