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Wednesday 18 January 2012

New Work in Progress

I got the motherload of thread recently.  Creative House gave me some rayon Wonderfil thread to work with.  Sew & Home is selling out of their thread so I went in and got some colors I needed for half price.  Before all this, I had picked up some variegated cottons that were perfect for the fields I was working on from Periwinkle's.  Even before that, I took advantage of a Christmas sale with Connecting Threads.  They had solid cotton sets for 40% off and that just arrived at my door yesterday.  Does this mean I have a problem?  No.  It simply means that I am over the moon.  ; )  This photo is for you Kit.  ; )

two hundred and seventy eight spool.

I topped all of my 12x12 scrapbook bins and I feel like a top chef with a fully stocked kitchen!!  It's an all you can eat smorgasbord for a threadpainter!  lol  I figure that I've stared at this 2010 photo long enough now that I can attempt to pull this one off.

I set my photos in high contrast to help me 'see' the range of color, definition, and texture.

So, here's my 'Work in Progress'...

Fabric colors in place.  no templates needed.

I don't trace or use templates.  I go by sight, and work with my original photo nearby or up on my laptop screen.  It's prairie.  It's straight lines and a few proportions.  This part is a quick process.  Everything goes down onto a stabilizer.  No hoop needed.  I use Lapel Stick to put the general colors in the right places simply because I have a hard time waiting for paint to dry.  This is the way I like to do it.

Next up - set the machine for free motion and away I sew!
...and sew... and sew... until hours later I get something like this:

Free hand machine work nearly done.  Lots of definition yet to be added.

It's at this point when I become quite cross-eyed and unfocused.  I usually stop here for the rest of the day.  On day two, I'll be able to notice new things, and see exactly what needs to be added where.  I was so surprised to notice water in this picture.  I have stared at this photo for nearly 2 years and had never seen the water!  Once I started thread painting, I looked deeper at the yellow in the lower right corner.  It's a flooded ditch or slough with algae floating on top.  !!   Well, that sure makes things more interesting!  Had you noticed the water!??  Go back to the photo and look behind the fat dandelions... I was actually in the process of stitching it when I realized what it was that I was stitching! 

grasses coming up out of the water

After the machine work is done, I take another long break.  After that, I add the things that I feel would look much better done by hand.  (That would be every flower head.)  Flowers just need to be individually stitched I think.

little french knots and seed stitches

There will probably be a couple afternoons of hand stitching to get all the forefront grasses and big dandelions in.  This is my favorite part.  I love handstitching, and i love to see how it brings the work to life.  After that, I'll do one more afternoon to clean it up, sign it, and satin stitch the edges.  For now, this is where I'm at with it.  : )

work in progress, first thread painting of 2012



19 comments:

sbsudbury said...

Your work is absolutely incredible. I love following your blog! So inspirational.

Thanks so much for sharing your process. Just curious what kind of stabilizer you use?

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing your beautiful work again :).
Stay inspired!

Marjorie's Busy Corner said...

Hi Monika....your work is always lovely. I have never seen so much thread in one place....lol. You make great use of it though. And I will check your tips out.thank you. I also thank you for stopping by to comment....I know what you mean with the weather talk....lol

Leanne said...

It's beautiful and thank you for sharing all the details. I do want to try something like this and this was very helpful. And I love love love all those threads, lucky you.

HollyM said...

You are speedy even for a small piece. It is wonderful to see your progress.It's a beautiful piece.
I can't believe you actually counted all your spools!
I ordered some from Connecting Threads but should have ordered more. It was a good deal.

Sheila said...

It is beautiful as usual Monika , would you mind telling me what you use as a stabilzer ? You are always an inspiration to me .

greelyrita said...

You're a real artist! Gorgeous work. I wish I could see it for real.

ValerieL said...

I love your work. I also want to thank you for the mini tutorial on how you do it. I follow you each day and really enjoy seeing what you do and the pictures you take.

It's great you have so much thread--I bought a bunch from Connecting Threads as well and found it great to use--such a good price for so many colors.

Thanks again for sharing.

Olinda said...

Hi Monika,

I love following your blog!
Your work is gorgeous, absolutely incredible. You're an artist!
Thanks so much for sharing your process.
God bless you!

Olinda.

Katherine said...

Your thread painting is amazing! I love seeing your process. Simply gorgeous, Monika.

Ooooooh... love the picture showing your thread collection.

Ladydy5 aka: Diane Yates said...

You are amazing!

Ellie said...

Wow you do have a lot of thread there. Your work is beautiful as usual thanks for sharing how you go about it.

Christie describeHappy said...

It's so fun to see all those colors of thread just waiting to be used. And oh my goodness.. I will never tire of seeing a piece of yours in the works like that. Thanks for the insight into how you create!!

PrairiePeasant said...

The excitement with the thread is like a kid in a candy store--I share your happiness! Thanks for sharing your work at various stages. I love understanding how things are made and how art is created, even if I may never try this art form (but I'll never say never!). It helps me appreciate the finished work all the more.

Beth J. Beal said...

I just loved seeing all your thread! I really enjoy seeing your work space and how you create your little works of art. What a wonderful eye for color and a great talent you have!

Dolores said...

Cool. I love it.

Mary-Frances said...

Wow, look at all that thread, isn't that awesome!! Your thread painting is amazing. Love it.

æble said...

Thank you for sharing your process. It's really inspiring to see your work.

PS. Love the use of the Horizon table as a laptop holder!

Judith said...

I've been wondering just HOW you make these, so I'm so glad to see this post! Thanks!

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