January 15, 2006
Silk and Silver Medallions
I started a piece yesterday which will incorporate a dozen medallions, each roughly 2.5 to 3". The medallions are made with various dark red/maroon felted wool bases, then a layer of silver metallic, a piece of silk salvaged from a tie, and a charm.
The silver metallic pieces are made from a variety of materials. Several are lame type fabrics, a couple are vinyls with a knit backing, and some are pieces of plastic/foil or ?? I'm always on the lookout for metallic materials that can be sewn, and some of my finds are working well with this piece. For instance, a plastic (according to the package) disposable tablecloth that is as bright and shiny as foil. Also the freshness seals from plastic food cans. Plastic coffee and non-dairy coffee creamer containers usually have seals that look something like dull aluminium but feel like plastic. A type of fish food I use comes in a can with a beautiful waffle-textured seal that looks and feels like a thick foil but seems to have a plastic blended into it.
The silk pieces, although not a lot is visible, have an interesting "look" because I retained the bias orientation of the original ties. I did use an iron on stabalizer to reduce distortion.
The charms are made from little pieces (various grits) of used sandpaper covered with ducting tape and then etched with designs using something pointed. The tape is very shiny and is used to seal heating ducts at connections, not the cloth type duck tape. I read instructions for making them about a year ago (I can't remember where) and made a bunch of them last Spring, including the 12 I'm using in this piece. I've been thinking about this piece since then; yesterday I finally got started.
Here are the first 6 medallions:
I scanned them then punched the colors up a bit. It's not an accurate representation but it's as close as I am able to get. The metallic layer on the bottom right medallion didn't scan true at all, it is actually a very shiny fabric. The metallic on the 2 top medallions is cut from the tablecloth, it scanned well enough to show a bit of the embossed design.
My plan is to attach these medallions to a background, I'll start on that as soon as the medallions are done. ¶ 12:15 AM
The silver metallic pieces are made from a variety of materials. Several are lame type fabrics, a couple are vinyls with a knit backing, and some are pieces of plastic/foil or ?? I'm always on the lookout for metallic materials that can be sewn, and some of my finds are working well with this piece. For instance, a plastic (according to the package) disposable tablecloth that is as bright and shiny as foil. Also the freshness seals from plastic food cans. Plastic coffee and non-dairy coffee creamer containers usually have seals that look something like dull aluminium but feel like plastic. A type of fish food I use comes in a can with a beautiful waffle-textured seal that looks and feels like a thick foil but seems to have a plastic blended into it.
The silk pieces, although not a lot is visible, have an interesting "look" because I retained the bias orientation of the original ties. I did use an iron on stabalizer to reduce distortion.
The charms are made from little pieces (various grits) of used sandpaper covered with ducting tape and then etched with designs using something pointed. The tape is very shiny and is used to seal heating ducts at connections, not the cloth type duck tape. I read instructions for making them about a year ago (I can't remember where) and made a bunch of them last Spring, including the 12 I'm using in this piece. I've been thinking about this piece since then; yesterday I finally got started.
Here are the first 6 medallions:
I scanned them then punched the colors up a bit. It's not an accurate representation but it's as close as I am able to get. The metallic layer on the bottom right medallion didn't scan true at all, it is actually a very shiny fabric. The metallic on the 2 top medallions is cut from the tablecloth, it scanned well enough to show a bit of the embossed design.
My plan is to attach these medallions to a background, I'll start on that as soon as the medallions are done. ¶ 12:15 AM
