Two, new hand-stitched In Box Series pieces and the last Reasons for Tears handkerchiefs

 

(Above:  In Box CDLIV and In Box CDLV ... framed!  Each one is 19 1/2" x 15 1/2".  Layers of polyester stretch velvet fused on recycled black industrial felt, stitched with cotton embroidery floss, and subjected to a melting technique.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

Driving The Lace Forest to Fiberarts International in Pittsburgh and back meant time in the cargo van.  Time in the cargo van is an opportunity to stitch!  Many people don't know how I manage stitching in the passenger seat, but it's easy!  I use whatever color my hands land on first.  There is no pattern.  It's just stitch, stitch, stitch!

 

(Above:  In Box CDLIV.)

In one sense, there's not much to it.  Only straight stitches and French knots are needed.  When I run out of a color, I just switch to another.  I'll be doing it again ... very soon.  Why?  Well, Steve and I leave tomorrow to return for the opening events associated with Fiberarts International.  I have two more In Box pieces ready to go ... one for the ten hour trip there and one for the return.

 

(Above:  In Box CDLV.)

I'm frequently asked, "How long does it take you to make a piece?"  Well ... I now know that it takes about ten hours to stitch one of these, but that doesn't incorporate the time spent cutting polyester stretch velvet shapes and ironing them to the industrial felt.  It also doesn't include the time to melt, mount, and frame the work.  Plus, there's the time to iron heat-activated adhesive (Pellon 805 Wonder Under) to the back of all the polyester stretch velvet.  I really don't know how long a piece requires but t least I now know how long it takes to hand-stitch a piece this size! LOL!

(Above:  The last group of handkerchiefs for my Reasons for Tears installation.)

Meanwhile, I've been wrapping up the work for next month's Degenerate Art Project at Stormwater Studios in Columbia.  These are the last handkerchiefs for my installation Reasons for Tears. Since being rinsed and dried on this makeshift clothesline, they've been ironed and photographed individually.  There are 120 individual pieces.  I had to stop.  Honestly, the list of grievances from the Trump administration is weighing heavily on my mind and starting to seriously affect my attitude.  I want to be happy, especially this coming weekend in Pittsburgh.  I've waited years for the opportunity to have one of my pieces in the Fiberart International triennial!  It's going to be a great time no matter what is coming out of Washington DC (at least that's my hope!)

Nails in a Coffin

(Above:  Nails in a Coffin, 12" x 18" x 12".  Wooden coffin filled with old, yarn-wrapped nails and collaged with the following words. Top: Democracy. Inside lid: The Government as We've Known It. Bottom: Art by Susan Lenz June 2025.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

When I'm working, my mind is often roaming down rabbit hole ideas, especially when a strong concept is in the forefront of my brain.  Because I was invited to participate in an exhibit called The Degenerate Art Project at Stormwater Studios in Columbia, SC, I've been stitching a new installation called Reasons for Tears. (Click here for a recent blog post.) I've been stitching collected grievances about the Trump administration on dozens of vintage handkerchiefs.  There are now more than one hundred, but the process does allow my imagination to roam to other related ideas.  First, I just had to make The Locks Have All Been Changed. (I blogged that last Monday ... here.) Yet, I had another idea.  I couldn't help myself ... again ... and it just had to be made too.

 

(Above: Detail of Nails in a Coffin.)

It was actually quite easy because I already had thousands of old nails wrapped with yarn.  I've used these nails in other installations and even a collaboration with poet Al Black (Images HERE.)  I have two, plastic parts containers (the sort others use for beads or screws or other small items) filled with letters clipped from various magazines and vintage books.  One container has mostly black-and-white/vintage/antique letters.  One container has colorful letters clipped from magazines.  It was quick fun to select letters to collage on the wooden coffin which I ordered from Woodpecker Crafts. 

 

(Above:  The lid of Nails in a Coffin.)

All I basically did was to stain the wooden coffin maple colored, collage the letters, and fill the interior with nails.  At this moment, I don't even know whether the show will allow me to have three different works.  I've asked and am waiting for an answer.  I hope it gets to go!  One way or the other, this piece just had to be made.  

UPDATE!  This piece will be in the upcoming exhibit!

Mandala CCXXXIII

 

(Above:  Mandala CCXXIV. Custom framed:  11 1/4" x 11 1/4".  Found objects hand-stitched to a scrap of a vintage quilt.  Objects include:  A red faucet wheel handle; miniature clothespins; decorative toy scissors; Earth Day buttons; laminated Tampa Nugget cigar bands; hexagonal cut game pieces; lime green figures on horseback; assorted buttons and beads.  Click on image to enlarge.)

Last week I asked Steve to cut me a floater frame with precise outer dimensions: 12" x 12".  This was for my SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) annual fundraising auction donation. (Click here for that blog post.) He found a short stick of moulding that he said "might work". It was going to "be close". We had no more of this particular moulding.  So, Steve tried to cut it to the required size.  The last piece, however, was three-quarters of an inch too small.  I told him to simply cut another moulding to the needed 12" x 12" size but to trim the three sides of this moulding to the length of the leg that was "too short".  So, I ended up with this frame:  11 1/4" x 11 1/4".  I designed the two pieces at roughly the same time.  Like the donation, it was a challenge to work this small but also fun to stitch!

The Locks Have All Been Changed

(Above:  The Locks Have All Been Changed. 43" x 21 1/2".  Mixed media.  Click on any image to enlarge.) 

Sometimes I just can't help myself.  An idea presents itself in my imagination and resistance is not an option.  The work has to be made; the idea haunts my mind until the work is underway.  This is one of those pieces!

(Above:  Detail of The Locks Have All Been Changed.) 

Truthfully, I don't need this piece.  The exhibition, The Degenerate Art Show, to which it is headed is only going to be on view from July 8 - 13 at Stormwater Studios in downtown Columbia.  That's not very long and not in front of many people.  The show is being organized by Jasper Project as a way for local artists to respond to the current socio-political situation.  I was invited to participate and immediately started an installation called Reason for Tears.  (Click here for my most recent update on Reasons for Tears ... which now has ninety-three stitched handkerchiefs.)

 

(Above:  Detail of The Locks Have All Been Changed.)

The thing about this installation, however, is that my mind is really engaged while free-motion stitching the handkerchiefs.  I'm literally THINKING about each "reason for tears" and wondering about all the people effected by sudden executive orders, every proposed action, all the insults and the many lies.  How many people were forced to resign?  How many people were terminated?  How many grants have been halted? How many businesses have lost contracts?  Well ... I asked Steve to do a little research for me.  I asked him to find out how many office leases have been terminated.  Honestly, I thought the number would be low enough that I could create a tagged key for all of them.  NO WAY!  Steve found the official website for the Department of Government Efficiency and scrolled down to "lease terminations".  It's overwhelming.  (The number has increased during the three days it took for me to create this work.  As of this message, there are 485.  There are claims that the number could rise to nearly 800 offices.)  

How could I not make this piece?  It had to be made regardless of the days on view or the number of people who will see it.  It is my response to the staggering number of closures.  It is the least I can do.

Mandala CCXXXIII, SAQA auction donation

(Above:  Mandala CCXXXIII. Custom framed: 12" x 12". Found objects hand-stitched to a block of an antique Dresden Plate quilt. Objects include:  Part of a pocket watch; thimbles; miniature clothespins; decorative plastic scissors; bobbins; keys; prisms; Brownie and Junior Girl Scout pins; pink, fabric yoyos; antique eyeglasses; recycle buttons; assorted buttons and beads. Click on either image to enlarge.)

Every year SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) holds an on-line autumn fundraising auction.  Each piece is exactly 12" x 12".  I decided to create a miniature Found Object Mandala for this event.  It was a challenge.  Sometimes, small is hard!  But I think the work turned out very well.  My hope is that someone will love it enough to bid ... September 13 - October 6!

(Above:  Detail of Mandala CCXXXIII at an angle.)

In Box CDLII and CDLIII

(Above:  In Box CDLII, left and In Box CDLIII, right.  Custom framed: 21" x 9" each. Polyester stretch velvet on synthetic felt with hand stitching and melting techniques. Each $195 plus tax and shipping.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

Right now, I have lots of new work in various stages of production.  This is one of the reasons why I never answer the question "How long does it take you to make a piece?"  I really don't know.  How does one account for all the prep work?  Ironing Pellon 805/Wonder Under onto the reverse of every piece of polyester stretch velvet in my stash?  How do I count the hours of a single piece when there are literally SIXTEEN on which I am working?

 

(Above:  Detail of In Box CDLII.)

Why so many?  Well ... the first thing I do is to cut squares and rectangles of each color of polyester stretch velvet ... making small piles.  Then, I construct the foundation layer on several pieces of prepped synthetic felt.  This way, I'm using the cut pieces before trimming the rest into increasingly smaller and smaller pieces to be fused on the top of the foundation layer.  So ... sixteen foundations are now ready for smaller pieces.  Yet, I went ahead and layered up these two skinny pieces.  They were hand-stitched in front of the television over the weekend.

 

(Above:  Detail of In Box CDLIII.)

Both these pieces were mounted on small pieces of acid-free foamcore, one behind every square or rectangle.  Then, the work was mounted on mat board where I signed it.  That gives each piece the look of being slightly above the mat board, as if "floating".  I took the photos directly through the glass.  This was possible because the glass is UV filtering and anti-reflective "museum" glass.  These two were fun to make.

Reasons for Tears, the installation is growing

 

(Above:  Reasons for Tears, an installation in progress.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

A little over a week ago, I blogged about this installation with images that look remarkably similar to those in this post.  Of course they look similar!  In both entries, I was showing a couple dozen, damp vintage handkerchiefs pinned to a makeshift clothesline.  The difference is in the details!  On each handkerchief is free-motion stitched text.  The text is a "reason for tears" due to statements, executive orders, and other policies coming from the Trump administration.  To do this, I used an adhesive backed, water soluble stabilizer to make the ultra sheer material able to accept the machine stitching.  Then, each one was rinsed (and by that I mean lots of agitation, a little delicate rubbing, and plenty of water!)

(Above: Another view of Reasons for Tears in progress.)

On my last blog post about this installation, I said I'd put a temporary hold on this project because of the social media posts written about it.  I'd requested donations of additional handkerchiefs and statements.  Lots of people responded, but at the time, I had no idea how many handkerchiefs would be arriving in my mailbox.  Thus, I didn't want to keep stitching on those from my own stash. 

 

(Above: Another view of Reasons for Tears in progress.)

Since then, dozens have arrived!  I've been stitching up a storm (though not as "stormy" as conditions coming from the White House.)  Yesterday, rinsed ... and rinsed ... and rinsed!  Today, more handkerchiefs arrived.  I'll be back at it soon.  I love doing something to express my personal frustrations.  I only wish that the list of "reasons" wasn't still growing.