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TREES SERIES
Everywhere I look I see beautiful trees hidden away in the background of daily life
and have decided to feature them in much of my artwork as I develop techniques
to capture their wonderful shapes and textures using fabric and thread.
My "Trees of Grass Valley" series came about when I visited relatives in
Grass Valley in September of 2021 (my first outdoor venture during Covid Times).
Impressed with the trees I was seeing on our hikes around the area,
I created 3 scenes featuring specific trees chosen for their character and beauty.
I played around with backgrounds and techniques which became more complex
with Tree #3. (I added a river, hills in the background and shrubs in the foreground).
When I arrived back home in Benicia, I decided to expand the series
which has resulted in a "Trees of Benicia" series.
This series features specific trees with their location and the time of year
the photo was taken as part of their labels. They are now hanging in The Little Art Shop in Benicia.
(With a map showing each actual tree's location)
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"Trees of Benicia: West 9th Street Park" 10" x 10"
Cotton Batik Fabrics and Thread
Techniques: Piecing, Applique, Free Motion Stitching
This tree is located in the West 9th Street Park.
I found its amazing white bark and unusual shape extremely interesting.
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"Trees of Benicia: E J st. by St. Paul's" 10" x 10"
Cotton Batik Fabrics and Thread
Techniques: Piecing, Applique, Free Motion Stitching
This tree is located on E Jstreet across the street from St. Paul's just off First Street in Benicia. It has a
beautifully-shaped foliage canopy. I thought it deserved to be featured in a landscape all by itself.
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"Trees of Benicia: Monochromatic Black and White Landscape" 10" x 10"
Cotton and Tulle Fabrics and Thread
Techniques: Piecing, Transparency, Applique, Free Motion Stitching
This piece was another "monochromatic" challenge with an option to add white. I chose grey to black
as the palette. I also played with having a moon peeking out from a dark cloudy sky using Tulle to create
the effect. This tree is one I have used before, located on First Street near Seaview, but with a landscape
background rather than a Pieced and Quilted background.
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"Landscape with Tree #2" 10" x 10"
Cotton Batik Fabrics, Thread and Burlap Thread
Techniques: Piecing, Applique, Hand and Free Motion Stitching
This artwork features a tree located at the
corner of First and B Streets in Benicia. Its beauty is lost - sitting next to an adjacent parking lot. It was made
with a restricted monochromatic palette. I chose the brown spectrum from light tan to chocolate brown.
As I continue my journey of documenting beautiful trees, it offers me the opportunity to experiment and develop
new techniques that provide texture and dimension to my work. (Privately Owned)
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"Commandant's Lane" 10" x 20"
Cotton Batik Fabrics, Pearl Cotton, Wool Yarn, Thread
Techniques: Piecing, Applique, Chip-cut Textural Layering, Hand and Free Motion Stitching
"Commandant's Lane" features a tree on Commandant's Lane in Benicia. There were several challenges
to make the multi-level foreground believable. I stitched over layers of chopped bits of fabric with multiple
colors for texture. The upper foreground needed lots of grass, a fence and bushes which were fun to create.
The bark of the tree trunk is a mixture of fabric and hand-spun, hand-dyed wool yarn for a realistic effect.
The foreground was sprinkled with French Knots using one to 3 strands determined on how close (large) or
small (distant) the "flowers" would look. For the fence, I made a fabric tube and stuffed it with a strip of
firm
stabilizer. This was then cut and formed into a fence shape and stitched for effect. The tree foliage
was made
from free-motion elements, layered and stitched. Texture and dimension are techniques that
drive me to
experiment with fabric and thread every day.
(In October, 2024 I was honored when
"Commandant's Lane"was acquired by the City of Vacaville for their Permanent Art Collection)
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"Landscape with Tree" 10" x 10"
Cotton Fabric, Tulle, Thread
Techniques: Thread Sketching, Applique, Free Motion Stitching
This piece was created for the 2023 Arts Benicia Member Exhibition.
After several unsatisfactory design attempts and with only a week until the due date,
I finally settled on this small design featuring a local tree
with interesting textural effects and completed it on time. (Privately owned)
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Trees Of Benicia
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Trees of Grass Valley
Trees Of Grass Valley #1 10" x 8"
Materials: Cotton Fabric and Thread
Techniques: Thread Applique, Free-Motion Stitching
(Privately owned)
Trees Of Grass Valley #2 10" x 8"
Materials: Cotton Fabric and Thread
Techniques: Thread Applique, Free-Motion Stitching
(Privately owned)
Trees Of Grass Valley #3 10" x 10"
Materials: Materials: Cotton Fabric, Organza, Thread
Techniques: Thread Applique, Free-Motion Stitching
(Privately Owned)
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Woodland Sunset 18" x 14"
Cotton Fabric, Tulle, Thread
Techniques used: Woodland Sunset is the recreation, in fabric and thread, of a vision I had in my mind of a sunset
streaming through a forest. I created the background "mosaic" of small squares of fabric and used Tulle to soften the edges
and create shadows. I then stitched the background to give it dimension and texture. The next step was how to create a
forest-like layer that wasn't static but seemed somewhat natural-looking. I worked on other projects for 2 years until
I felt confident my ideas would work. My solution was to create the forest layer by stitching it, in sections, onto a
dissoluble substrate (which disappears when placed in water). The trick is to make sure all of the stitching is connected
or it can all fall apart. This layer of trees, leaves and shrubbery was attached to the background by hand and the piece was
mounted around an artist canvas for a finished look. (Privately owned)
Detail of Woodland Sunset
Benicia Marsh View 20" x 16"
Cotton Fabric, Thread, Cotton Batting
Techniques: Thread Painting and Sketching, Thread Nesting, Applique.
Based on an original photo (SeePhoto »») of the Marsh at the foot of First Street in Benicia, I painted and sketched with
layers of
thread the windswept reeds growing amongst the old pier stumps with their seed pods waving in the steady breeze.
Textural stitching in the foreground adds dimension to the scene.
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Coq Rouge 18" x 18"
Cotton Fabric
Techniques: Thread Sketching, Traditional Piecing, Applique.
This mix of Traditional quilting and Contemporary
Fiber Art Technique (Thread Sketching) demonstrates that the
two worlds complement each other. The Rooster was
a
fabric collage appliqué which
I placed on a background
of a traditional-pieced quilt block called "Hens and
Chickens".
Thread
Sketching enhances the design
and adds
texture and dimension.
The pieced background is enhanced with decorative machine stitching.
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Intersection 14" x 11"
Cotton Fabric
Techniques: Textural Stitching, Discharge Dyeing, Insertion
This Discharge Dyed design is a convergence
of lines which is accentuated by cutting the fabric and inserting black dimensional
elements into the intersecting seams.
The other main element of this work is the stitching which invites closer
inspection where
one can see the circular, textural
stitching "reaching out" from the constrained center and out into the void.
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Three Centuries 20" x 16"
Cotton Fabric
Techniques: Thread Sketching, Fabric Collage
Here I wanted to make an interesting background for
Thread Sketched century plants I'd taken a photo of some years ago.
The Collaged background incorporates
varied Textural Stitches which, combined with the Thread
Sketching, enhances the design
adding texture and dimension.
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Lilies 12" x 11 ½"
Cotton Fabric, Thread
Techniques: Fabric discharging, Free-motion stitching.
This discharged design, derived from an original photo of Lily flowers, was Free-motion stitched heavily
with different colors of thread to create this "Thread Painting".
Based on an original photo (See Photo »»)
(Privately Owned)
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A View from Baker Court #6 10" x 8"
(Part of a series A View from Baker Court SEE ALL »»)
Cotton Fabric, Thread
Techniques: Digital printing, Handstitching (Running Stitches and French Knots).
Based on an original photo, (See Photo»»)
the image was digitally printed onto a water-soluble substrate and hand-stitched with black thread.
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Artichoke Series:
The Artichoke series is based on original photographs of dried artichoke
"blossoms" I found in my garden after winter. They had stayed on the plants
and gone to seed. The seed heads were in different stages of "puffing out"
but had weathered and dried out so much the seeds couldn't blow away. They
had wonderful coloring and very interesting shapes. Using these images as a
guide, I tried my hand at "Thread painting". The key, I found, is to keep
up the continuous motion of moving the fabric under the needle and
constantly be planning where you will stitch one, two and even three steps
ahead of where you are stitching at the moment. If you stop you lose
momentum so it is important to have a sense at all times of where you are
going. You often have to "travel" from one area to another as you blend
colors and apply shading so you need to keep little "pathways" in mind to
get from here to there without stopping. It is a challenge but very
exhilarating.
Artichoke #1 9 ¼" X 9 ¼" Artichoke Series
Cotton, Thread, mounted on Artist's canvas
Techniques: Thread painting, Fabric weaving, Fabric insertion
Artichoke #1 was my first Thread painting. I painted it
on a
background
of ripped, woven cotton
with a narrow border insertion around
the edges. I couldn't wait to start the next one.
This was based on an original photo. (See Photo »»)
(Privately Owned)
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Artichoke #2 7" X 7"
Artichoke Series
Cotton, Thread. Mounted on Artist's canvas
Techniques: Thread painting, Fabric insertion, Free-motion machine
stitching
I started Artichoke #2 soon after completing Artichoke #1. This
artichoke was smaller than the first but the "blossom" was more
advanced
and the seed heads had almost escaped. I did my best to depict the "fuzzy"
white seed heads trying to catch a
breeze so they
could blow
away. The
artichoke was "painted"on a
stiple-stitched Cotton Batik background with
"Free-motion"
machine stitching to provide texture. This was based on an original photo. (See Photo »»)
(Privately Owned)
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Classical Artichoke 11 ¼" x 9 ¼"
Artichoke Series
Cotton, Thread. Mounted on Artist's canvas
Techniques: Thread painting, Applique, Fabric Insertion, Decorative
machine stitching
Classical Artichoke is the third in my Artichoke series. After
completing the first two Artichoke Thread paintings, I realized I
could not have only two. I had to have at least three and wanted to make
this one very different. The artichoke itself had no color left in it. It
was all black and gray and very symmetrical. It had opened out completely
but retained all its seed heads so the top was very flat. I kept the
existing monotone color palette and placed the blossom in a very formal
setting like a cameo. The borders became more formal as I worked from the
center out, each one demanding some treatment such as decorative stitching
to give it purpose. As I finished the piece there seemed to be only one
title I could give it: Classical Artichoke. (Privately Owned)
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Clematis 14" x 12 ½"
Cotton, Thread. Mounted on Artist's canvas
Techniques: Thread painting, Free-motion machine stitching, Applique,
Fabric insertion, Decorative Machine stitching
Clematis was based on an original photograph I took of a bouquet of
Clematis flowers from my garden. The large flowers on such spidery stems of
this vine are attention-grabbers. The challenge here was to paint the
flowers in different colors of thread while traveling around the design
(continuously stitching) from flower to flower while keeping the stems thin
and spidery (it is a no-no to rip out and redo. You only have one chance to
do it right). I Free-motion machine-stitched the background in echo quilting and used decorative machine stitching and Fabric insertions in
the corners to frame and add interest to the design. (See Photo»»)
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painter would use a brush and paint with the Fiber artist guiding the
fabric underneath. Using the speed of the sewing machine to keep the
needle (brush) in motion, the image is built up with layers of threads that
give form, color, depth, shading and texture to the artwork. 
some sort of design. The
sketching gives the design an extra emphasis or appearance of
spontaneity. The underlying design can be a photograph transferred to the
fabric, a hand-painted, dyed or printed design or image or a plain, blank
fabric where the Fiber artist uses the thread as one would a pencil. The
resulting sketch has an originality that is very compelling. Different
from Hand-stitching which is limited to how quickly one can put thread to
fabric, Thread sketching is possible because of the speed of sewing
machines. One can sketch almost as fast as one can draw with a pencil.
There are no limits to the subject matter that can be Thread sketched or
Thread painted. Techniques utilized are simply Fabric, Thread, a Fiber
Artist and a Sewing Machine. (see