Embroidering my art

Jun 20, 2010


I needed some twill tape earlier this week, so my daughters and I took a trip to the fabric store.  As I was getting 8 yards of twill tape measured, my youngest daughter was checking out the array of embroidery floss nearby. I could see her softly touching some of the brightly colored thread as if to say "I would choose this one."  So, after my twill tape was cut, I asked her if she wanted to help me pick out a few colors.  That few quickly became a dozen. 

In recent months, I have had an urge to use embroidery thread in my work, especially after seeing the works of this artist.  My embroidery floss stayed packed away until I printed out this design on fabric a few days ago.  


The design is based on my drawing "Pods."  I liked how the center of the design turned out and thought that a monogram would fit nicely in the space.  Instead of a person's initials, I decided to use "PDX," which is another name for Portland.  After cross stitching the letters, I accented some of the details in the work, which totaled over six hours of work. (I'm sure an expert embroiderer could've completed the task in a third of the time!)  I still have a few more hours of embroidery ahead of me to finish the piece, but I anticipate that the most challenging part of this project will be the framing.  The finished work will measure 8" x 8", and I'm thinking that I would like to make a frame for it.  Hmm, did I just say that?

4 comments:

Daughter Earth said...

Fun! I love embroidering! It looks so pretty!

annekata said...

I've been admiring Takashi Iwasaki's work since I first learned about it. Your picture on top is fantastic; looking at the colors of embroidery thread always inspiring. Love the embroidery on your drawing!

mareika said...

wonderful idea! the embroidery gives your drawing another dimension, a haptic surface. i really like it!

Charissa - The Gifted Blog said...

Killer! Lovely idea and execution. Love the colors and repeated patterns in your work. I saw your post about embroidering on hanbok remnants, too...totally fuel for my embroidery fire.
: )

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