Heart Felt Wishes to you all! I love hearts, I love the shape, I love to decorate the house at Valentine’s Day, and I have a lot of hearts… so I decided to post A Heart a Day for the entire month of February.
“There is only one happiness in life: to love and be loved.” – George Sand, Author
Happiest of heartfelt wishes for a wondrous day! ~Christen
I have been creating wearable garments for many years. I always have fabric, beads, and treasures left over from those projects, so many of them have additional accessories, such as masks and wands. What better time of year to share some of these with you!
Moonlit Sea was made for a vest called Chandos Summer Storm.
The base of the mask is pieced from left over fabrics that were used on the vest. The base was then embroidered and embellished with shisha mirrors, glass beads, ceramic and metal charms, old earrings, carved bone and shell pieces, and ribbon.
Kalahari Spirit Dancer was made for an ensemble with the same name. The ensemble includes a jacket, a vest, a skirt and a purse.
For the mask, I pieced fabric onto cardboard, then glued shisha mirrors and strands of glue to cover the raw edges. I applied gold leaf to the glue just as it was drying. I have added all sorts of charms and talismans, that have given the piece it’s own spirit.
Madame Butterfly mask was made for a jacket with the same name.
The handle is made from a piece of drift wood that I spray painted. The base of the mask is pieced and machine stitched with metallic threads. It is embellished with fabric yo-yos, shisha mirrors, beads, charms, old earrings, carved bone and shell pieces, and ribbon.
Polgara’s Mask was made with an old tree root that I found. The rounded parts of the root, resembled a mask. I added another piece of wood for the handle.
I embellished the mask with a vintage pheasant feather piece that was attached to an old hat. In addition, I added ribbonwork flowers, vintage millinery glass pods, velvet ribbon, and a tassel to complete the piece.
White Shell Woman was made for one of my first wearable garments, by the same name.
The base is a piece of driftwood that I sanded and sprayed with shellac. Bits of gathered pieces from nature include coral spines, dried pods, shells, and driftwood. Beads, bells and ribbon complete the design.
All Friday’s Favorites posts.
Enjoy your haunts this month, and always! Happy Stitching to you! ~Christen
Many of you know that I love hearts! I love the shapes and all of the possibilities. This is an example from my Magic Web on-line class. The base is made from scraps of this and that, sandwiched between two layers of Solvy and stitched with metallic threads. Adornments include shisha mirrors, buttons, charms, and beads.
Happy February to you!
~Christen
This is a great technique project; I call it Metallic Threads 101, but it doesn’t stop there. In class you will make a “magic web” from bits of precious scraps, decorative yarns and metallic threads, sandwiched together with Solvy and machine stitching, lots of machine stitching. The unique fabric that you create will be used as a base for a heart shaped brooch that will be embellished with buttons and beads.
Skill Level Intermediate: sewing machine and some embroidery knowledge needed
Lesson 1: Making your “magic web” from precious bits of this and that. Keep in mind that you can create a larger piece of fabric, even a scarf with these techniques.
Lesson 2: Creating a base for the brooch from the machine-stitched “magic web” using bits of silk or cotton fabric. Choose from 2 different heart shapes, to create your brooch and embellish this with buttons and beads.
These classes can be purchased at any time, there is no set schedule. The class can be ordered by contacting Christen: thestoreonthecorner@gmail.com. She will send you an invoice through PayPal.
Once the class is paid for, the supply list will be sent out. The lessons will begin one week after the purchase of the class, unless otherwise stated. You will receive an email with the lesson attached. The following lesson/s will arrive one week after the previous lesson.
A high speed internet connection is recommended, and you must have basic computer and internet skills. You will need to be able know how to download and save a document to your computer’s hard drive, open it and print out a copy.
You can contact Christen with any questions pertaining to the class/class information throughout the length of the class.
Class fees will not be refunded.
Sunrise over the Sangre de Cristo Mountains
My favorite time of day is the morning, so fresh, so full of possibilities.
When our relatives lived in Corrales New Mexico this magnificent range was to the east of their home. I am usually up very early, and I would sit with my morning coffee at the oak table, in front of the huge glass window with the view of these mountains in front of me.
We visited during the summer and the fall, but I would have to say that my favorite time of year was winter. The view between the bare branches of the tree in their backyard, the open field with mist rising off the chaparral and behind these the view of sunrise over the snow capped mountain in all of it’s glory.
Lovely.
The background of this wall-hanging is machine strip pieced, the rays machine appliqued, and the bottom strip machine crazy pieced. The entire piece was machine quilted. The rays have hand embroidered details and the vintage shisha mirrors are hand embroidered. The rays are adorned with vintage apple juice celluloid buttons. Dimensions 20″ W X 10″ L.
Enjoy whatever time of day is your favorite! Happy Stitching! ~Christen
Currents- free form embroidered vest
The vest is made from a Hoffman Bali Batik fabric, in the colors of a rich cranberries and currents, shot with hints of mango, teal and mustard. I used these accents colors for the fabric yo-yo’s made from cotton velveteen, and metallic silk fabric. This was the sample for my Currents class.
The cotton base fabric is machine quilted with a double needle in some sections and free form stipple quilted in others. Machine embroidered sections of covered yarn resemble branches or vines (teal green), and provide an anchor for the additional embellishment of hand applied rayon cords.
Hand embroidered shisha mirrors are seen amongst needle lace embroidery. Beads and buttons are used along with metal charm embellishments to compliment the sea theme.
Happy Stitching, Christen
Christen's Creations 