Latest figurative work--Sacagawea

Every year the  Indy Cloth Dollmakers Club has a themed doll maker's challenge for their members.  This year, since 2020 is the 100th anniversary of women's right to vote, we decided our challenge should be a Woman in History.    I chose Sacagawea.   

Here is her story:  

Sacagawea was a Shoshone interpreter best known for serving as a member of the Lewis and Clark expedition into the American West — and for being the only woman on the famous excursion.  At the time she joined the expedition in Nov. of 1804, at the age of 16, she was pregnant with her first child but she chose to accompany her husband on this expedition.  A son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, was born in February 1805.  Despite traveling with a newborn child during the trek, Sacagawea proved to be helpful in many ways during her 26 months with the expedition.  She was skilled at finding edible plants.  When a boat in which she was riding capsized, she was able to save some of its cargo, including important documents and supplies.  Sacagawea was able to arrange, through her Indian kinsmen, for the expedition’s safe passage over the Rockies. After the expedition, she bore a second child but died a few months later.   Clark was her children’s godfather.  After her death, he raised and educated her children.   

Sacagawea became a symbol for women’s rights and a face for the National American Woman Suffrage Association in 1905. Sacagawea was a Shoshone interpreter best known for serving as a member of the Lewis and Clark expedition into the American West — and for being the only woman on the famous excursion.  At the time she joined the expedition in Nov. of 1804, at the age of 16, she was pregnant with her first child but she chose to accompany her husband on this expedition.  A son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, was born in February 1805.  Despite traveling with a newborn child during the trek, Sacagawea proved to be helpful in many ways during her 26 months with the expedition.  She was skilled at finding edible plants.  When a boat in which she was riding capsized, she was able to save some of its cargo, including important documents and supplies.  Sacagawea was able to arrange, through her Indian kinsmen, for the expedition’s safe passage over the Rockies. After the expedition, she bore a second child but died a few months later.   Clark was her children’s godfather.  After her death, he raised and educated her children.   

Sacagawea became a symbol for women’s rights and a face for the National American Woman Suffrage Association in 1905.  

Info about Sacagawea the doll:  

Sacagawea and baby are original art dolls, no pattern or molds were used.  Sacagawea has a cloth body and polymer clay head and hands.  The baby is all polymer clay.  Her lamb suede garments, moccasins and cradle board are hand sewn. Her dress is in the style of the early 1800’s Plains Indians.  The yoke is accented with beads and a small tuft of fur.  The fringe was wetted and twisted to give a graceful look.  Her belt and cradle board is hand beaded by the artist.  Her braided hair is Merino wool.  She is about 12 inches tall and stands on a flat rock. 

    

More Textile Art

Adventures in Textile Art

During the COVID-19 shutdown, Textile Artists.org hosted a 5 week stitch challenge.  Each week we were presented with a weekly tutorial.  it was really interesting and I learned a lot of techniques that I probably wouldn't have tried. 

This first one is a photo of a twig and it's shadow.   We were challenged to replicate that in fabric.   My result is in the second picture.  I used linen as my background and bits of silk and organza for the twig and shadow. 

Finished piece is 10 in x 12 in.

 
This next photo is a collage created on an Irish Linen vintage handkerchief.  We were challenged to create a "folk art style" picuture from cloth and overstich it to create an art piece. 

Finished piece is 11in  x 11 in.

This eye is entirely hand embroidered.  Although the materials are simple the image is commanding.  I was surprised by the amount of detail that could be created by just thread. 

This piece is an exercise in couching.  I had a piece of cotton with these gold squares on navy blue and I thought it would make a great night sky.   The lake, ground, moon and tree are all hand couched.   Finishe piece is 9in x 9 in

This next piece is a collage that uses paper and fabric.  I was inspired by one of my cloth dolls, entitled "Dream,  Believe, Fly".  I printed an image of the doll and then added other bits and beads to create the art piece.   I have always loved the quote, Don't let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do."   It seems so appropriate these days. 

Impressionistic Confetti Fabric Painting

I had so much fun making this fabric painting.  The process reminded me of mixing paints except you are using fabric.   The process is really simple but very time consuming.   You basically find a picture that you like or one that you have painted, find fabrics that match the colors in the photo, cut them into tiny "confetti" pieces and then "paint" your picture using your fabric.  You then lay a piece of tulle over your fabric and free motion in place.

Finished Fabric Painting

First, I sketched my picture's basic outlines onto  muslin and used textile paint to fill in the large spaces.   This helps guide you for color placement and also helps blend the background with your confetti in case your confetti has a gap.   I ironed light weight wonder under onto the painted muslin to serve as the confetti "glue".  The hardest part is getting the confetti to stay where you want it before it is ironed in place.  I worked in small sections so that the confetti was easier to control.  It is important to use a teflon sheet when you press your confetti on to your background.  Before I stitched the free motion stitched the tulle, I place batting behind the mulin to add body. 

I have also read that some people use one-sided fusible batting for their background.  I might try that next time, but I'm not sure how the painting will affect the fusibility.   I'll do some experimenting.   I also recommend doing a small project to start.   Mine is 18" by 24" which was rather daunting as a first project.   Some people also cut out the larger fabric pieces and fuse them on and only use the confetti for leaves etc.   I chose to make mine look impressionistic so I didn't want any large pieces in my fabric painting. I haven't decided how I want to mount this yet.   Definitely something I want to do again.

Resource photo

                           

Thread Painting--Positano, Italy

Several years ago, a friend of mine went to Italy and sent me some photos that she took while she was there.   I loved the photos and thought that someday I might try painting some of them.   As fate would have it, I found them the other day and decided to use one of them as the basis of a thread painting.   I had never done a thread painting, but I thought; "why not?"    Of course, I read a few articles on the process and most artists used silk fabric as the base and they were quite small, e.g., 3' x 6".   I didn't want anything that small so my picture ended up 10" x 7".  I also wanted to make out of cotton so I mixed art quilting with thread painting.  While it sounded good, it did present some issues.   First the thickness of the fabric quilt "sandwich" coupled with pieced layers made it difficult to free motion embroider.   I "muscled" through it but I do have to say it was frustrating at times.   In the future, I would paint or dye the cotton in areas and then free motion embroider.  This this would eliminate the seams and extra thickness.   The first photo below is the reference photo and the second is the edges photo. 

As you can see from the final project, I eliminated some of the elements in my project.   All that said; I do like the end product.   

Have you tried thread painting?   If so, let me know about your experience. 

A New Year and New Adventures in Textiles

For most of us, including me, the beginning of a new year is time for reflection and a time to set goals for the new year.  This year I want to explore new fiber and textile techniques and art forms.   I'm not sure where this journey will take me but I'm sure that I will enjoy the challenge and adventure.   I have to confess that before I retired I collected books, tools, fibers and fabric so that I would be ready to pursue my love of textile art.   So I have a lot of information at hand to explore new techniques.  One of the first techniques that I explored was to use my punch needle to create an art piece.   The first piece was small so that I could get the feel of it.   I plan to use this little sun face on a garment or bag of some kind.     The second piece combined punch needle and wool felt applique.   Although I thoroughly enjoyed this art form, I don't have a lot of wool felt and/or floss or thread for punch needle so my projects using this form will be limited.   Unless I manage to shrink my current stock of fabric; I won't have room to build up stock for this art form.   However, I won't say never.

Punch Needle Sun Face

Punch needle detail

Wool Felt and Punch Needle 

    

Winter White Coat with Champagne Mink

Although I'm thinking SPRING these days, I wanted to share this coat that I made for the Holiday Art Fair.   The style of this coat is slightly retro but thoroughly modern.   It is about knee length and is cut fulll enough to put over a jacket or sweater.  It is fully lined and has welt pockets.  I repurposed a champagne mink stole to create the shoulder feature.  I prepare the fur by removing the lining and cutting any seams that prevent it from laying flat.   I then transfer my shoulder pattern on to the back of the fur piece.  I then reseam the fur so that it can lay on top of the coat.   I leave the coat side seams open until I have finished attaching the fur to the coat.  I use a zigzag stitch along the cut edge of the fur to attach it to the coat.  I  used a tapestry floral motif for the applique.    After I apply fusible interfacing to the back of the fabric to prevent excessive fraying, each motif is carefully cut out.   I then strategically arrange the motifs on top of the fur; pin in place and then free motion applique them to the coat.    This is quite a tedious process as the coat is very bulky and hard to manuever.  I also do some thread painting on the motif after they are applied to give it more interest and dimension.


  

Never fear, I'm still here......but where has the time gone???

Wow, here it is March 2020 and I haven't posted since September 2019.    I'll try to catch up in the next couple of weeks.   As some of you already know, every year I have the opportunity to sell my creations at the Holiday Art Fair and Doll Show sponsored by the Indy Cloth Dollmakers Club.   So during September, October and November I'm busy completing my doll for competition and creating one-of-a-kind wearable art.  After the show, I take a little time off and then when the new year started I began a new journey of textile art that I'll share with you in the next few weeks.   I'll start to catch you up by showing you some of the wearable art pieces that I had at the show.

This is a Tibetan Panel Coat that is reversible.  Finding complementary fabrics for all the panels proved to be quite a challenge.  I couldn't find fabric that I liked for the shoulder contrast, so I created by own fabric by cutting out shapes and appliqueing them on the fabric.  I did some thread painting to enhance the appliques.   The reverse fabric is a beautiful kantha fabric but again I couldn't find another kantha fabric for the contrast trim so I created my own.   As you can see each side creates a completely different vibe.  The kantha side is rather soft and impressionistic while the other side has a more modern abstract feel.  When I was done I couldn't decide which side I liked the best.   I guess that's probably a "good thing".  I love two looks with one garment, don't you?

Kanth detail

   

Fabric created for shoulder detail