As we've been making the pillow case surface for TURLUTUTU #2, my little girl asked me if she could draw a fish during the drawing session. And a fish she did. Three. On a piece of linen, with liquid fabric paint. And that got us started with another pillow - about OCEAN FISHES. I've taken her idea how to draw a fish, which I liked just THAT much, and I've made a simple sketch to develop that fish-y piece into a pillow case. Of course paying attention that we'd follow our work flow and would get something to stencil, to paint/print/monoprint, and to cut together.
Somehow it's not that fun anymore working alone, now it's more about collaborative projects.
Somehow it's not that fun anymore working alone, now it's more about collaborative projects.
Here're FOUR how-to-STEPS I'd like to focus on:
#1 first and foremost and the most stunning step was that fish drawing - black liquid paint on linen, as I said.
#2 then comes the upper part - like a miriad of fishes swimming in a ocean. I've made a paper stencil, and we mixed some nice shiny blue paint, then my little girl just screen printed a piece of white cotton with paint.
#3 a Big colorful Fish at the corner. My little girl drew a Big Fish with a pen on a piece of paper, that I just a bit re-adjusted for the project, then cut out in fabric, using different textures, colors, and following mainly, but not always her drawing (it's common project, remember, so I have right to also do what I want). Then we also bubble foil printed the body in navy blue (inspiration being taken from her drawing - see a black fish on linen with circles on it? That Big Fish has been free motion stitched with sewing machine. Same old, same old!
#4 grey-ochre-brown part with oval shapes, edged at extremities - that part was added at the end just to balance the whole piece and round it up. My little girl's part was to paint and bubble foil print in grey and ochre the oval pieces to mimic a fish shape. My part was hand stitching it onto brown corduroy in a very nice classic patchwork needle-turn technique. Recently I've seen how a very talented patchwork artist Nicole from french Bretagne creates wonderful items using this technique of applique, and I was amazed. Thank you, Nicole, for introducing your oeuvres to me and for your hospitality!
#4 grey-ochre-brown part with oval shapes, edged at extremities - that part was added at the end just to balance the whole piece and round it up. My little girl's part was to paint and bubble foil print in grey and ochre the oval pieces to mimic a fish shape. My part was hand stitching it onto brown corduroy in a very nice classic patchwork needle-turn technique. Recently I've seen how a very talented patchwork artist Nicole from french Bretagne creates wonderful items using this technique of applique, and I was amazed. Thank you, Nicole, for introducing your oeuvres to me and for your hospitality!
Back to the brown piece: it clearly needed a more elaborate finishing, and that traditional needle-turn method to make a hand applique was just perfect, otherwise the whole pillow would look crazy busy with all the black lines everywhere. See the close-up? It's AWESOME, I wonder why I didn't try it out earlier. It's so hand made, without looking sloppy, there's no machine in the world that would get you that clean and perfectly rounded pattern stitched onto fabric.
Anyway, that's all about the surface - we'd been working for several days with my little girl to finish it, and now tada - meet a very fish-y and nicely blue pillow. Backside - heavy linen, zipped and fully lined.
Besides, don't you think we're getting a bit over top with making-a-pillow-a-week? Blame the weather, my friends, blame the weather! It's freezing outside, so a cosy wool blanket with nice colorful pillow, a cup of tea are just right to cuddle under and read a book together.
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