Pocketful of Borders: In spring

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detail from "In Spring" Pocketful of Posies 2010

The pressure is mounting to get these borders finished by September for the Pocketful of Posies show. I’ve completed four in the past week, including this one of a seasons rhyme, which begins “In spring I look gay decked in comely array”. 

 

It took several tries to get the background fabric and border colors right. I can’t explain why one shade or pattern works better, but it helps to compare and narrow it down until you’re satisfied. 

 

I chose a bright red floss for my initials and the date embroidery on the bottom corners. The photo doesn’t show the subtle variegation in the red thread. I have my eye out for variegated thread to purchase and find myself reaching for it first. It adds a complexity that mirrors nature better than solid colors. 

 

I had just finished writing the post about lettering and was inspired to add some words to this one. So, instead of doodling along the border, I wrote out the names of the seasons on the four side sections. 

 

Sometimes I write on the felt with a pencil and then embroider over it, but it can show through and look messy. For the seasons, I wrote out the words on a piece of paper to get the spacing and then eye balled the stitching. 

 

I made sure there were some doodles in the corners and sewed it all together. 

 

This piece is relatively shallow compared to the other illustrations from the book. To get an idea of scale, the birds are under 1 inch long. 

 

Note: See other posts from the Pocketful of Borders series here.

Inspiration: wild flowers on bike path

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Sunday was another beautiful morning on the bike path to Woods Hole. All around me there were people setting up traffic cones and water stations for the triathlon. I managed to take a few pictures before the race started at 7:30. I’ve just been informed by a reader that the invasive knapweed below is a neuro-toxin and should not be handled!

Young Queen Anne’s Lace looks like an umbrella forced inside out by the wind.

And then later, the flower forms into a properly domed umbrella.

Pocketful of Borders: Hey, Diddle, Diddle!

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board book version

The next border  to finish up for Pocketful of Posies: A Traveling Exhibit  is the illustration for the rhyme, “Hey, Diddle, Diddle!”. The new book includes all of the rhymes from my board book series, but they are represented by new illustrations. I really liked compressing the scene into one image, instead of stringing out the action over several pages. Most of  the main characters from “Hey, Diddle, Diddle!” are similar to the ones in my board book version, with the exception of the cat, which is made in a different style. The plate is made from polymer clay and the spoon is a doll house miniature.   

detail from " Pocketful of Posies" Houghton Mifflin 2010

cat from "Pocketful of Posies"

The new book, Pocketful of Posies: A Treasury of Nursery Rhymes includes many cats made in my new Halloween costume style. The head is a wooden bead, with face painting and a felt hood with ears attached. The cat’s paws and chest are whitened with acrylic paint. The fiddle is felt, with a thread-wrapped wire neck and bow. The illustration’s existing brown border was wide enough to cut in a wavy pattern, so I didn’t add another felt border. After several tries with different colors, I chose a blue pima cotton for the blanket stitched edging.   

   

I then embroidered my initials and the date with some variegated dark purple raw silk thread. It called out for embellishment, so I started doodling along the border with light blue raw silk thread.  

  

The light blue line lacked contrast, so I outlined it with a single strand of orange embroidery floss.   

  

For the corners, I added  spirals and unintentionally doodled a pattern in the Celtic style.  After outlining a few sections, I decided that the orange floss attracted too much attention, so I ripped it all out. That’s what is so great about stitching, you can change your mind mid stream. Borders, like any kind of framing, should compliment the artwork, not compete.  

  

I thought that a little height and firmness would perk up the border, so I added 32 gauge florist’s wire to the outside edge.  

  

I then covered the wire with 2-ply orange/red variegated embroidery floss.  

  

At this point, I was glad that I’d removed the orange outline around the doodles and saved the color for the outside edge, which defined the border against the upholstery fabric background.  

  

I bent the wavy wire so that it lifted up the outside edge.  

  

Here is the finished “Hey, Diddle, Diddle!” piece, ready to frame for the traveling exhibit of original art.  

 

My husband, Rob, has been making shadow box style frames in the basement. He’s doing a beautiful job and the 51 cherry wood frames are about half way done. We are both making progress toward the Sept. deadline for the first show in Falmouth.

Note: See other posts from the Pocketful of Borders series here.

Wee Folk: Pearl & Urchin

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I took Pearl and Urchin out for a climb up a beech tree. They patiently waited and stayed still as I took their picture. We were all quiet as I played with my camera, adjusting the aperture and speed settings.

I suppose you could call Pearl and Urchin “retired”, a term used in the collecting business for sold out. They were the models for a Ltd. Edition and there are 25 other pairs out in the world. After a few years spent sealed in a plastic bag, I thought they could use some fresh air.

Close-ups (gardens)

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How fair is a garden amid the trials and passions of existence.  ~Benjamin Disraeli

gardenhose82WMjpg

Here are a couple of pieces that I made in 1982, when I was transitioning from 3d sculptural work to flatter, framed pieces. I started using the term “fabric relief” about then because people kept asking what they were called. It’s still hard to explain what I do at cocktail parties!

The water coming out of the hose is metallic thread. The figures playing croquet are very early “wee folk” with cloth heads instead of the painted wooden ones I use now.

croquet82WM

This is a detail from the strawberry garden scene in a illustration from Mary Had a Little Lamb. The stones were glued onto the velveteen background fabric.

MHALLlamb2WM

Here’s another Mary character in her garden, this one from The Hollyhock Wall. Her hair is wool fleece and the background is embroidery on dyed velveteen.

HHWyellowhouseWM

“Eleven, Twelve, dig and delve”. This illustration is part of a rhyme in Pocketful of Posies.  The straw hat is made with thread wrapped wire and the spade blade is a heart charm.

spadeWM

Note: See other posts in the Close-ups series archive here.

Inspiration: flower garden in July

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With a good balance of sun and rain, along with warm temperatures early in the spring, it’s been an incredible garden season. Both vegetables and flowers are healthy and beautiful. At this point, I just grow flowers that are easy and take care of themselves. If they live through the winter, I divide the plants in the spring and give them away or find new ground to cover.

I forgot to cut back the trumpet vine this year and it looks more like a tree than a vine.

The clematis is so showy and brilliant purple.

Lilies are taking over!

I love the way hydrangea look at their different stages of growth. This could be clusters of french knots or seed beads.

More and more lillies.

Pocketful of borders (Queen of hearts)

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detail from "Queen of Hearts" from "Pocketful of Posies" 2010

I’ve been continuously working on the illustrations from Pocketful of Posies, getting them ready for framing. The traveling show of original fabric relief artwork will be launched in mid-Sept. and my husband just began making the wooden shadow box frames. Here’s a series of pictures of the “Queen of Hearts” rhyme, showing the process of adding an additional felt  and metallic braid border and mounting it on red upholstery fabric.  

   

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

Note: See other posts from the Pocketful of Borders series here.

Cedar Swamp Trail

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My husband and I went 50 miles down Cape to the National Seashore and visited  a cedar swamp. The outer part of Cape Cod has low growing pines, which are stunted from the wind and salt spray coming from the Atlantic Ocean. It’s also much more sandy and open to the elements compared to the forested, sheltered and harbor filled southwestern part where we live.

The Cedar swamp is a short hike inland and downhill to a protected, peat-filled wetland. A board walk circles through the forest, so you can really see inside. This light and decay resistant wood was prized by the early European settlers and quickly cleared out of the Cape’s swamps.

The resilient cedars have returned, but the trees are no where near the 3′ in diameter that the settlers cut. The green moss-covered ground contrasted with the red tinted swamp water. A biologist friend told me that the orangey red color appears when the iron in the decaying material is oxidized.

It’s a magical place, with so many perfect areas for fairy houses. I wish that I’d brought some dolls along, to take their picture, but the park service wouldn’t have liked me dancing across the moss!