More or less, here's what I did: I chose a raw brass 'frame' stamping, drilled holes in the top corners, attached my vintage raw brass chain and spring clasp. Then I foraged in my fabric bin for something suitable on which to stitch something suitable. I came across this wonderful tiny brown and white houndstooth on cotton calico which was long ago destined for a purse that never materialized, and rooted around in my thread box until I found the perfect lovely bright fushia. I decided I should definitely start with something simple, and I consequently chose a ♥ (not the anatomically-correct version, of course, which is much much harder to stitch). I just kind of winged the shape, making it up as I went, and thankfully, I got it mostly right on the first try; it's at least recognizable for what it's supposed to be. Then came the more difficult part -- how to finish off the edges and also hide the "mechanics," which is how we used to refer to the 'workings' or the 'underside' in the flower world {there's a subject for a gothic novel -- the dark underside of the flower world}. I snipped another little rectangle of fabric, laid it on the back, and just folded the edges over until it looked like it was going to be small enough to hide behind the edges of the frame. Then I did a really simple line stitch to tack the edges down. And because I was too uncreative to think of any other way to attach the fabric to the metal piece, I got out the trusty super glue and went to town; a method that worked remarkably well, in fact -- that fabric is not coming loose anytime within this century.
So! That concludes my first embroidery/jewelry collaboration project! I'll probably tag it for sale at next month's Art Trail, so if you'd like to see it in person, just travel down to Alderson Mercedes on March 6th, and I'll happily introduce the two of you.
Wow Sarah this is adorable...I love it! Hmmm I may have to "meet" it at FFAT! :)
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