Shisha mirrors and fabric painting

In one of the scrap bags I bought recently was a packet of shisha mirrors, so this morning I had a go at using them. There's a beautifully clear YouTube video explaining how to embroider around a mirror, attaching it to fabric, and I tried following that. (The link's here.) Only I went off-piste and did my own thing, which was why my first attempt wasn't good enough.

The mirror will fall out as the stitching's not wide enough to cover the mirror's edge. My second attempt was more free-styling, but actually it wasn't bad. The mirror's secure, which is the main thing. I'll try again as practise makes perfect, and see if I can't get a more professional finish.

Once that was done, I dug out the gell plate and acrylics. I'd a hankering to apply paint to fabric. This smaller piece was previously plain white cotton. (The photo's not great as it looks a dingy green when it's brighter in real life.) The other material I used was a slippery, shiny lining fabric, and I wasn't sure if the paint would adhere to it in the same way as the cotton. But it does.

I've stencilled on a base layer of colour, and will add printing stamps once the paint's completely dry. The idea is to produce something I can use to sew into, as part of this year's ambition to teach myself basic embroidery stitches.

This is an earlier example that I've began embroidering, but not finished yet.

Here are a few details from my initial attempts. (Again, the colours haven't photographed very well. It's actually a prettier pink than it appears.)

Metallic thread works nicely to add hints of sparkle. You might not see it, but I've used gold thread in the circles above.

Even if I don't end up with a piece of fabric I really love, it can always be incorporated into a pieced-together quilt backing. So I'll find a use for it one way or another.

P.S. (written later on) I tried again with the shisha mirrors. Had three attempts, unpicked them all. There was rolling of the eyes and sweary words muttered. Nevermind, I'll try again tomorrow.

Comments

How to make these decorative birds

I suggested yesterday that I'd run through how to make a fabric bird wall or window hanging (can't think of a snappier title for it than that!) so here goes. I'll start with the first decorative hanging I made. It's something you could make in any colour combination you want, and would look good hanging at a window with translucent beads that'd catch the light I used five birds for this, but you could make it longer if you prefer. (Incidentally, if you're wondering about what's hanging off the bottom on this, it's a metal Christmas decoration, shaped like a lantern. For some reason I thought it looked appropriate to leave it there, looped over the end.) WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO GATHER TOGETHER: Assorted scraps of fabric for the front of the birds - aim for a mix of colours and textures. Silk looks good, as does anything with embroidery or intricate patterns. You might aim for a hippy-ish boho look, or maybe you're more the minimal Scandi

Paper flowers, leaves, feathers ...

I had a few requests after posting this photo on Facebook, people asking if I could explain how I made these paper flowers. Your wish is my command, and here's the info. It's all very simple and you don't need any advanced drawing skills. So grab a stack of gell prints, a pair of scissors and off we go! The type of print that seems to work best is one where there's a fair amount of detail, rather than a block of solid plain colour. Prints where you've maybe channelled your inner Elizabeth St. Hilaire and 'layered layered layered' as she's always urging us to do. POPPIES If we start with simple poppy seed heads and stalks, they're cut freehand from paper that's mainly shades of orange and brown. I glued those on to a sheet of white copier paper, then cut them out, leaving a narrow border around each. Backing the gell print with the white paper adds that contrasting border, but also strengthens the piece, especially the thin stalks. I

Sari scraps, PVA, a couple of books and a necklace

I'm typing this as snow's falling, and has been steadily all day. It's not settling to any great extent, though I bet by tomorrow morning the paths will be slippery with ice. Which always makes me paranoid about falling over and at the very least looking undignified, but at worst breaking a bone or twisting an ankle. Oh well, it's ideal weather to stay inside and craft, isn't it? I finally got around to listing packs of sari scraps on Etsy this morning. I only made up six bundles as I've no clue whether they'll sell or if I've set a reasonable enough price point. Time will tell. This is a link to the listing, if you're interested. This vaguely pink fabric isn't from one of my Etsy packs. It's from a bit of experimenting I was doing yesterday. I'd seen a post on Instagram showing how a DIY version of batik could be done without using hot wax. The Instagrammer used PVA instead, and I wanted to try this out. The glue's su

rubykittyruby

Search This Blog