Take It Further Challenge March

This great selection of wool rovings and silk tops are following the given colour scheme for the TIF challenge this month. Sharon Boggon chosen colour scheme for March, the concept was to 'pay attention to the tiny details'.
As time was very precious this month due to many other creative commitments ( exhibitions by Silk-n-Threads at Tatton Park, the Macclesfield Embroiderers Guild at the Silk Museum and the Society of Marple Artists Ruby exhibition in April) whatever I did had to be achieveable in less than 24hours. So I decided to embellish on to black felt and use beads as the tiny details. The finished result works as a fluid swirling piece viewed from a far as the photo below shows. However, if you look closer you can see the tiny details of the beads that give the piece definition and surface texture.

These two closeups show the beads nestling in the embellished wool. I frequently employ beads and french knots to create small pockets of interest that only is realised when the viewer looks close up.

I machine edged the postcard and added it to my monthly collection.

January TIF challenge finished

This is my finished piece for the TIF (Take it Further Challenge). It is based on the microscopic image of a gall bladder which is a tribute to my missing organ!!!!! I am feeling so much better healthwise. It is postcard size and worked on felt, the couching around the cream shape is done over machine whipped cords. To see all the finished pieces go to the TIF flickr site .
or blog .
These photos show detail of the corners.

TIF latest

Photo of my design book for TIF's January challenge. I played around with the images of gall bladders and came up with the design top right. It will be postcard size and the base fabric will be commercial craft felt.

The cream fabric is pinned down for the top right, pleased with the shape, I will attach it down by couching machine wrapped cords, see below.

I machine wrapped three different coloured cords for the edging of the cream shape.

This shows one night's work, I couched the three cords separately and used seed stitch on the cream fabric, I might put some pale lilac on this later if I feel it needs it.
Close up of couching and seed stitch

Generally pleased with the first session of stitching. The next task is to create a loose linear effect on the purle felt, will have to go back to my TAST library for inspiration.

Health report

Thanks to everyone who has passed on their best wishes through this blog, my Flickr and by email.
I came home from hospital 36hours after the op and have been well looked after by DH so far but I think he is looking forward to going back to work next week. Today has been the first day that I have felt like 'creating' so just paid a visit to the recent posts about the TIF challenge and made a start on my design so hopefully will be able to commence stitching at the weekend.

Take It Further Challenge

Following on from the TAST challenge of 2007 Sharon Boggon has a new challenge that started on 1st January 2008 - Take It Further (TIF).

Each month she posts a concept and colour scheme. You can choose either or both and work on a design and take it through to completion.

January's concept is 'Somebody you Admire' and the colour scheme is below

I have a busy month this January, next week is my op and then I have to get to work on producing work for two exhibitions so I intend to start with a postcard size piece of work. I may even continue this theme throughout the year so that I can add to my evergrowing collection of fabric postcards and possibly put them together to form a book at the end of the year as I have done with my TAST samples.

I started by putting threads together for inspiration. I made a colour strip firstly from threads I had and then went out to buy the suggested DMC threads. Today in good natural daylight I saw how the two did not exactly match up. The colour scheme is obviously up for interpretation by individuals and therefore I will be using various values of all the above colours.

This selection shows a range of colour values that I intend using. I decided to use the given colour scheme as it is not one of my usual choices and would challenge my natural tendencies. I have rejected the concept however as I have something nearer to my January existence at the present. Whilst researching gall bladders on the web I came across these very organic diagrams of the muscular wall of the gall bladder and was perversely attracted to the natural undulations and curves.
The muscular wall itself has some very interesting patterns that I could easily see translating into stitch. I will have to work on a design, postcard size, next week as I must now go and pack a bag for tomorrow, I have to be at the hospital for 7.30am, and just hope that the Norovirus sweeping through UK hospitals at present doesn't close the ward I am reporting to!!!!!!!!!!