I learned this technique from Marilyn Wall at John C. Campbell Folk School, who asked me to take on the class when she retired, which I did for a few years. It’s an amazing technique that’s hard to explain. I do some image processing in my computer, print out several copies, temporarily adhere the images to various pieces of fabric (usually gradations of the same shade), cut out the fabric+paper with tiny sharp scissors, peel off the paper, stack ’em up, and fuse them together. It’s easier than it sounds, but takes a lot of patience and good eyesight. With it you can create smallish wall hangings that stand alone, or integrate fabricated images into larger quilt projects, as I did with the Swannanoa String Band, 1895. I love doing pet portraits on commission. They all come out at around 16″ x 20″, and range from $125 to $175, depending on complexity and level of detail. Please email me at [email protected] if you would like to commission a portrait. And please scroll ALL the way to the bottom of this page to read the particulars, if you’re interested in commissioning a portrait.
Hosts of Celtic Winds – a gift for my husband Tom’s friend Richard Beard. They’ve been cohosting a Celtic music show on WNCW-FM for the last 25 years. About 16″ x 20″
Angus – Commissioned for Christmas 2022. 14″ x 16″. Private Collection
Ivy – Commissioned for Christmas 2021. 14″ x 16″. Private Collection
Huck – Commissioned for Christmas 2021. Around 16″ x 20″. Private Collection
Penny – Commissioned for Christmas 2021. Around 16″ x 20″. Private Collection
Ruby – Commissioned in 2021. Around 16″ x 20″. Private Collection
Capo and Ceili – Christmas gifts from Richard Halford to his lovely bride Melinda, completed fall 2019. Both are around 16″ x 20″. Private Collection
And here they are with their respective quilts!
Lula – my friends Cindy and Greg’s dog, completed in time for Christmas 2019. About 14″ x 22″. Private Collection
Happiness is a Banjo in a Bottle – When my friend and Renaissance Man Clyde Hollifield showed me this picture of him in the spring of 2019, I knew I had to ‘fabricate’ it. It showed in the 2019 Asheville Quilt Show. About 16″ x 20″. Private Collection
This is what friend and Master Puppeteer Hobey Ford did with the same photo (and what inspired me to give it my interpretation):
The Prophet Bert – snapped this one of my buddy Bert Ivey when he and Aisha stopped in for a visit in the fall of 2018. Finally got around to fabricating it this winter. 16″ x 20″, roughly. Private Collection
Still He Waits – my own dog Ben. Good model, works for cheap. 16″ x 20″, roughly, $100 (yes, I’d sell my dog — his image only!).
A trio of Dog Portraits – commissioned by Helen and John Sullivan of the Arrowhead Gallery and Studio (thank you for your patronage!!!), these were made as 2018 Christmas gifts for their fellow dog-owned friends. Each measures about 16″ x 20″, which is turning out to be a standard size. Each sold for $100, but the price has gone up a bit since these were done. If you’re interested in a pet portrait like one of these, please contact me.
Alexis in Okinawa, 1982 – a chance photograph that seems to capture my mother’s artistic spirit so well. Border is hand-done sashiko embroidery, a nod to our family’s Japanese connections. About 16″ x 20″; completed 2018. Private Collection
The Instructors of Acoustic Corner – It was an interesting challenge to ‘fabricate’ this image at this scale. First time using a patterned final layer to tie everything together. These wonderful musicians were our instructors when we owned the music store, and this was taken just before the annual concert in 2012. 40″ x 17″. Private Collection
INFO ON COMMISSIONING A PET PORTRAIT IN FABRIC
A common misconception is that these portraits are either printed on fabric or laser cut – they are neither. They are comprised of at least five layers of fabric, all cut by hand – just my eyes, hands, and tiny sharp scissors. The layers are fused together, stitched and embellished as needed. Borders are added, then the piece is treated as a conventional quilt, with batting, backing, machine-quilting, binding, and hanging mechanism.
These portraits are based on photography and are thus only as good as the original image. If you are interested in commissioning a pet portrait, here’s what you need to consider:
- The original image MUST be clear, sharp, hi-resolution, taken in good lighting. This technique only works if an image has a full range of contrast, from blackest black to pure white. Old, grainy, out-of-focus images with poor lighting simply won’t work. The image must be supplied in digital format, preferably .jpg.
- Certain animals are almost impossible to portray, and these include those with long black coats (unless photographed outside in strong sunlight, so there are lots of highlights), white coats (again, unless the photograph captures lots of shadows and contrasts), and curly coats (way too labor intensive to hand-cut all those curls). Short coats work so much better than long coats.
- Pets with multicolored coats (brindles, spots, tabbies, etc.) can be difficult to portray realistically. In some cases I can add layers to represent some special markings, but truly multicolored pets have to be rendered monochromatically.
- Seemingly a small detail, but an important one: light must be reflected in your pet’s eyes. That little point of reflection makes the piece ‘come alive’, and without it, the image looks ‘dead’. I’ve tried adding a missing reflection later, and it never works. The reflection is painted in after the piece is complete, with pure white opaque fabric paint, and its location and size is determined by the original image.
- I can, to some extent, accommodate color and pattern preferences for the background and borders, and I enjoy getting to know my subjects, so I can convey their personalities in the fabric choices, ranging from ‘dignified and respectful’ to ‘whimsical and silly’.
- Each portrait takes at least three weeks to complete, if not longer, depending on orders already in progress. The finished piece can be easily mailed anywhere in the US at no cost.
- Portraits start at $125 for a piece measuring approximately 14” x 18”. There are additional costs for larger pieces, imagery that requires a lot of digital editing time, additional fabric layers to capture multicolored pets, and labor-intensive cutting of curly coats or other complex features.
The process begins with a photograph and an email dialog. If you are interested in commissioning a pet portrait, email me, and send me your image. I’ll let you know if it works, what to expect, and when it can be delivered. And thank you for your interest!