The Wonder of It All, in progress

I really like to see how artists create work, and I often get questions about how my work is made, so I thought I'd use this blog to document the progress of some of my pieces (but I can't promise you won't see any cat pictures here).

About a year ago I started a series called Sewing Patterns. I love pattern and sewing and embroidery and finally found a way to incorporate some into my work.

Here are some shots of a piece called The Wonder of It All.

I started with a black and white striped slipcover that I got in the As-Is section at IKEA. I used a stencil and applied a yellow pattern.

Then I went over it with a layer of transparent white.

I then applied some light blue on the bottom half and used a foam stamp to remove the paint. I stamped the blue that I picked up on the top part.

I think I missed a couple of steps. I found a pattern that I liked and drew it on with a colored pencil. I created the pattern in two different sizes. I stitched around the pattern with some embroidery thread to outline it. I filled it in with a transparent grey wash to bring out the pattern more.

Here is a detail of the stitching:

After I did the stitching I stretched it over stretcher bars. I don't usually do any more stitching at this point and switch to collage and paint.

I drew and cut some shapes out of a thin paper called Sekishu. I like to use it in encaustic because it pretty much disappears. Not quite so much with acrylic, but it does get pretty transparent.

I collaged them in and filled them in with white. I also brought out a little of the yellow pattern that got hidden behind the blue. And I guess I didn't use that small one on the bottom left. Oh no, actually, I looked at it and it's there, I guess I just forgot to paint it!

Here is the finished piece:

The pieces that I do that are more abstract that don't have any real narrative qualities I usually title using song titles or lyrics. Usually whatever I happen to be listening to at the time. This is from The Wolf by Mumford and Sons.

By the way, I was inspired to start blogging again because my friend Jessica Pullings just started blogging about her awesome 52 Letters project. Check it out!

I'm also inspired by the process posts that my friend Deborah Boschert posts on her blog. Do check her work out, too.

I post a lot of in-progress shots on Instagram, so follow me there if you want to see more: deanna.wood.art