Twisted Textiles

Here’s another quilted painting (I love doing these!) except this one is on silk, and I used a method of batik to preserve the white areas.

I also quilted it by hand using embroidery thread, which took about 10 hours…I was sooo nervous about using the machine on the silk! It may have been okay once I had basted the three layers together, but at that point, I figured I’d finish it by hand to be absolutely sure (because the silk is so stretchy on the bias!). It’s about 12 inches in diameter, so it was manageable in an embroidery hoop.

Just for fun, we also placed the lights behind the fabric for a photo, which really emphasized the “stained-glass” quality of the batik. (click the thumbnail for a larger version)

I’ve also –FINALLY!– learned how to bind the edges properly on quilts and such…so this one was my first attempt at a completely circular object. It turns out perfectly if you remember to cut the fabric on the bias!

I’m having difficulty photographing my new quilted paintings…it’s a challenge to light them exactly right, to bring out the three-dimensions you see in “real life” viewing.

This quilted painting is about 9×11 inches (including binding on edge) and matches another one that I previously posted about.

A few areas of the painting (including the curtain and the large silhouetted figures in the foreground) are stuffed with Fiberfil—in quilting the process is called “trapunto”. If you’re curious, this scene is inspired by a short story by Angela Carter. I really enjoy anything written by her, and have already started several other paintings based on her works of fiction.

When photographing these types of fabric works, I usually end up with shadows that are too harsh, obscuring parts of the painting and distracting from the overall image. Fortunately, my husband has been an immense help in this area, and we finally got some good photographs, including closer details of the stitching
(click all images to enlarge:)

I must have jinxed my sewing machine by discussing her performance behind her back…for she seems to have pooped out on me now. Makes an awful grinding noise and refuses to go. I got about half the free-motion done on the painting I mentioned previously, but the finished photo and explanation will have to wait a little longer :/

In the meantime, here’s a peek at one of the first “quilted paintings” I did several weeks ago. It’s cropped to show the middle part of the painting, with another third on top and below this. And I haven’t given her a name yet… that’s always such a tough job!

I’ve decided that I will no longer be “unable” to draw things from memory or purely from my imagination.

…Yes, just like that.

This painting (so far) is Procion MX fabric dye on cotton…and I’ll soon be adding the smaller details with some free-motion quilting. It’s one of the first few paintings that I’ll be doing based on dreams, memories, and short-stories that I’ve read. In a few days when I finish quilting it, I’ll be back with another photo—and will give you the longer version of the story behind the image.

*phew* It sure feels good to finally be “coloring outside the lines!”

I’ve been practicing free-motion quilting. Mainly I’ve been practicing forcing my machine to do it’s free-motion-thing for me…But when it’s cooperating, the sun shines through and all is wonderful and right with the world.

(Doesn’t it seem that way with every machine, no matter how shiny and new? There always seems to be a fickle, impudent little beast hiding inside it somewhere…I swear it’s not only me…)

These little watercolor-like sketches—about 8 inches square—are a small start to something big, I just know it! I’m envisioning these on a huge scale.

I’ve painted these with heat-settable fabric paint, treating the paints like I would watercolors. It’s a bit unpredictable, but a lot of fun I’ve also done trapunto in some areas, so photographic experimentation will be required to discover the best way to “capture” them. The flat-bed scanner doesn’t really cut it for me.

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