The Final Sewing Work, and Installation!

I lied.

I said I would be posting this yesterday, but I had a visitor all day. "M. Migraine" came to call, repeatedly hit me in the head and decided to keep me company until dark. I asked him to leave several times, but I must be a good hostess.

Some visitor.......hmmph!

Well, here we go with the last of the banner stories! Below you will see one of them, with a guide and the letters laid out down the center. (yes, I was standing on the table. no, I shouldn't have been but...???) These all had to be glued with a flexible and strong fabric glue---which was almost toxic to breathe!--- first before they could be stitched. I think the following photos will explain why......

The fabric the letters were made from was the heaviest weight of linen canvas, painting canvas, that I could get. Then two coats of gesso to seal it, a gel medium for texture, acrylics and other medium for color and a few glazes. All that equals something harder than leather to sew through.

Seriously, I would have rather sewn leather by hand! It has more suppleness. This.....oy. All I can say is I pinched off a nerve in my thumb cutting the edges and it still is not right and giving me pain.......

The little bowls are between four and five inches across, so there is an idea of the size of each letter. Below, is a better image of the sewing process; bead by bead, a needle being pulled through with pliers due to the heaviness of the multiple layers. Kiddies, there was nothing FUN about this part!!!

Each single bead, one by one......seven huge letters on one banner, eight on the other.....soooooo much weight. So much time.

Breaks for sore hands, sometimes a day or so between sewing.

But in the end, it all turned out beautiful. The fringe, the tassels, the sheer trim with sequins that I was unsure of when I purchased but was perfect when applied.....it is always odd how these things work themselves out and when hung, look beautiful.

And the best part, of course, is the delivery! Getting them up on the church walls and seeing the reaction from the people who commissioned them, which I must say was very happy!!! (and me too!!!)

I am completely exhausted from this project, and will be on and off blog sporadically for a while. I hustled so much to finish this that there are many, many things around here unfinished, except ME, and I think I am completely finished!!! My body is just worn to a nub from this---too much in too little time.

Blogger has changed how they have their button for text justification, so naturally it has taken FOR EVER for me to get this post up, tinkering and saying naughty words early in the morning.....quite a few in fact. QUITE a few.

It's going to be a two-pot-of-coffee day........

I hope this was worth the wait! I know for me, it feels like one more step towards clearing out the ghosts of this last year. Now to allow myself some time for other things that are piled up, and I should be back to my abnormal acerbic self in no time soon!

Which may or may not be a good thing. I leave that for you to decide.  ;-)

Have a good creative day! Make something wonderful!!!

Pax.