Friday, January 27, 2012

Mixed Media Song Lyric Hoop (A Mini Tutorial)

The first song my husband and I danced to at our wedding ten years ago was the Led Zeppelin song "Thank You". This is the first line from that song...


When I was trying to come up with a project for this month's Point of View theme ("love"), this idea popped into my head, and I decided that it would make a nice Valentine's Day gift for my husband, too. I'm in the process of redecorating our bedroom, so this will find a home on one of the walls in our room. This type of project would make a great gift for anyone who has a favorite song that has special meaning to them. It would also make a great wedding gift, if you know what song the bride and groom will be dancing to.

Since these particular song lyrics probably mean nothing to 99.9% of you, this is just a mini tutorial that kind of walks you through my thought process when I make these kind of hoops (like my Spring Embroidery Hoop Art or my Birth Announcement Embroidery Hoops).

The whole thing started with a basic idea. This sketch sat on my desk for a few weeks...


I originally wanted to embroider the entire thing, but time is always a big factor in how I go about doing things, and I ran out of it, so this transformed into a mixed media project.

I gathered up some materials and got to work...


I decided to use yellow fabric backed with fusible web to create the sun. I used a ruler to figure out what size I wanted it to be, then I went into Microsoft Word and drew a semicircle to create a template...



Embroidering the entire song lyric would have taken me forever, but stamping looks nice and is a lot faster. When I do fabric stamping, I like to use a pen on my stamps instead of an ink pad. It gives me more control over where the ink goes so I don't end up with stray marks. This is the pen that I use...


I just draw right on the stamp...


and stamp it onto the fabric...



I chose to embroider one word from the lyric. I used a pencil to lightly draw the word on the fabric...


At this point I put the fabric in the hoop and started embroidering...


For the sunbeams, I just started embroidering without drawing any lines first...


And that's it, in a nutshell :) Have fun and get creative!


Now it's your turn... Check out this month's Point of View collage and link up your past or present love-themed projects at the Point of View Love Link Party!



I'm linking up...
monogram
kojodesigns

16 comments:

Jennifer Mathis of Ellison Lane said...

That is so cute Gwen and a lovely lyric. :)

Amy at Ameroonie Designs said...

I love the idea of such a personal and thoughtful gift. I just might have to steal the thought and make my own hoop art for the hubby. :)
xoxo,
Amy

Unknown said...

Oh, wow, I LOVE this! Great idea to use the stamps...they look fabulous {you did a good job keeping them straight and well spaced!} Love the mixed media effect...way to go, girl! I'd be thrilled if you'd link it here:

http://oneartmama.blogspot.com/2012/01/shine-on-fridays-12.html

Gill said...

As a huge Led Zep fan I love this! aside from the fact that the lyrics are special to my husband and me!!

Jonie Marie said...

This is such a great way to use your wedding lyrics. It looks so great and I am sure it is a fun reminder of your wedding day. Love it!

do it yourself divas said...

I think this is one of the most thoughtful gifts I have ever seen! I love it! I just might have to surprise my husband with something as great as this on V-Day! Thanks for the inspiration! Also, thanks for the opportunity to be a part of POV! We had a blast!

-Megan and Stephanie

www.doityourselfdivas.blogspot.com

Unknown said...

what a great idea for valantine's day or anniversary. a gift for eternity.

I linked to your tutorial on my blog - thanks for sharing!

doro K.

Zoe said...

Love it! Love the print and love the embroidery! I especially love that it is meaningful to both of you! So Sweet!

Leanne said...

This is so cute and thoughtful. I love it! It makes me want to start stitching again.

Hele said...

it´s cute!!!, I love the idea of using embroidery hoops as decoration, but they are crazy expensive in my supplies shop, I need to find cheaper ones

Unknown said...

Goodness that is one sweet project Gwen. I like how you don't let time constraints slow you down. You just work within them and it totally works for you.

Fantastic idea to use a pen rather than an ink pad too. I hate it when stamping ink gets all over the place. I have to do some research on fabric ink. I'd love to do some stamping on fabric (on a larger scale than your project) but am clueless as to what ink to use. I'll be asking Ms. Google for some help in that regard. :)

Tina Craig said...

Great song and super project! Thank you was on the mix tape my husband made for me just after we started going out in 1987 (when mix tapes were on tapes!). I feel so old.

Deanne said...

i totally love this and will be attempting it very soon x

Lisa said...

This is so cute, I love incorporating song lyrics into things.
And I love the combination of stamped words and embroidered words, really lovely.

Shanea said...

So incredibly wonderful. What a thoughtful gift. Love it!

Anonymous said...

If just been having a look around your blog, this is so sweet! I think i'll have to have a go!x

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