There are a number of ways to get the effect of shiny leaves on a beaded art quilt. (I wrote about some other ways a few weeks back in another posting.)I’ve had a lot of practice looking for different materials since magical gardens are a favorite theme in my art work. I tend to like the color olive green rather than grass green, so when I saw these plastic ovals a few years ago, I bought as many as I could find. They’re about 2″ or 5 cm tall, so they’re big enough to make a statement on a large quilt. Behind them is a motif of a clump of ferns, cut from fabric, and then I sewed the plastic ovals on top. I interlaced the two layers together with overlapping rows of large beads, some with facets. That allowed the two designs to look intertwined, just as they would in nature.
There are a number of glass leaf beads on the market, but most of them are rather small, as they are designed for jewelry, not art quilts. The three translucent one shown in the upper middle of this detail shot are about 1″ or 2.5 cm long and were the perfect size for this small art quilt (about 10″ or 35.5 cm square.) They have deeply recessed veins and a midrib unlike many other glass leaf beads that have those sections just painted on. The stem that are attached were made from a rather textured yarn that was couched on, but I allowed some of the threads to fray away from the main yarn giving the effect of tangled twigs.
Finally, here are some green, enameled, leaf shaped metal buttons that I bought through a wholesale account with JHB a number of years ago. (I remember that my local fabric store also carried them at the time.) Only about 1″ or 2.5 cm long, they were expensive, but way too pretty not to buy as many as I could afford. Any small button that has a shank on it is hard to get to lay flat on a quilt surface. (The shank was necessary to get the unusually shaped button through a buttonhole.) However, the fact that the button doesn’t stay exactly flat has an advantage in this case, as the back is a gold color, and a little of that shows through to the front.
If you’ve been reading my posts for awhile, your already know how passionate I am about beads and buttons. The shiny little treasures sit in my studio in clear boxes sorted by colors, so that their siren song is constantly calling me to create. Sometimes, I just have to make my art, well,…. just because!
How do you feel about your art materials? Do you purchase just what you need, or do you have a stash of “this will be perfect someday” materials?
Why not leave a comment as to your thoughts on this posting. Please take a minute, fill out the form below or by clicking on the “comments/no comments link” at the top of the posting, and then share your ideas with the rest of us. We all grow when we share our thoughts and impressions, so why not join our growing community of those who appreciate art quilts and textile arts. We’d love to hear from you!… and PLEASE tell like minded souls about this blog! The more readers and contributors, the more I write because encouragement helps the words flow!
You can see more of my art work on my web site at www.fiberfantasies.com (be patient as it loads; it’s worth it), my spiritual healing work at www.transitionportals.com and can find me on Google + , Facebook (for Transition Portals) Facebook (for Fiber Fantasies), and Twitter.
To find out how to buy my art work, please check out “How to Buy my Art Work” in the “Pages” section to the right of this blog.
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