Istanbul aka Turkish Delight

This fibre art piece all started because of my trip to Istanbul. Before leaving I knew that I was going to look for some Turkish treasures to bring home for my collection but what I found went much deeper. The shop keepers stories along with Apple Tea was their way in to open your wallet. These are crafted sellers and marvelous story tellers that put my Scottish roots to shame. I enjoyed every minute of that trip & only wish that I could have seen more.

One of the shop keepers sold me beads that were made from camel teeth. I was in that store for quite some time because all I was thinking of was what I would do with them once I got home. That shop keeper sold me many beads and actually talked himself out of selling some of them. In the end we had to split the amount of camel teeth so that he could craft prayer beads...which are very popular in Istanbul.

This shows some of the detail around the camel. The Evil Eye is also very popular in Turkey. It's actually called a Nazar, which is an eye shaped amulet. As many already know, it was created to protect against the Evil Eye. It's believed to contain certain magical properties which would provide good luck or offer protection from evil or harm. I now have a Nazar in my studio window to bring me good luck & I've included them in  this piece.

 Istanbul is also know as The City of Cats. 

Cats are absolutely everywhere and they're very well looked after by everyone. They believe cats are better than rats. 

I would sit happily for hours people watching with a cat on my lap.

The spider in the cave is representative of a story told to me by a local carpet & kilm seller. As the story is told...there were men from Mecca that were out to harm the prophet Muhammad. So Muhammad took shelter in the cave of Thawr. While inside the cave a spider spun a web across the entrance. When the men from Mecca arrived at the cave they believed no one had entered because the spiders web had not been broken. Many traditional carpets have the cave as the main subject. My cave is made with an art cloth technique shown previously in earlier blog posts.

This picture shows my representation of a Sultan Turban Pin that was shown in one of the museums. My actual pictures didn't come out as it was behind glass & I couldn't get a good angle. So I just made my own.

This is just a detail picture of one of the a poppies.

This piece took me a very long time from beginning to end and I'm very glad that's done. Now it's time to clean the studio and hopefully my next project will give me a bead break...but who knows.

Encaustic Poppies

I just love dried poppy heads. My favorite are the big fat ones but unfortunately that's not what I had on hand. I wanted to make something with them but I wasn't sure if I could do it in encaustic wax because they're so delicate. The wax actually helped strengthen them. I wouldn't pick at them or anything but they are stronger then when I started.

 I keep all my left over, clean up,  paper towels in the studio because you never know when they'll come in handy. I decided I would audition them on this piece. Cheese cloth was another experiment & I really love the effect.

Monochromatic Challenge

The last challenge submission for the GOE Group was Monochromatic. I had no idea what I wanted to do and all I was thinking about was spring and purchasing seeds for our property. I was also consumed with bees...and learning all I could for our new apiary. All I could come up with was a flower...monochromatic was devastatingly hard for someone who loves colour. It was extremely hard to take a picture of the finished piece because it's 3D and the beads reflect from every angle.

I have details of the progress but it's way too many pictures.

I started out using flexi firm purchased from my local Fabricland.  Then I stitched stainless steel 20 gauge wire to the underside of all the petals. I gesso'd both sides, added cheese cloth & painted it with a gel matte medium & jacquard textile paint. Then I spread some molding paste over everything in a very random...scratchy motion. These are the brighter portions in the pictures because after you apply molding paste, those parts don't absorb the paint in the same way. After the molding paste was dry, I then applied paint & hand stitched for some added texture. Then I decided to add some encaustic wax over the whole top side of the petals. Once I did this the hand stitching actually changed colour & the embroidery was less visible. I wasn't really expecting that but I was reading a book called Hot Textiles...and that's what she did and I loved the effect. My pictures don't get as close as her professional pictures in the book so you really can't get a feel for that.

All the petals were stitched together and then nailed to a back board. I then worked on the center beading, adding sequins and stuffing in a donut shape so that the very center is actually recessed a bit for an added 3D element.

 Posting has become a very difficult task lately. Not only does one have to find time...but one has to find time where the computer is not in use. In my house this is becoming quite the task. Is it too hard to ask for a dedicated computer that has some speed to it. Is this growing world of computers one would assume that we could have fast service but I'm finding that it's getting slower & slower...and this "cloud" is bogging everything down. lol. I've been working on this posting in my spare minutes for days....crazy...In my next life, I will have a computer that works fast and I'll have all kinds of time for my studio.

If you want to see more pictures of the process...

Valentine ATC

This is an ATC that I did for the Group of Eight exchange last week. I was struggling for an idea so I decided to do the Valentine theme. I'm really not one for the commercial crap and pressure of these types of holidays so I decided to do "Love Life".  It started off as art cloth that I painted, beaded & waxed. I attached a piece of melted sheet protector in the shape of an L. Whenever I'm struggling for an idea, I always end of reaching for some of the art cloth that I already have on hand. I'm really into texture right now so it's a great way for me to start. Then everything seems to come together quickly. I already had the melted sheet protector as well.

Art Cloth Gift Boxes

 

 

 

These gift boxes were made using a pattern that was in a Quilting Arts issue. I can't remember which one as it was at least a year ago. I've made them in the past but this time I decided that I would make them with my art cloth technique...that's developed throughout my posts. It's was also a technique from QA. It's nothing like the original article but I've come to really love it and consider my rendition as my own. The technique that is, not the pattern.

I start off with canvas that I paint with gesso on both sides. This stops the canvas from fraying on the edges. I then lay cheese cloth over the canvas & adhere with either watered down PVA or a gel medium. Both work well. Then I add some added texture with molding paste and once dry,  I paint with a metalic and use my oil pastels for enhancing the raised portions. Then the whole thing is covered with a gloss gel medium. The resulting cloth is actually very leather like. It's very pliable, yet sturdy. I've really come to love it. I actually didn't have to stitch anything on these little boxes.

 

 

Mah Jong ATC

This is an ATC (Artist Trading Card) that I made for an exchange that the Surface Design group organized. The background was actually a piece that I made in the previous open studio get together. I've been trying for quite some time to get a particular effect using paper in which I have not been successful in achieving. If you follow my blog, you will know what I'm referring to. It was, once again, a Quilting Art article. I started off with canvas that I gesso'd and painted. Then added torn papers, Sudoku, in this case and then laid distressed cheese cloth over it. Dried it with a heat gun...because I'm very impatient and then added more paint. I didn't like the piece and it sat in the corner of my studio for months but when I broke it down into smaller sections, I ended up liking it much better. It's very ironic how I had trouble doing ATC's in the beginning because of how small they are and now I'm quite happy to break it down into a manageable piece. At least mentally breaking it down. The Lapis beads were purchased when I was on vacation in Turkey and they seemed to be the only beads I had that matched the blue denim paint. And I have a lot of beads....a LOT!!

ATC

If you've been following my blog you'd notice that I've been working on art cloth. I took this ATC sized section from one of my art cloth experiments, hand stitched it, added beads along with a tyvek bead and copper wire. I thought that the texture was interesting. I'm really starting to like working with the tissue and cheese cloth. This particular sample was done with alcohol inks that I spritzed with water so that it ran down the length of the paper. It was quite stiff when complete and perfect for an ATC.

Art Cloth ATC

This is another try at the Quilting Arts Magazine article on Art Cloth. The Surface Design Tribe had an open studio where we could work on whatever we wanted and see what everyone else was working on at the same time. I made a couple of pieces of art cloth but I must admit that once again...I was not happy with the results. So I brought my pieces home and stacked them with the others until I decide if I'm painting the whole damn thing a solid colour again. It's been a very busy few weeks for me and I haven't completed anything to post except a surface design block...that I forgot to take pictures of. So last night it's crunch time and I need an ATC (Artist Trading Card) for the Group of Eight exchange tonight. So I was rummaging through my stack with my little ATC frame and I really liked this little section of the cloth. So I cut it up, stitched the edges, covered it in Dorland's encaustic wax and added the pen nib. Appleman...my husband...would be proud.

 So this once again started with the article...piece number 4...and once again it looks nothing like the picture offered in the article....which is extremely frustrating to me. I started with canvas that I randomly painted blue & a brownish mix. Then I added the Japanese newspaper that I picked up in Hong Kong...so maybe it's Chinese...not sure. Then I added the stressed cheese cloth and painted the whole piece with watered down white glue. I added molding paste and painted it with a bronze Lumiere paint. Added a little bit of rusted orange Lumiere and put it aside because it looked like crap. I just love the texture but I just can't seem to get the colouring the way I want it. I like this little section and the pen nib added better interest than beads in this case...at least I thought so. So I guess I'm destined to try art cloth #5...I'll keep you posted. Oh and I should mention that one of the GOE (Group of Eight) members told me to keep a little rubbing alcohol in my studio to take some of the extra paint away...I still don't have the alcohol but I will definitely give it a try when I have some...just a thought.