I finished the Lilac Fairy and have started another piece based on The Sleeping Beauty Ballet. This one will be different. It presents several new challenges. I'm trying to incorporate a strip of white, polyester fur and lengths of natural suede, like laces of Indian moccasins....yes, this is for "Puss 'n Boots and the White Cat".
So delicate! A question--do you thread some of the beads and then do the stitching or add them all later?
ReplyDeleteHi Arlee!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the comment! I don't get many so really treasure the ones I do receive, especially from fiber/stitch fans! I've been making the "fairy fabric" by couching yarns, tubular ribbon, or thicker threads onto Solusheet/Vilene 541 that has been stretched over strainer bars. This fabric is great. It looks and feels like non-adhesive interfacing. It dissolves easily in warm water. After I have the "thicker" threads couched, I remove the piece from the stretcher bars and do enough free-motion machine work to effectively create a loosely woven piece of "lace". If you've never worked on water soluble fabric, the trick is to make sure that everything is "linked" together....otherwise, the piece could fall apart. After the free-motion work--which generally takes less than a half hour at most, I return the piece to the stretcher bars and bead it. Beading is really easy this way because there's FABRIC between the intersecting lines. The trick is to pay attention to where the thread is on the "wrong" side of the piece. Any "traveling" thread from area to area will show once the Solusheet dissolves. I basically stitch following the lines I created with the "thick" threads and the machine threads. Finally, I pin the piece to foam-centered board and dissolve the thread under gently running warm water. Often, once dry, I discover that the piece is still to "stiff" with the residue of the Solusheet. Thus, I soak it again. I buy the Solusheet via mail order from www.thethreadstudio.com. Yes, this is in Australia and the listed prices are in Australian dollars. However, I use LOTS of their products. It's a husband and wife duo...very nice...no "on-line shopping cart"....just email them...one on one. They answer questions too. I love their metallic foils, chiffon scarves, silk and wool tops, Tibetan recycled silk, and the Oliver Twist threads.
I hope this helps!
Thanks again for the comment!
Susan