BABY MOBILE W/ HUNGARIAN MOTIF

I've been buried up to my neck in Hungarian motifs since the end of June, looking for various patterns and what-not that could be used in stencil designs for a room that doubles as a (current) guest room and (future) nursery.  This post is not about that stencil design (but here're pictures of it anyway).

Stenciled the curtains and the ribbon ties, plus made and applied the design on the wall.

Done with white over a very pale green (practically white) to give it an embossed effect.  It looks great . . . it's just really hard to get a picture of!  Had to take this on an angle while pressed into the wall like I was giving myself a home-based mammogram: highly uncomfortable, yet necessary.

The afore-mentioned research and stencil work was actually my gift to the new parents, but since an enlightened modern gal should never go to a party without a gift (that's just good manners!), I decided to put all that research to good use and use some of the other patterns I'd found in a baby mobile.  In keeping with the rich embroidery heritage of Hungary I used embroidery hoops as my ring tiers and made the pendants of cut-felt with embroidered accents.

This actually does hang straight (I swear!), but this shot had more pendant detail.  Apparently I was too busy taking pictures to pay attention to my subject.  D'oh.

The red poppy is the national flower of Hungary and everyone was so pleased I'd included it in the mobile. . . but that's not a stencil of a poppy (it's just a generic 5-petal flower).  But if anyone asks, it's a poppy, okay?

Extra floopy-boos I whipped up to balance out and fill in the smaller tier.  I love these and want 235342 on my Christmas tree this year.

Between the stencils in the nursery and the home-made-ness of the mobile, I was (inwardly) concerned that these were a touch too raw, but everything ended up being just perfect for a mom-to-be from a rural village.  (FYI: She has a degree in textile design with experience in international businesses, so let's not go thinking she's a country bumpkin!)  And as long as she's happy with the gifts (which she is!), then I've hit my mark and all's right with the world.

I love it when all's right with the world.

I'm currently making sets of these felt medallions (both large and small ones) to sell on the Etsy site, so keep watch there if you'd like to have a few of your own.

ZEN-TANGLE SIGNATURE MAT

One of the few commissioned pieces I've worked on recently (erm. . .that's actually finished) was a signature mat for a baby shower.  I just love it when folks let me be an artist and give me something loose and basic like a theme and then just let me run with it--I always end up with something more amazing than what I initially thought I'd do (which works out for everyone!).

So this started out with the theme of jungle animals to match the party-themed doo-dads and boo-floopies.  And since the mother is Hungarian/Romanian and missing the little touches of home I was angling for something that would appear embroidered as a nod to the rich decorative needlework of those countries.  Plus the father is part English, so you really can't go wrong with embroidery however you look at it.

Anywho.  A couple hours to figure out the overall design, make a template, and transfer it to the mat, then on to laying down the lines and filling it all in.  Obviously I couldn't duplicate the intricate stitching of actual needlework when working in monochrome, but the same effect can be achieved by filling in open areas with detailed patterns.  Thus, I did some quick research into zen-tangle patterns (Google Fu!) and 5 hours later I was done (and headed for the nearest collision between my neck and a heating pad because no drafting table = ow).

If you're wondering how much something like this might cost for future commissioned work, the answer is: "Enough to buy a drafting table."  Heh!

Here's the 11x14" mat (it was presented framed, of course) and a few detail shots.

5 points to whomever can name the "bird" flower in the background!  :P

This little dude was my favourite.  I just want to poke him in his belly like the Pillsbury Doughboy until he giggles.