Prep Work For My Heron Fabric Painting

The drawing of my heron pinned to the backing

Jon and I talked about taking the holiday off and decided we’d stop working early and spend the afternoon together.  But it’s a dreary day and we both ended up working longer than we intended.

Not that either of us is surprised. I got into working on my heron fabric painting and Jon wrote a meaningful piece about beginning life anew, something we both seem to be doing again and again since we found each other.

I prepped the backing for my heron.

I chose an old quilt for the backing and this morning I sewed the sleeve to hang it by and the batting on the back of it. I always hand sew the sleeve because I don’t the line a sewing machine stitch makes across the top of the backing.

I cut a template for the semi-circle the heron is standing on.  I will be cutting away some of the backing to expose a blue piece of fabric behind the lower part of the heron’s legs. And I cut out the drawing I did of the heron and will trace around it to get a silhouette of the bird to work from.

When I first drew the heron, it got bigger and bigger as I made corrections to it.  The neck and legs both needed to be longer. I thought it was too big and  I kept trying to draw it smaller, but every time I drew it, it came out the same size.

I finally relented and accepted that this was how it was supposed to be.

Today when I looked at it hanging on the wall for the first time, I didn’t think it was too big at all.

After doing this work, I needed a break. Although some planning is helpful, like knowing which pieces should be sewn down first and knowing I’ll be cutting away some of the backing I felt like I was doing too much planning.  I don’t want the piece to lose its spontaneity.

So we had lunch then I took a walk in the rain with the dogs.

It was just what I needed to clear my head. When I got back I knew I had chosen the wrong blue fabric and which one I wanted to use instead.  I also found a piece of material that I think will work perfectly for the semi-circle that heron is standing on.

But I’m going to leave that for another day.

It’s already close to dinner time and even though we didn’t take the time off we intended, it will be nice to stop working after dinner and cozy up in the house together, reading and watching the rain.

sewing the sleeve on my Heron backing

4 thoughts on “Prep Work For My Heron Fabric Painting

  1. That looks lovely! We have blue herons here near us, and I love trying to spot them before I’ve frightened them into flight. Although, hearing a Great Blue’s huge wings sound like sheets flapping in the breeze. They also represent stillness and calm with their inherent behavior; it’s amazing to see their exceptionally slow and careful tai chi-like leg lift and placement to silently move closer towards prey at water’s edge.

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