One of the best birthday gifts this year was a silk-covered, beaded box full of antique textile scraps and little, aged bags of sequins and beads (thank you, MR!!!). I added some sparkle to the bird’s head.
Those are keepers… but I’m not sure about the sparkle, island below. I think it interferes with the nice grid that is generated by the woven strips.
She is almost ready for binding. This will be a quilt where I add to the edges rather than true it down. This blue silk, while luscious, pulled apart at a pace that amazed me – shrinking an already too-small back.
Such are the challenges!
She is beautiful! I do agree with you about the grid, even though it’s quite nice for her to be grounded somehow… Good luck with the finishing 🙂
thanks, Chloe – your comment makes me think that perhaps a dark ‘stand’ that is rectangular and part of the weaving pattern will do the trick. Thanks!
Love the bird, the skirt, and the hand stitching on the arms. That hand stitching makes a nice rhythm with the woven underfoot, which I agree, the sequins detract from. They break the rhythm between the bird and the ground. Great piece, Dee!
Thanks, Lisa – that’s two votes against sparkle island, which to be fair to myself, I already knew was coming off. I’ve been sort of participating in “Take a Stitch Tuesday” and trying out hand-embroidery a bit more. Found this site has an amazing compendium of stitches –
http://www.artsanddesigns.com/cgi-bin/makeGlossary.pl?category=embroidery§ion=A
And the TAST sites are packed with excitement and ideas.
Are you quilting anything since that glorious Chicken that you made?!! Sorry to hear jewelry making wasn’t a hit, or not, really – you can’t be thrilled by / good at everything, and you have such a talent with cloth! (and food, I might add). If I were to take a class right now it would be Iron Forging or Upholstery. Something with muscle.
What a lovely, fine feathered bird! It reminds me of an aborigine design. Not quite an emu but way more than a crow. btw, did you ever hear of the emu constellation? It is not created by star outlines like our constellations (big dipper, etc.) but the black space inbetween the stars. I love the idea of the negative space emu.
Ginny – I have been thinking about constellation made from the black spaces rather than the stars all day… it may change how I approach a piecing project (by adding space —)…. thanks
a bird of wild chaotic abandon.
this bird has lived a life! i love it.
sorry about the fiber issues. i had a bubble while quilting that feels like an impossible to remove without cutting apart the whole thing. it is literally right on the edge.
Overcoming is a sign of creativity though!
Serena — overcoming is a necessary part of MY process, anyway!! especially if I want to finish anything!
hey Dee what a wonderful piece!
I love it
hmm I think the island underfoot balances the bird………..so now you share your doubts and we add to them ha!
I just love the bird piece; the fact that her arms are open and inviting just makes you want to look all over it. I do like the sparkle island below–to me it grounds her…. (or do you want her to fly??).lovely work as usual…..Julierose
Wow!!! She is awesome on so many levels. A bird woman dancing in the moonlight with her flaming feathers and wild sparkles. It has that primative quality I love and the stories she tells just go on and on.
well, that’s a few votes FOR the island and a few against… but in any case, thank you – the comments have helped me sort out what’s next.
She IS primitive, full of abandon, and full of wild sparkles…. something to open up to on a dull winter day on which I battled a dull winter headache…
So full of life your bird is! She dances. 🙂
I think the sparkle island is fine. Yes, it breaks up the grid a bit, but the grid is large enough. It’s not as if it obscured it. It complements it, makes you notice it without being ho-mum about it.