Mandala CCLXXI, The Girl Scouts

(Above:  Mandala CCLXXI, The Girl Scouts.  Custom framed: 32" x 32".  Assorted Girl Scouts of South Carolina Mountains to Midlands patches and part of a custom tote hand-stitched to a section of a vintage quilt.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

 It was my privilege to create this mandala for the Girl Scouts of South Carolina Mountains to Midlands from a collection of patches dating from the last decade.  Each patch was stitched in place by hand despite the fact that every one of them had heat-activated adhesive on the back.  That "glue" provided an easy way to attach the patches by ironing them to another surface (like a Girl Scout sash or another accessory or garment).  Basically, today's Girl Scouts really don't have to thread a needle to get their badges and patches in place.

 

(Above:  Detail of Mandala CCLXXI, Girl Scouts.)

That wasn't how badges were when I was a scout ... and I went from Brownies to Juniors to Seniors ... not quitting until I went to college and had no additional time to participate.  (At one point, I was even an Explorer which was a coed part of the Boy Scouts).  Back then, badges and patches had to be sewn in place.  So despite the gooey underside, I knew exactly what had to be done to make these patches permanent.  (Iron-on adhesive isn't quite as permanent as the manufacturers suggest.  I couldn't risk these from being "picked off" while on display!)

 

(Above:  Detail of Mandala CCLXXI, The Girl Scouts.)

The first thing I did was to sort through a box of patches to find which ones would work for concentric circles around the center.  The center was cut from a Girl Scout tote bag.  After designing the rings of patches, I tackled the corners.  Finally, the little ones (especially those that had no other patch like it) were placed around the edge.  Then, the the stitching started.  All the small ones have an average of a dozen stitches.  Some of the larger ones needed as many as forty. It took days and days to stitch everything down but it was worth it!  The finished mandala looks terrific!

 

(Above:  Mandala CCLXXI, The Girl Scouts as seen from an angle.)

This piece will be delivered to its permanent home next Tuesday!  I can't wait!

Tidal Wave IX

 

(Above:  Tidal Wave IX.  Custom framed: 27 3/8" x 27 3/8".  Found objects and buttons hand-stitched to a vintage quilt.  Click on any image to enlarge.)

After stitching Tidal Wave VIII, I still had quite a stash of random things leftover.  It looked like there was more than enough for another Tidal Wave.  The only way to know "for sure" was to prepare another surface and stitch layered buttons in a tidal wave outline.

 

(Above:  Detail of Tidal Wave IX.)

Sure enough, the wave was covered and the stitching began.  For this piece, I used a totally different substrata.  It was just a hexie quilt top ... never actually "quilted".  I layered it on top of another old quilt.  That quilt was "vintage" only if you think the 1980s qualifies as "vintage".  It was also tattered and rather ugly.  I would never have used it alone for a Found Object Mandala or a Tidal Wave.  Using it under the pretty quilt top, however, gave it a "second life" while preventing me from using brand new batting and backing.  Win-win!

 

(Above:  Detail of Tidal Wave IX.)

Because I position a piece of sheer netting over the surface before stitching down any of the objects, it becomes important to "quilt" the areas without objects.  (The netting protects any threadbare areas and the fragile old seams.)  The quilting integrates the netting with the quilt top.  Lots of people are surprised that there is this extra layer because ... once quilted together ... it is barely visible.  For this piece, I simply stitched a six pointed star into the center of every hexie.  It looks great!

 

(Above:  Tidal Wave IX at an angle.)

I am now snapping photos after hanging each piece on a screw that Steve installed on the side of our home/church/studio.  This wall is north facing and never gets direct sunlight.  Yet it is also beside a very wide open yard.  There are no structures or trees casting shadows.  The indirect light is nice, even, and bright.  My only recent problems were ice and snow!  Two weekends ago, the sidewalk directly under this piece was covered in three-quarters of an inch of hard, slippery ice.  The following weekend, we got almost four full inches of snow!  It's still cold outside but the pavement is finally free of ice and snow.  The pictures turned out well!

Tidal Wave VIII

 

(Above:  Tidal Wave VIII.  Custom framed:  31 3/4" x 31 3/4".  Found objects and buttons hand-stitched to a section of a vintage quilt.)

Tidal waves have been on my mind.  Part of the reason is the fact that my stash of found objects was simply overwhelmed with things that just won't work on a Found Object Mandala.  I need multiples.  Lately, I've been inundated with random things that are simply too cool, too colorful, too unique, and too full of potential to throw away.  All these things work well on a tidal wave!

(Above:  Detail of Tidal Wave VIII.)

Take for instance, the little baseball figures.  I had five sets of them but only used four on Mandala CCXXXV.  The others went into the pile for this tidal wave.  While in Montana for my October art residency, a nice lady donated the plastic ring toss game to me ... but the different sizes and colors just didn't lend themselves to a mandala; they went into the pile for this tidal wave.  People have given my pocket watches and cocktail swizzlers and all sorts of wonderfully strange things that all went into the pile for this tidal wave!

 

(Above: Detail of Tidal Wave VIII.)

In the tub of rubber duckies that Steve bought while I was in Montana were several "non-duckies" ... like the mermaid figure and the plastic frog.  How could I toss them?  I was also given a small Ziploc bag with Girl Scout badges and pins.  Most went into a small mandala that was donated to SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) for their annual benefit auction, but I still had the Brownie patch and the green-and-yellow wings for a junior scout.  As a former Girl Scout, I couldn't throw them away!  Of course they found places to go on this tidal wave!  

 

(Above:  Tidal Wave VIII as seen from at an angle ... literally hanging on a screw Steve installed on the side of our home/church/studio!)

The scouting ephemera now seems almost prophetic!  I just got a commission from the Girl Scouts of South Carolina Mountains to Midlands for a unique mandala stitched using lots of patches!  I'll blog it once it is finished!