Friday, May 31, 2013

MAJOR STRUGGLE!!!

Can this get any worse??  Well, yes it can......

I continue to try to develop a 'nature' design with this 'shibori-style' painted felted wool.

I'm auditioning some thin wood wavers and squares of painted gauze....you might be able to see them if you clicked the photo to enlarge.  However, I wouldn't waste my time if I were you......
 So, next I decided to go simple and add hand embroidery to create Western Hemlock trees...which had been in my head from the beginning.  The little sample I've shown here looks better than it did in person....maybe I should have stuck with it.
 Then I started dragging out other fibers.....nope.....not a winner either.
 Now I'm really peeved.....nothing is working.  I stitched and removed tall grass too (which I forgot to photograph). Finally, for the 2nd time, I decided to let the nature theme go.  

There is a LOT of mixed media art around our necks of the woods.....and I admire the skill and creativity of those who do that well. A friend (Nancy) gave me some old sheet music.  The paper was a lovely antique ivory color....and I'd been looking at it for well over a year.  What the heck.....I said to self.....let's see if I can incorporate it.
I'm already so sick of this piece!!! (I should have just put it away and come back to it later but being an A type personality....I don't give up easily.)

Little scraps of the sheet music have been torn and attached to the felt using an acrylic medium.  Hand embroidery further embellishes those pieces and serves to hold them in place if necessary.

So far I haven't improved upon the design at all....in fact, I probably made it worse.  But now I'm committed....there's no way to remove the paper.....so onward I'm going by adding what I think will be tons of hand embroidery.  Wish me luck.....

3 comments:

The Idaho Beauty said...

Oh, empathy empathy! I can so relate to your "I'm so sick of this piece" cry. Just want it done, just want it out of my field of vision. Too bad it is giving you such fits. Wondering if attaching the sheet music scraps in a permanent way was a subconscious act of rebellion - so there! And if you don't work, then I can toss you without guilt because, hey - I can't undo that. ;-) But you know those multi-media people - they just keep adding and over laying and painting and stamping... This might be like Chuckie - lol. Deep breaths, Mary, and open mind.

Robbie said...

NO, NO!!! I love this piece...in fact, your ears should have been burning around noon time today! I was showing my friends your blog post and this piece today while lunching at Panera's!!! I had to send them each your link to your blog! Love how this last pic looks and some of the 1st ones as well!!!

Windy Hill Happenings said...

Mary, it will turn out wonderful...it always does!