Thread

All Things End, Eventually!



Field Notes #'s 1-36 ready for their edges to be bound and then mounted to their stretched canvas frames.  Each piece is 6x6 inches.

So why am I having such a hard time getting there? Excellent question. And I finally decided it's because I don't want this particular project to end.

Which is odd because the whole time I've been working on this project I've been chomping at the bit to start the next state of my Fields Series!

Anyway, I'm off to stitch their tiny edges, and get started on attaching the hanging hardware to the frames.

Field Series Update


My thread order came today. If you've been following me on Facebook then you know there's been a lot of drama lately with my trying to obtain a rather allusive Aurifil Thread color #2612 aka arctic ice.
Well that was through Amazon.

Three spools of the wrong color later I put out a plea on Facebook begging to know everyone's favorite place to buy Aurifil Thread.  Follow That Thread came up, repeatedly.  So late Sunday night I put together my order, which included the much desired #2612, and it arrived today.

And the much desired color is quite desirable!!! It IS the perfect sky color!


#2612 is second from the left and it matches my earth pigment painted fabrics and perfectly!


Six pieces almost stitched, thirty left to go.


My color palette for the Fields Series sans one spool that should be here hopefully this weekend, because I of course ordered it from Amazon.  Odd that it'll be the correct color?

Studio Purge Part One

Over the next few days I will be posting not only images of my studio spaces, for accountability purposes, but also to let you know what is available.  I will be selling some items check out the studio purge tab for daily updates, and others will go to new homes for the sole cost of shipping!


In thinking about my "brand" I've had to make a decision as to which mediums and colors I will be working with and "why"!  This wall here contains beads, findings, and all sorts of mixed media objects that is and should be heaven for most artists.  Well this was true until today when I got into the last fight I ever want to have with myself over studio space EVER again!

Yes that is right, you know every time you scream in frustration because you can no longer move in your studio space, or find that book you need to finish a project at the last hour, you are fighting with yourself!

Stop fighting with yourself!


More beads, jars of silk cocoons, buttons, bells, baubles, and all sorts of nummies.  The crates above are filled with mixed media papers, findings, Angelina fibers, pine cones, silk carrier rods, and who knows what else.  Well I'm planning to start excavating tomorrow so we will soon find out what else lies within those crates.


Far shelf, more beads, findings, jars with little bells in them... you get the picture.  Foreground that's supposed to be my sewing table and right now it's loaded with drawing and painting supplies.


The other side of my sewing table.  The plastic drawer stuff (to the south of the table) are filled with vintage, antique, and somewhat modern laces, threads, buttons, ric rac, you name it, oh and a ton of handspun yarns from fibers I carded and dyed myself and in some cases even acquired from local sheep I used to sheer.


The wall of thread!  And those little plastic drawer organizers, if you guessed filled with beads you'd be correct.  And they are also over flowing with embroidery floss, pearl cottons, and the like.



More thread, and those plastic tubs are filled with... if you guessed vintage and antique trims you'd be correct! Two of the tubs are also filled with natural dyed wool, silk, and cotton fabrics.  All of those baskets and tubs on top are filled with more fibers, more threads, and more mixed media objects, seeing a theme here  yet???


And sweeping past the entrance to my sewing room... More threads under the clock.


More fabric, more threads, more fibers, and no place to put finished artwork!  This is the north wall in my sewing studio and I want ALL of this stuff to go bye bye, with the exception of the shelf (you see the side of it here) with the clock.  My goal is to put my drawing table and new flat file cabinet (that hubs is building for me) on this wall.


Finally the corner where I started, the NW corner of my studio.  Again more fibers, more threads, more fabric, all dyed with natural dyes.  Oh and a ton of knitting supplies and latruador that I'm never going to get to in this life time.

Stay tuned for Part 2 tomorrow the area of my studio known as the "overflow" area.

WIP Red Crow



The madder lac dyed silk organza is much darker than these photos depict, the stencil sketch of the crow barely peaking through due to the lighting.  I managed to stitch an outline of the crow in a coordinating reddish heathered wool thread from Aurifil Threads.

I've decided that this smallish piece will now become part of a larger piece I'm working on for my upcoming solo show, as crows and ravens have always been a prominent icon out here on the western prairie and plains.

More Stitching


Adding more vine tendrils and bits.
Hand dyed french cotton threads, natural dyed flax, natural dyed painted silk chiffon, on white silk dupioni fabric. Machine and hand stitched.


Working with hand dyed french cotton thread, I'm using a single strand to create a background layer of delicate tendrils.


Working with a couple of colors of hand dyed french cotton thread.  Next I will add more vine bits (like the upper left hand corner) using the same thread only double stranded.


I'm using the ivy bits on my house as my inspiration.


I love how they crisscross defying the laws of design!


WIP ~ Sandman




WIP ~ Sandman
4x6 or so inches
Natural and rust dyed cotton scrim atop monoprinted muslin fabric.  Hand stitched with natural and commercial dyed cotton threads, wool batting.

I will be adding some machine stitching next and then will go back into the piece with more stab stitching, maybe layer some more cheesecloth onto the surface and then add french knots and some coils.

This is a small piece I started around 7pm this evening designed to get me back into the habit of stitching as I have a solo show to prep for that I'll be hanging in April, most of those pieces will be machine stitched and then waxed (encaustic).

Practice No. 2


Well since I lost my orginal practice piece I whipped up another one this evening. 
Cochineal dyed cotton fabric, machine stitched, wool quilt batting, aurifil threads.


I couched down more sisal to pratice some stitches with, this "x" shape I bobbin stitched using aurifil wool thread.  Above view is the back side of the sample that was facing upwards when stitching. 


Top side after bobbin stitching, the aurifil wool thread doesn't like to feed through the top on my 6500S so I bobbin stitch with it instead.


I've couched down more sisal since this shot was taken, now I will experiment with hand stitching over the sisal and then machine stitching over the hand stitching to see which effect I prefer.  This all in anticipation of finishing Bjorkboda.



Blog Yard Sale

Blog yard sale - I'm working on that.  It turns out these sorts of things are way harder in real time, especially since John was on vacation this past week, than when just pondering them.  Sound familiar?  So much to do and so little time to do them in.


Some goodies that'll be going into the shop and soon!  I have these kits of collage/embroidery yummies in pinks, yellows, blues, and greens.