Places still available: 'All That Glitters' workshop in Altona, Vic, Sat 8th September, and my new quilt!

Hi all,

I've just learned that there are still a few places available for my full-day workshop "All that Glitters" where you will learn how to use Angelina fibre, Textiva (fantasy film), transfer foils, metal flakes and other bits of bling to add to your multi media / textile art and quilts. Book quickly - it's next Saturday the 8th!

We will make the quilt top for my new design "Tweet" picture below and you'll take it home ready to quilt (or frame for non-sewers).

All fabrics (except for the background) are hand made from Angelina fibre with Textiva (fantasy film), metal flakes, sheer fabrics and crystal shard embedded. The 'tweet' caption balloon is silver holographic transfer foil on fusible web.

If you're interested please get in touch with Doris Gloger of Altona's Seabreeze Quilters ASAP:email:   dorisgloger@hotmail.com    or call: 0430822285

metallic foil satin stitching with transfer foil overlay creates the edging.

Class details:
Saturday September 8,
10am - 4pm
Cost $70 plus kit ($20) or bring your own as per the requirements list.

You'll find out:

• How to get the best effects from Angelina - how to blend, change it's colouring and change it's iridescence levels.
• How to embed fantasy films, metal flakes and sheer fabrics
• How to attach them to a quilt backing pin free without having to apply lots of heat and flatten their colours.

• How to create a foiled border edge for your work.

• Take the completed top home ready to back and quilt or frame.

• The easiest ways to free-motion stitch with metallic threads.

Here's an alternate version of the same quilt with spiral quilting in the background:

I would love to see you there!

-Neroli

Competition - Olfa 45mm Rotary Cutter Giveaway

Hi all,

I've decided to help drive 'likers' to my Facebook page by giving away an Olfa 45mm rotary cutter to someone who 'likes' my Facebook page. I'll randomly choose the person to win on Sunday or after when the page hits 400 'likes'.

All you need to do is click on the link and then click the 'like' button. You may need to be a Facebook member to 'like' the page but all should be able to view it.

http://www.facebook.com/nerolihenderson

I am looking forward to picking the winner!!

Neroli

My new T-shirt, iPhone case and Print design

After a slow start to the year (my sewing machine is still at the doctors - sob!) I decided to spend some time with my trusty Mac and Photoshop and produce another piece of work for my Redbubble store. The end result is this digitised Aston Martin DB5 from 1964 - I've been assured it's just like James Bond used to drive! 

I started with a pretty average photo I took with my iPhone 4S on Australia day at a vintage car show at the Royal Botanical gardens here in Melbourne. The 4S phone takes a decent photo but the size is never big enough for large format work. I need to either redraw or digitise the pics in a way where they will print high resolution in big sizes. The photo is a half decent one of the car but there are too many reflections and a piece of paper over the steering wheel. Plus I like to get rid of real number plates and the less said about the background the better!!

This was the original photo:

I cut out the car and shadow from the background, erased the number plate and made up my own.

The interior of the car was messy and covered up with the paper so I redrew most of the insides including the steering wheel and the seats and then spent a very long time removing reflections. Those two girls on the side were reflected in about 3 different parts!

A couple of hours later I had this - nicely cleaned up but it's just a photo and lacking some graphic punch. I altered the levels in Photoshop for much greater colour saturation and contrast, applied the 'cutout' filter, rejigged the levels again and reapplied the filter keeping the numberplate as is.

The finished product - you can buy it as a print, t-shirt, baby onesie, hoodie, greeting card, sticker or iPhone cover by clicking here.

How to paint a Seascape on fabric - Tutorial

Here's a quick tute for how to paint a shimmering seascape that you can use for further embellishment or simply frame as is (and if DIY isn't your thing feel free to commission a piece off me from $25 for a fat quarter size 50x 50cm). I love painting and fabric, so it only seems just that I combine the two frequently!

An example of the technique described below.

1. First wash and iron white cotton an inch or two bigger than your intended finished piece. It should be 100% cotton, washed to remove any sizing (coating) and then ironed to be wrinkle free.

2. Lay your fabric on a paint proof surface - I use a piece of metal or acrylic but you could use the glass from an old picture frame (put tape around the edges so they aren't sharp) or in a pinch work on a chopping board you've covered with a wide sheet of aluminium foil. Spray it with water until thoroughly damp and smooth down.

3. Decide where your horizon line will be. I like to use the Jacquard Lumiere acrylic paints as they have two tones in the one pot - where you paint thickly appears quite metallic and gold and where the paint travels and soaks into the wet fabric is quite matte and the alternate colour. For a sky over the sea I start with halo violet-gold straight from the tub and paint a line along the horizon allowing the colour to bleed out into the wet paint.

4. Add colours to the sky. I've added halo pink-gold, burnt orange and sunset gold. However using pink-gold by itself can create similar effects if you use it both watered down and straight. Allow the wet fabric to merge the colours and keep your paint lines mostly horizontal - the more angular you do them the windier it will look. Spray more water as needed.

5. For the sea bunch up that part of the fabric and paint over the top folds. I've used halo blue-gold.

6. The colour will soak down a little way into the fabric. After painting the visible folds with both straight and watered down paint (to get different effects) re bunch the fabric to make the white ares stand up. Using a different colour paint the now exposed white areas (i've used pearl turquoise). Lastly re-bunch the fabric again to show any remaining white areas and paint those (i've used the very metallic 'super sparkle' for these. Keep bunching and adding paint / spray with water as needed until you have covered the fabric and are pleased with the result.

7. Lay your fabric out flat and admire your work. Ta Da!