Detail from "Rain Dance," an original quilt by Sherrie Spangler

Monday, April 11, 2011

Embroidery, paint and Chihuly

I'm starting to chain stitch with lime around the leaves.
"Yoga Mat Series" by Sherrie Spangler



Now that I've rediscovered the pleasures of hand embroidery,
I've decided to go with the flow
and highlight the leaves of this old piece
with a lime chain stitch.

The machine applique is too weak,
so I'll just go around it
with something stronger.




The new section is on the left.
The old, wimpy side is on the right.

And look at what two French knots can do!
They've turned this abstract shape into ...
an animal face?


Moving on to some fabric painting ...
I took a break from the embroidery yesterday
to replenish the stash of painted yardage.


The top piece, cotton, is dry and ironed.
Bottom piece, silk chiffon, is still wet.
I scrunch it up and it dries in interesting patterns.





Moving on to Chihuly glass in a garden setting:

Here are some photos I took last April at the little gem in Tacoma's park system called the W.W. Seymour Botonical Conservatory. It's tucked away in Wright Park and has a new exhibit every month. Last year I stumbled upon a fantastic selection of Chihuly glass intermingled with spring blooms.

I offer these up for more artistic inspiration.






Have a colorful day!

3 comments:

Robbie said...

Love the hand embroidery piece (your other pictures as well!)...but I'm just one of those who loves any type of hand work! VERY nice!

Kathy said...

Don't you just love the Chihuly glass? I was fortunate to see one of his shows at the Federick Meijer Garden while visiting a friend in Grand Rapids Michigan a couple years ago.
I can't wait to try the vegan brownies - I'm always looking for lactose free recipes :)

Judy Ferguson said...

Just love all the handwork and interesting embroidery shapes. Chihuly glass designs are amazing. Would like to see them in person.