At the time I thought of our theme, there had been several fires in the news. I thought of the effect those fires had on property and possessions. I pictured the charred remnants of furniture, clothing, photographs, memorabilia of the families effected by the fires. My idea was beginning to percolate. Initially I was going to rust fabric, but that didn't work out. Instead I came across a tattered piece of this.
an old crocheted dresser scarf. Ah! This could work. I just had to add to (or subtract from) this tattered piece and I would have a remnant, right? So I took the piece, grabbed some matches and attempted burn the piece. I didn't quite get the effect I was looking for, but after a bit of rubbing with charcoal it started to look like what I wanted.
I now had pieces that looked like they had been burnt. All that was needed was a background. I remembered a technique I had learned for piecing curves and used it to create a background that would represent fire.
To this background I added some free motion quilting to represent the fire's flames.
Next came the pieces that I had burned and rubbed with charcoal by FMQing them to the background. Here are some detail shots. You can see the burn on this piece.
and the charcoal on this piece
Like Beverly, my piece is also not quite finished. It is missing the binding because I couldn't decide if I should use a binding or use a facing. So I have left that decision to the rest of you TTs. What do you think? Here is my representation of Remnants After the Fire.
oh, brigitte, my heart stopped when I started to read your piece. You all know that this topic is very close to my heart, even now, five years later and I still have not really addressed those feelings in textiles, probably because it is still too raw, but you have done it for me. The oranges and blacks are very real to me and the burnt textiles are so significant. An important piece to me
ReplyDeleteBrigitte, this is fabulous! Your shaping of the background pieces along with your quilting really does simulate flames and your charred remnants are perfect, they appear to be floating and moving around in the flames. As for finishing my first instinct would be a black binding.
ReplyDeleteYou have definitely captured the feeling of charred remnants and flames very effectively. An emotional, moving creation.
ReplyDeletewell done! Having been privy to a sneak peek along the way, I love how it has turned out. Very emotional, very effective. My instinct would be to face it
ReplyDeleteWhat a neat idea! Very cool! I still am struggling with mine but plan to finish it!
ReplyDeleteBrigitte, what a fantastic job you've done with this piece. Your piecing and quilting really bring flames to mind, and the charred fabric is perfect. Congrats for stepping outside the box!
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