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Saturday 31 August 2013

Ferns

Funny how sometimes you can struggle for weeks and weeks to find inspiration and then once in a while it hits you between the eyes straight off.  I immediately thought of the little piece I had made at Winter School last year with Dawn Thorne.  It was the wrong shape so I couldn't cheat and just present it.  But I did enjoy working with the shapes again. 


The background is a lovely linen mix fabric with painted Bondaweb added.  The green is dyed and waxed tissue paper.  The ferns are paper, some painted with Lumiere paints some with transfer paints, and organza.  A bit of pink foiling was added (this has caught the light and looks stronger than it actually is).

Here is the original which has zapped Lutradur painted with Lumiere.


Hilary

14 comments:

  1. Love the fern shapes, though I find my eyes drawn too much to the pink sections. I'd forgotten about painted Bondaweb until recently - must give it another go.

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  2. I agree about the pink - my fault for grabbing was was available and not getting what would have been better... I will try and knock it back. Hilary

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  3. I like your design Hilary and the shapes work very well. I think the pink is ok and gives it life and interest. A really nice piece with lots of techniques. What is waxed tissue paper? There is so much I have to learn and which I am learning.

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  4. Best to use strong tissue paper or Abaca paper (Japanese) if you can get it. We painted (not acrylic paint) the paper then coated it with simple candles melted down in a pot. Be careful and use an old house painting brush - 2"? Then layer up the tissue with lots of absorbent paper and iron out the excess wax. It leaves the paper remarkably soft and pliable, semi transparent and quite tough.
    This works on all sorts of paper from simple crumpled brown paper to any old paper, plain or painted.
    If you can get hold of rolls of newsprint (before it is printed) or lining paper these are good for protecting your workspace and absorbing the wax.
    The colours brighten as you melt away the wax.

    Hilary

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  5. I like the combination of organic and geometric shapes. The way you have staggered the forms adds interest, and I think this makes the composition even more successful than the original.

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  6. Fun to repeat a piece and achieve a different look. Waxed tissue, painted Bondaweb...there's no end to trying new products. I'm in the process of cleaning my sewing room, discovering products I must try.

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  7. Fun to repeat a piece and achieve a different look. Waxed tissue, painted Bondaweb...there's no end to trying new products. I'm in the process of cleaning my sewing room, discovering products I must try.

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  8. You have used the same technique ... painted Bondaweb. Love the combinations of mediums and I quite like the pink - nicely balanced. I also love the use of organic shapes and forms.

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  9. The fern shape is ever so appealing. I like the pink but it would be interesting to see how it looks in a more muted tone.

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  10. Can I pretend that I wrote what Heather wrote please?
    Heather - you've said what I was thinking but your words sound much better than the ones that were in my head!!

    And I can live with the pink, rather than knock it back can you add a line of pink to a fern?

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  11. The beginning of a series? When I enlarged the pic I was pleased to see the additional ferns. I like it with the pink -nice complement to the green.

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  12. These are both wonderful takes on your theme, Hilary. Thanks for the scoop on making the wax paper.

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  13. Please, please, please have a workshop for us on these techniques with paper. The transparency and color are perfect for collage work (which I want to learn, too). I really like the simple form of the fern in a variety of heights and shade...just like in the forest! Now, onto a cooking lesson with these fiddleback gems!

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  14. Update on waxing paper. I just heard of a simpler/less messy way of waxing paper this weekend up in the Yorkshire Dales with a group of contemporary quilters - what better?!

    Layer up some newspaper and iron it to make it HOT. Then lay you paper to be waxed on top and iron again. Now drag your candle laid sideways across the paper and the retained heat in the newspaper should melt the candle wax onto your paper. Surely worth a try? Thanks for Cathy for the tip.

    I would still iron the waxed paper between plain paper sheets afterwards to 'drive' the wax into the paper and to spread it evenly and removed any excess.

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