Design Explorations 02 & 03 2013 - Needle Felting

My 'play group' had a workshop in dry felting. Most had an 'embellisher' - a machines that looks like a sewing machine, but it does not use thread ... just needles with barbs that push the fibres into the backing.   I used a hand held needle felter.

Our Design Explorations theme for February was 'SKYFALL'

A few years ago, at nightfall, I looked up in the sky and from the west ... a shower of meteors crossed the sky. In Vancouver, we have meteor showers in the late summer. But, this was no ordinary event! Many meteors in different sizes streaked across the sky, over a couple of minutes. We all stood and watched with our mouths open. It was unreal! One man said, "If this is the end of the world, it sure is purdy". The meteors streaked to the east and evidence was found in the south-east of the province, hundreds of miles away. 

This piece is done on sheer with tiny silver dots that represent the stars. The sky had a light streaked overcast - the result of an earlier rain.

For March, the Design Exploration theme was 3D ... but, it is hard to fit an actual 3D project into my portfolio. So ... while felting, I worked to make the pear appear to be rounded  ... 3D.

I used an old wool sweater as a base to build the final  piece.

Below is my third piece ... just made for fun!

My sunset used a thin stabilizer as a backing.

The hand needle does not create a very stable felt in comparison to a wet felt or a felt made on an emellisher. It has a wispy look and texture. To make it a little more stable, I sprayed 'skyfall' and the sunset with liquid starch.

You can see the DESIGN EXPLORATIONS blog here:
http://quiltvive3.blogspot.ca/
There is just Carla and I. We completed our first year - 2012!

Design Explorations Dec Memories

Our December theme for Design Explorations is 'Memories'.

After a workshop with my friends ... I thought about making 'memories' with these six wonderful and creative friends. We meet and share a technique ... something good to play with. We show our current projects and have a great day!
This workshop was led by Sue Jensen:
Step #1: Cover a square of cotton with colour with - Inktense Blocks. Use a little water on a brush to dampen the colours and a small sponge to move/blend the colours. Press dry to set the dye.
Step #2: Iron a lightweight interfacing to the back of your square. Use a couching or zig-zag foot. Couch decorative cords in a pattern. Use the width of the presser foot as a guide for stitching. Leave space for the next two rows of stitching.
Step #3: Use a zig-zag foot and try some of those designs on your machine that you never play with. I just used the little daisy stitch.
Step #4: Add contrasting lines of thread using the triple stretch stitch.
Step #5: Layer your artwork with batting and backing under and sheer organdy over.  You might want to spread a little angelina between the top layers. Stitch with a metallic thread in free areas to hold all layers together. Finish the edge with a small zig zag.

Design Explorations may - Overload

Challenge - OVERLOAD - MY BRAIN ON OVERLOAD!

I do this to myself ... I thrive on being active in all parts of my life. Unfortunately, sometimes I get overloaded when several  projects overlap and reach the crisis point in the same time frame. At this point, my brain has random thoughts about everything and has difficulty focussing on any one task. It then becomes necessary for ME, MYSELF and I to sit down and discuss priorities within a plan.

Some people call it multitasking ... I think it might be my norm.

Techniques: the fabric is my monoprint. I free motion stitched patterns in relation to the paint patterns. The paint did cause some problems with shredding of thread (small crisis).

Colours: the red parts are the crisis lines from various projects, the blue with the random stitch patterns is the norm and the yellow is me trying to keep my sense of humour through it all!

Design Explorations - April - Boundaries

Boundaries is our April theme (I'm a little behind)

I chose this theme and then spent time wondering what it meant to me!

So, I considered what boundaries were.  Do we have control over those boundaries?

My thoughts: everyone has boundaries. It depends on whether we see the boundary as a positive or negative challenge. When we are children, our parents influence our values and beliefs. Our early years can affect the mindset we use for the rest of our lives. As adolescents, we internalize our values and beliefs. As adults we live our lives according to our values and beliefs. Generally, we have the power to make the decision as to where and when we will cross that boundary. However, unexpected events can take away that power. It takes conscious thought to re-evaluate our values as we cross age / stage of life boundaries. We have the power to set our goals ... how we react is our decision!

Life is a journey, what we value guides what we believe and how we act or react.

The fabric I used was a upholstery fabric with a nebulous design, symbolizing the unknown in our lives. I stamped and stitched to complete the piece.