Beaded Wren more progress

 

I finished beading the leaves on my wren.

Well, in this picture they are all beaded!  HA

I laid the piece onto a deep green fabric, which I think I'll use for the binding...unless I decide to wrap on a canvas or have put in a frame!!!  Decisions...decisions!!! All the other birds I beaded are in frames...I think this is the hardest part!  

Beaded Wren Progress

 Well, I finally got to attach my beaded wren to the quilted background!  Next, I wanted to add some color so rather than me messing it up with disperse dyes or hand painting, I decided to just add some applique leaves!  And, of course, bead them!  

Here's my progress so far!   I took a friend to the eye doctors and it gave me the opportunity to attach my wren to the background!!!  

I cut out some green leaves, which I think gives the piece some color, obviously!  It needed something else.

This is before I added the beads.

I think the leaves and additional beading add a little more to the piece.  I'll off set him when I decide border, canvas or 'what' to finish the piece.

Some projects just change!

 I beaded this wren back in 2011 when I was participating in the monthly Bead Journal Project.   Back in 2020, I decided to get out this beaded wren that I had attached to a quilted background (9"x11").  You can see that piece and how I messed up the background here!  

I had attached him to a quilted background and he looked just fine...but you know I can't leave well enough alone!

So I painted the quilted leaves around him...ok, not so bad and did add more color to the piece.  Remember this was for a monthly journal project.  Each piece was around 9"x11" and I have framed all of my pieces, with the exception of this one.   My blog header actually has a few of my bead journal pieces that I have framed.

I was testing out disperse dyes on quilted backgrounds...which does work but you really should be careful with what colors you are applying!  Looks like the background was burned while using an iron!  So, that's when I cut him out of the background piece and he's become my current project!

When I cut out the beaded bird, there was some of the background fabric that I had to trim away.  Carefully!!!  Easy to cut into the beading.

When you do that, you also need to paint around the white edges so when the beaded piece is attached to your background, you won't see any white/background fabric.

You can't see any of the white on the brown stem after I painted the fabric around the beads.

The little bugger's stem  is all painted...I'll finish the rest up and then he can be attached to a background piece I quilted earlier this week (no knitting to do until my sister and I come up with a pattern!  HA).

This is the original applique pattern I used for beading the wren!

A closeup of the branch and his belly!  Won't do much on him Ron, MaryJo and Rilynn! are arriving today!!!  We haven't seen Rilynn since our visit when she was about 8 weeks old...she is now 3!!!!  Pics to come in next post!

Just Keeping Busy!!

 Yep, I ended up making some masks!  But just for us and my neighbor...one of our quilt guilds in the area made up quite a few for Hurley Hospital...at one point, they weren't accepting any but now they are...so nice of the ladies from the guild to do this!!

Of course, I had to make a few with dog prints on them!

In between this 'mask making', which didn't take much time!  HA, I'm playing with my beaded wren's background!  I've made the hex circular area behind the bird...just sewed interfacing to the back, turned inside out and pressed.  I'll applique it down once I've decided on what I'm doing, which could take quite some time, right!

I've made several different hex's in different colors...the background is an old - and I mean old sky dyed fabric I purchased my first year going to the IQA show in Texas!  Yes, it's original 'sky dye' from Mickey Lawler!  I think this is my last piece that I purchased from her...this was early in 2001 or 2002...I ended up taking a class from her at QSDS, also several years ago! 

So these are just some samples I'm playing with...nothing is set in stone yet and I'm not sure how I will layout the hex's...but I will be using them...somehow...someway!!!

I really like these hex's!!!

Just laying out some hex's on the paper I copied.

I just started making these hex's and I'm really liking them...not too bright...not too light...but, who knows!  Not me for sure!


Hope ya all are staying safe and keeping busy!!!

Beaded Wren

Yes, I'm working on my woodpecker art quilt but who only works on one project at a time!  And now that I have to wait to buy more yarn to finish my lace shawl (I'm 1/4th of the way finished with the scalloped edging!!!) so on to a new project, right! 

I showed this disaster using the disperse dyes in a recent post....didn't turn out as I thought....

So, what else to do but cut out the beaded bird from the background and start all over again with a new background!

Yep..my hexies!  I have several of them and I think it would be fun to include them in this piece!

I scanned in the beaded bird and printed out a sheet that I could pencil in different designs.

Still playing....

Then I picked up this hex piece already sewn together...I think it would look good as a circle/sun behind the bird.

I like the oranges with him as well as the turquoise.....just playing right now...who knows how he'll be finished but I'll be sure to have fun!

A little of this...a little of that!

I did get to stamp some fabric for the Mary Beckwith inspiration piece I want to make.  This is one of the stamps I made last summer.  It's just a piece of cardboard with pieces of sticky foam I cut out and attached.  I have another stamp using spike(s) cut out the same way but you don't need to see pics of everything..you can see how that stamp printed out on the first few pieces of fabric.

 

This was a fat quarter of fabric I purchased from Laura Kemshall's Fingerprint web site a few years ago.  I have another piece that is more intense that will be included in this project.  This piece was pretty faded and I think the stamping using the spike stamp added some add'l texture it needed.

This picture shows both stamps printed.

I am really happy with the way these turned out and I know they'll be perfect in a patchwork piece but.....






 I think this will have to be put on hold!!  Yea, I decided on another project to work on...back to bead embroidery.  One of my friends from our fiber group is part of  the Spring Needlework Seminar at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island each spring.  Chris is a wonderful machine quilter and she dyes her own fabrics and vends at the conference (she also does samples of quilting for major thread companies!).  Chris approached our small fiber group to put quilts at the conference for sale this coming spring.  We each have several pieces already made that we can give to Chris but she'll need them by the end of April so....I thought I would create another beaded piece and this is "now" what I'm working on!

I jut started outlining the top of his body and part of the wing.  Now I'm stitching his tail and will work my way up.  I'm hoping I have enough brown beads for this piece!  There is a wonderful bead shop here in Ocala (see my sidebar) but I really don't want to have to purchase any more beads.  I'm trying to use up both my bead and fabric stash!  OK, OK, I'm sure I'll head to the bead shop at some point in time!  I'm just like an addict!

I know...I must be nuts...the bird is roughly 9" x 3.5" and is called a cactus wren.  He'll be sitting ontop of a cactus plant that I'll make out of fabric.  Now to get busy so I can finish in time and mail off to Chris for her to take with her!  My bud, Carol T., has some of my older pieces from our last Master's Exhibit that Chris can take to the seminar but I wanted something new.   And now that I've committed to having this piece finished!!!!  I better get off the computer!!!  Beading calls!!!