I have just 6 more birds from the list of 20 Common Birds in Decline to do. Today I printed 3 of 4 recently cut and mounted stamps, before I was stopped in my tracks for the lack of soda ash soaked cloth. And, while looking over the recent images, I think I should reprint two out of the last 4 anyway. I am at a stand still until the fabric hanging in the bathroom drips drip.
I love this project. I have never done anything quite like it before. Each image measures 2.5×3.5″. So they are tiny. I have not measured how big the cloth I am printing on measures, I just randomly chose a size and cut a bunch of squares. I left enough white so that when I begin to embroider them, they can have a border of white around them. I do fret about how they will wash up, so I am printing several of each image so that I have plenty of test pieces.
Yes, I am going to embroider, or stitch additional details on each piece. After the Deep Clean last month, I unearthed several of these stamps and dreamed up this project, so that I can utilize the embroidery floss I had been dyeing two months previously. I am happy to say that I am also restocking my studio supplies and I will be dyeing more threads, both DMC 6 strand and some silk embroidery thread I found off eBay, coming directly from China. I will let you know how it goes.
I have not forgotten that I am going to do a giveaway of Fuglies, and I do have a free class in the works, but my timeframe is much slower than it has ever been before. Please stayed tuned and enjoy.
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Melanie Testa 
Cool Beans, Melly..love the project..
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Wow!!! I love this project of yours. Are you painting directly onto the cloth with dye? A warning, don’t stitch when you are mad. I have a bandaged left index finger. Stitch therapy got a little carried away. LOL!
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Take your time. We’ll still be here. 😉 Your birdies look loverly! Keep up the great work.
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I think this is just amazing but what awes me even more is that you’re printing with dyes. It’s a work of love and art. You should take as much time as you need for the process.
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Great project to be working on. Can’t wait to see some of the embroidery….
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Congratulations on being published in this book! I found you on flkcir, as we share textile groups/contacts. Your quilting work is magnificent. Truly.How great to find out you embroider as well. Since my kids learned to hold a crayon & make marks with it, I’ve been embroidering their drawings. Something about tracing the lines they’ve made with my needle reinforces what I do as a parent and as an artist. The works have grown to include applique and screen-printed elements, but at heart they’re embroideries. I’d love a chance to get my hands on your book.
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