Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

I   've always enjoyed that imperfect line of  "not quite in control' free motion machine stitching....  I think it really suits creating portraits , giving them some character and even a quirkiness that hints of personality plus.  These ones below are from my " Red Cheeks" series from a couple of years ago, and are amongst my favourite stitched portraits.  The current Stitch Club ( textileartist.org) workshop, by  Batool Showghi has inspired me to stitch more this week. Batool , of course, is in complete control of her machine stitching and her works are exquisite and they tell a moving story.  ... " Working with paper, print, paint and stitch, her textile art bears witness to displacement, silenced women and the damage that authoritarian regimes impose on ordinary lives. Batool’s mixed media wall pieces are incredibly striking, but her artist books truly set her apart. Printed imagery of family photographs, birth certificate documents and her o...

I am really hoping that a bird in a nest and a set of wings with a butterfly might be considered signs of "spring". At Tag Tuesday , the theme is "Spring is in the Air" so I am hoping that these two free motion stitched tags might be acceptable.  The stitching is done on my Bernina 550 machine - straight stitching, free motion - with the feed dogs lowered and a "darning" foot. I usually don't  draw first, but with both of these I did make pencil marks to delineate the positions of the person and the bird in the nest and the placement of the wings( below)  These two are also in the series of 29 for #29 Faces online challenge to create a face every day in the month of February. 

Continuing with my #29 faces series of stitched faces. Day 5 "owl"  was stitched using my Bernina B550  and the others  were stitched with my really old Bernina Nova ( probably manufactured in 1980s or earlier) I am still not sure which I prefer using.... the old machine works really well for free motion stitching because I can change the settings so much more easily as there are no electronics involved. During this month, I will use both - can you tell the difference from looking at the results? 

With my sewing machine threaded up with black thread and the feed dogs down, prepared for free machine stitching for another project, it was not a hard decision to stitch a couple of "faces " for Tag Tuesday  where one of the team's designers, Michele   has chosen "Faces" as the current theme.  These are free stitched  on a Bernina sewing machine - nothing fancy, just lower the feed dogs and add the spring loaded darning foot... I don't design before hand and just use the machine to sketch, hence these faces are in no way symmetrical or beautiful. I like the spontaneity of these and they take me only about 15 minutes to complete. I then cut out the embroidery and adhere it to a prepared cardboard tag. 

I have been informed that many of you have been trying to leave a comment, but have not been able to - so to make life easier, I will also accept as an entry  a comment on either of the blog posts, on  my Facebook page event   or on one of the Facebook  posts about the giveaway. Apologies, I can;t make it any easier than this ...   If you like one of these sets of art tags, I hope you are able to add you name to the entries somehow.

Set 1 - Seasons   Set 2 -  In Harmony A s a gift to the many people who followed the 29 Faces series last month, here is a thank you giveaway. You can win either Art Tag Set 1 -  "Seasons"  or  Art Tag Set 2 - "In Harmony.", as pictured. Each set comprises 4 small art tags  which have a bakers twine tie and and are blank on the back for your own message. The tags measure 10cm x 5cm (4in x 2in) and are suitable for gift tags, or for you to use in your own art journals or collages.    The two winners will be chosen at random at  12 noon, Tuesday 14 March ( Australian Eastern Summer Time) .. All you need to do is to leave a comment in the section below - with your name.  I am not asking you to provide your contact details  at this stage to ensure your privacy and safety.  However, the winners will be notified only via a reply to your comment,in a blog post and on  my Facebook page  by 1 pm on 14 March. Y...

Day 28 - 29 Faces Art Challenge ... Faces 28 & 29.  " Love is the harmony of two souls singing together"  and so ends 29  Faces for February 2017.  Thank you for following throughout  the month.. and here they all are .  Keep watching this space.... When I have put a few sets together, I will be offering some of these tags as giveaways from this blog. 

 The second last day of the 29 Faces Art Challenge ... this is the last of the May Gibbs inspired faces - Gumnut Girl. Now that I see all four - it's a good celebration of the classic Australian favourite bush baby characters.

Day 26 of 29 Faces Art Challenge in February ... again one inspired by Australian author and artist , May Gibbs - Wattle Girl, based on one of the bush babies favourites. Only two days to go, but three more faces... keep following - it's almost over. 

Day 25 in the 29 Faces Art Challenge - another inspired by the Australian bush babies by May Gibbs. This is  Brown Boronia Girl  ( based on Boronia megastima)

Day 24 of 29 Faces Art Challenge.... with only a few more days to go, I thought I would do a few "May Gibbs" inspired tags.  May Gibbs is an Australian author, famous for her very charming drawings of beautiful magical infants who live in the Australian bush. I recently visited the State Library to see the May Gibbs ' exhibition, and  have tried to recreate some of the favourite characters in my own way . . Here is a Gum  (Eucalypt) Blossom Girl ...

Day 16 29 Faces Art Challenge - I am staying with the Seasons theme, and here is no. 2 for Spring.

Day 15 - Such a beautiful warm day - just a bit like Spring!

Day 14 of the 29 Faces Art Challenge - Happy Valentine's Day. Even if you don't celebrate this event or like the commercial hype which often surrounds the day, "go out into the world today and love the people you meet. Let your presence light new light in the people you meet" (Mother Teresa) #29faces Days 1-13 

A little rushed today but here is my Day 12 face for the 29 Faces Art Challenge - a Winter girl  on Santa Lucia Day. 

Great to be in control of the weather... Day 11 of the 29 Faces Art Challenge. If you are experiencing the extreme heat in NSW (Australia) , keep cool and be alert for bushfires - take care everyone!

Day 10 - I was trying for the chubby face ice princess look  - not sure I got it, but keeping up with 29 faces Art Challenge with a face a day!

Day 9 of the 29 Faces Art Challenge ... changed the season, just to counter the really scorching temperatures we have been experiencing here ... pretending to be cold!

Day 8 of the 28 Faces Art Challenge. Here is another Autumn tag - the usual ink, oencil and watercolour sketch and with a skeleton leaf. Already the first week of the month has passed.... 

Day 7 of the 29 Faces Challenge . It is Number 3 in the Autumn Series - an ink, pencil and watercolour sketch.