Monday, December 19, 2011

A little progress


I have been working on this off and on for the last few weeks. Progress has been slow with all of the holiday prep going on. I think I am also suffering from a little project fatigue. This thing is really big and still sooooo much to do.

I spent several hours glue basting before I could start working on the water. Then I spent about 2 days creating the water fall. I really enjoy this part since water is a real challenge and something I find very satisfying.

As you saw in my previous post, I use chalk to sketch out the flow of the water. The next step is to put down the base water fabric and chalk in the flow again. I spend a lot of time contemplating what I want to do and redrawing the flow helps me through this process. The flowing water is created using angle hair, batting and very thin sheets of Angelina fibers that I rip into small shreds. The angle hair is made of spun glass so I wear gloves while working with this. The water still needs a layer of tulle over it to keep it all in place. When I quilt the water I will follow the flow of the falls with clear thread and then maybe use a few metallic threads for highlights.


I also added this small tree to the right of the falls. These are the kind of details that get me in trouble since I can literally spend hours rearranging leaves and branches and will probably do more work on this tree when I look at it again.

Here is a closeup of the foliage. I used 3 different greens and you can see from the picture that nothing is glued down yet. Te create leaves I cut a hunk of fabric and use a snipping motion with small sharp scissors while turning the fabric in different directions to get a more natural look. The amount of holes I cut in the fabric varries depending on how dense I want the leaves to appear. This makes a really big mess on the floor but that is part of the fun. I'll keep plugging away and keep you updated.

4 comments:

Frances Arnold said...

I love the water....it is so realistic!!!

Mary Couch said...

Unbelievable! The water is exquisite. Will the waterfall have a three dimensional look or will the tulle make it more flat?
You are just magical with fabric.
Christmas hugs from Mary

MulticoloredPieces said...

Hi, Judy. This is a huge project--no wonder you only work on it a little at a time. Your water effects are amazing--well the whole piece is amazing!
Happy holiday stitching!
best, nadia

Mary Couch said...

Would love to see more of this beautiful piece. How are you coming along with it???
Hugs from Mary