WALL ART HANGING OPTIONS

Hello again everyone.....it's Mary Stori with my final guest post.

Today I'm going to share a technique that has become helpful to me when preparing my small Nuno or other wet felted wall art pieces for sale.  These little guys can be difficult to hang.  Using a traditional fabric sleeve with a wood dowel is generally too bulky.    

Instead I cut a 2"-3" square from felted wool and sub-cut into 2 triangles.  These are hand sewn to the top two corners.  Additionally, I provide a 1/8", or 3/8" diameter metal rod. (Found a most big box home improvement stores.)  It's cut to the appropriate width.  I smooth the sharp edges with a grinding wheel. 

However, there are times when after all the stitching is completed......I'm still trying to deciding whether a horizontal or vertical orientation is best.  In that case I add additional triangles to the other corners which allows the buyer to decide their preference.  The following is an example of one such piece.

CARNIVAL  10" X 7"

Artist Nuno felted wool, hand embroidered and bead embellished.

It's been a such pleasure to reveal some of the tricks I share with my students!!  Please visit my blog from time to time and say howdy!

Mary Stori

web:   www.marystori.com

Blog:  www.marystori.blogspot.com

NEW SHOP BLOG:  www.marystorishop.blogspot.com

Author:  "Beading Basics", "All-in-One Beading Buddy", DVD -  "Mary Stori Teaches You Beading on Fabric", and "Embellishing With Felted Wool"

2004 Professional Teacher of the Year

Bernina Artisan

BEADING TIP

It's Mary Stori back to share another trick I use to help my beading time go more smoothly.

You may be familiar with a 'bead mat'.....which I believe is nothing more than the material a Vellux blanket is made from.  For our purposes it's been cut into sections and resold at bead distributors or bead shops.  It's such a great product and one that will keep your beads from rolling around, making it faster and easier to pick them up with the needle.  Very useful when working at a table.

However, I rarely bead sitting at a table.  Instead, I'm plunked down on our denim couch....feet up on an old oak coffee table, bright light over my left shoulder, with the  big screen within easy view.  I used to place my bead mat on a shallow jelly roll pan, which acted as a lap board....but it got awfully cumbersome.  One day I came up with the idea of securing the bead mat in a small wood embroidery hoop.  PERFECT.....when the thread is long I can bring the needle to the hoop, when it's shorter...I can bring the hoop to the needle!

I also switched out the large, hard/cold metal pan in favor of a padded cutting mat.  The soft side sits on my lap, while the hard side acts as surface on which to rest my Q-snap frame.  The number and variety of beads used to create the wall quilt below is a good example of the importance of keeping the beads under control!

Heirloom Blush  8" x 12"

Artist hand-dyed and felted wool, hand embroidered and bead embellished.

So, if you prefer the comfort of a soft chair, you might want to give my method a try.  If you have helpful beading tricks, please share them!  I'll be back with one more post before I say goodbye and thank you for joining me.

Mary Stori

web:   www.marystori.com

Blog:  www.marystori.blogspot.com

NEW SHOP BLOG:  www.marystorishop.blogspot.com

Author:  "Beading Basics", "All-in-One Beading Buddy", DVD -  "Mary Stori Teaches You Beading on Fabric", and "Embellishing With Felted Wool"

2004 Professional Teacher of the Year

Bernina Artisan

Q-SNAP FRAME

Hello Fire lovers.......my name is Mary Stori.  I want to thank Beata for providing the opportunity to discuss hand stitching with you.  It's especially important these days, when the focus seems to have turned toward machine and long arm stitching.  I've been fortunate to have made a 25+ year long career in the quilt world where many trends have changed and others remain the same.  Happily, there are still those of us who love the often slow, yet contemplative process of working with needle in hand.  

 I came up with a trick years and years ago that allowed me to secure my often highly embellished work in a frame for hand quilting.  I still continue to use this method today when I'm hand embroidering and beading.  I always, always work in a Q-snap frame.....11" x 11" or 11" x 17" are my preferences.  Working in a square or rectangular frame, rather than a round hoop, allows the fabric to be secured 'on grain', thus helping to avoid wrinkles/distortion from developing.  The 'clip' system makes it easier to adjust the tension....tight for beading but looser for hand quilting.

One problem however, is that the plastic clips that secure the fabric to the frame can damage embellishments.  (Here, I'm outlining the image with matt black beads.) One way to eliminate that issue is to wrap your quilt around the framework, use straight pins, safety pins, or hand baste to secure it.  Use the clips only in areas that is embellishment free.

                                      

Another approach is to make  muslin sleeves that slide onto the framework, which comes apart at each corner. Think of it as a casing for a skirt or pants, with a 2" extension at one end.  You can make just one or up to 4 for each size frame. This will allow you to pin your pieces onto the sleeve to maintain fabric tension without using the plastic clips.

                                     

This trick will also enable the stitching to be brought out to the edge of the quilt...without trying to hold it in your hands which has a tendency to cause the edges to ripple.  The finished piece is below:

Please join me next time to learn a nifty method I use when beading.

Mary Stori

web:   www.marystori.com

Blog:  www.marystori.blogspot.com

NEW SHOP BLOG:  www.marystorishop.blogspot.com

Author:  "Beading Basics", "All-in-One Beading Buddy", DVD -  "Mary Stori Teaches You Beading on Fabric", and "Embellishing With Felted Wool"

2004 Professional Teacher of the Year

Bernina Artisan