Signed, Sealed, Delivered!

Here's a shot of "Bamboo Grove," the piece I just finished for the next FANE exhibit which will be upstate at a quilt show in Old Forge NY.  Of course, it took me longer to finish than I expected (doesn't everything?) but I'm happy with the results.  I was trying to capture the feeling in this photo

and I hope I succeeded.  I layered the tapering bamboo trunks with a sheer green netting to create the feeling of distance through a screen of leaves.  Some were thick, some thin, some dark, some light, and I extended the thicker, closer ones to give the appearance of proximity and added interest along the bottom edge.  My daughter suggested I place some sheer yellow strips among the trunks to look like beams of sunlight shining through, which I did.  To keep them subtle, I hand-stitched them in place.  The leaves were all cut out of a batik fabric and although I intended to free-motion stitch them in place, I ended up hand stitching them with little lazy daisy stitches.  Here's a close up:

I even had to get a special hanging slat cut from acrylic because the top portion is so sheer that anything else would show through!  And my label is on the back of the thickest trunk, hung vertically!  This piece was definitely a challenge, but I think it fits the bill as "innovative fiber" and I enjoyed the creative process.  Now for a little break and a long weekend before school begins on Tuesday (hooray, made it through another busy the summer!)