Retreat - Felt, Silk Paper and Stitch

Whilst on retreat I spent some time experimenting with wool and silk fibres. This piece above was wet felted using a resist under the blue circles. The wool fibres in the piece below were combined with textile medium to make a soft paper.

I used the textile medium again to make these pieces with silk fibres. I've stitched free motion over some of them using a water soluble stabiliser. I may stitch a bit more before washing it out.

I used my felting machine and acrylic felt to get a similar effect. As you can see I have quite a bit more stitching to do.

Print and Free Machine

I've been experimenting with cutting my prints into slices and filling the space with hand and free machine stitch. This first one was done on paper. It's very fragile. I used water-soluble stabiliser to work the stitches, unfortunately once the paper was damp it started to disintegrate. I covered the whole thing in pouring medium to hold it together. It's nice to stick it up on a window and see the light shine through.

I've also tried using a print on fabric, cutting into it, and filling the gaps with stitch. I used some thicker threads in the bobbin for extra texture. I'll keep stitching into it later.

Mixed Media Cairn

I have finally finished this mixed media piece and learnt loads in the process. The piece features collage with paint, print, stitched acrylic pour, felt, organza, and sewn and burnt book pages. It's all mounted on an MDF panel about 30cm by 60cm. I hope to use some of my other abstract designs to make more in the series.

Needle Felted Tulips Part 2

With the sewing machine back I've managed to finish my needle felted tulips with machine stitching. Click here for part 1. I've used some thick threads and metallics in the bobbin working from the back. I attached a wire stem to the free standing tulip with my new cording foot. Everything was then hand sewn to a canvas ready to hang.