After stitching 21 five inch squares, I've decided to end this series.  It was a nice diversion but now, I'm ready to go back to painting.

Here's the piece I made today.  I used fluid acrylic and three different stencils to get a layered effect.

Somehow, many of my paintings look like wallpaper.  I guess I like an overall design even though critics would say "Where's the focal point?"  Maybe it's because I cut my artistic teeth using fabric where 99% of commercial fabrics do not have a focal point because the pattern is repeated to make the yardage.  

​Now that I look at this piece, I think it would make a wonderful design for fabric.  Do you agree?

I haven't counted all the pieces I've made in this series, but I have noticed a change in the way I approach my stitching.  I like the pieces I've made more and more as I challenge myself to work with color and pattern.

This is one of the last pieces I made in this series. Since I limited myself to just two stitches (running stitch and French knots) for the whole series, I had to find new ways to create texture as well as how to choose threads that met my happiness level.

​Now, I will mount all my pieces and see what they look like shown together.  Another challenge will be to find a venue for exhibiting them.  Not an easy task for fiber art.  This is a time when I miss not having my own art gallery.  

The Denver Botanic Gardens now has three beautiful art galleries.  I try to attend each exhibit because the quality of the artists they have chosen is excellent.  But this exhibit is stupendous and I have visited it 4 times with different friends because I get inspired each time.

​Ursula is 80 years old and is still creating these huge sculptures in her Brooklyn studio.  She uses cedar wood and she''s allergic to it so she has to wear a hazmat suit each time she works on a piece.  

Each of the many pieces displayed in this exhibit are taken apart to ship and then put together when shown.  The engineering is incredible because she has made it so the seams are invisible.

Interestingly, Ursula also works in fiber.  She knits forms with wire, incorporates fabrics and thread into her hand-made paper, and sews together dried cow's intestines (sounds gross but these are actually beautiful) with twine.  

The exhibit is up through the beginning of September so I'm sure I will be back to visit again.  If you find yourself in Denver, I hope you have a chance to see her work in person.

One of the things I'm always talking with my friends about is how to present fiber art in the best light.  So I'm always looking for solutions myself.  When I started embroidering these pieces, I didn't have a plan. (I don't recommend that!)  But, I leaned on my tried and true techniques (like rattail binding and mounting on wooden cradle boards) and here is a sample of how one of them will be mounted.

After I trimmed them and bound them with rattail, I realized they were not all the same finished size.  They measured 6" to 6-1/2" so I couldn't mount them on a standard 6" square.  But I wanted to hang them all together so I decided to buy 8" x 8" cradled boards (I buy mine from Dick Blick) and paint the boards black (with acrylic paint) so each piece would float on the surface and maybe the differences in sizes would be less noticeable. 

I haven't attached any of the pieces to the boards because I'm still thinking about whether to glue them down all the way to the edge or just glue the center so the edges are free, giving the final piece some dimension.  Sometimes, I think about these decisions for several weeks before I make the final decision.   

I've been interested in Eco-dyeing ever since I visited my friend Susan Brooks and took a day long workshop with her.  I also bought her book and all the supplies but never got around to actually eco dying any papers or fabrics.  It all seemed too complicated for me (although Susan made it look easy!).

But yesterday, I got my friend Judith Cassel-Mamet's monthly newsletter where she explains how to eco-dye fabric in hot water, just using the sun to transfer the dyes contained in plants and vegetables.  So, I thought I would give it a try.  I did 4 jars:  black beans, walnut shells, crushed walnut shells, and yellow onion skins.  After just a couple of hours, I could see that the beans and walnut shells were already dyeing the fabric but the onion skins and crushed walnuts didn't seem to have any affect.  I will leave the jars overnight and see what happens.  If it works, this will be a simple way to dye your own fabric!  Now, I'm sorry I threw out those sunflowers that wilted in my vase.  I bet I could have used them to experiment with!

I won't share Judith's recipe but I'm sure if you contact her through her website, she would be happy to send you a copy of her latest newsletter.  I also recommend you sign up for Judith's newsletter because she always shares a fun technique to inspire!  Heres the link.

​Back to hand stitching tomorrow!


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One thing I am enjoying while I am stitching these abstract pieces, is having fun with color.  Some artists use the color wheel to decide on a color scheme.  I just like looking at my work and trying a different color next to another color.  No plan or rhyme.  Just intuition.  My only "plan" is not to place the same color next to the same color, but that's just common sense.  I also like to vary my lights and darks for balance.  I'm now thinking about how to finish these and mount them.  Because I don't measure or have "rules" each piece is a slightly different size.  Always a challenge to make a cohesive grouping.  I'll share next week.

One of the things I love about my stitching current work is the freedom to not have any plan as I stitch as well as not confining my edges.  

I can't seem to stop making these small pieces.  They take a long time to complete but I just love the process.  Since I layer each piece with batting and a backing, I can't stitch more than one running stitch at a time.  And, of course, French knots are always made one at a time.  So far, I am only using two kinds of embroidery stitches.  I wonder when I will expand my stitching to incorporate another kind of stitch  Time will tell.
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I'm addicted AGAIN to creating patterns with stitch.  I just love the texture and color.
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I guess I'm obsessed.  Here is another piece I finished this week.  More to come!
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