DRAGONFLY POND: The redo continues

The Dragon Fly Pond Redo has been an ongoing project for the last three weeks. In my last blog about it, I had just added fins to the fish and started painting shading onto the leaves.

Here's the photo:

Since then,  I used  a white iridescent Shiva Stick Oil Paint, to add in highlights on the water and the rock. I also finished painting all of the leaves.  I used a variety of acrylic flat and pearl paints on the leaves.

 I quilted the fish using a metallic thread by Madiera called "FS20" Metallic in Copper. It is a 20 weight thread.

 

The rock still looks to flat to me and the fish fins seem to be disappearing. So, last night, I painted the fins with a mixture of Stewart Gill cream and white pearlescent paint and gold Tsukineko Ink. I used the same combination of paint and ink to highlight the fish heads. I also added yellow crystal beads to the eyes.  I keep thinking I need purple somewhere on the fish. Maybe requilt the fins using a purple metallic?

 

I also trimmed the excess background away from the quilt. I cut out a curvy edge that will be finished, I think, with a wavy, satin stitch edge.  

The rock was repainted using a more opaque white paint on the top and black Tsukineko Ink around the edges.  I then glazed the whole rock with a beige metallic Tsukineko Ink. 

It is now also surrounded by weedy growth made out of painted and distressed cheese cloth.

 

While looking through my bead supplies for fish beads (Hard to imagine but I don't have any) I spilled a whole box of shell beads. Amazingly, none of them broke on the clay tile floor, but they did go hither and yon.   

While I was picking them up, it occurred to me that the Mother of Pearl cabochons, that were scattered all over the floor, might look good on the quilt. I laid a few of them out to see and I like the look of them. The issue here is, they are cabochons and they will have to glued then caged with beading into place. This was going to be a quick project.  Oh well.  

Coming soon: Turtles on the rock, air bubbles in the weedy growth around the rock, and caged cabochons.

Off to do some snow dyeing before the snow is all melted and, or refrozen into ice, by the rain that is expected this weekend.

Loving all this time to create.

CREATING ALWAYS with JOY,

Karen

PS: I used the new Steam a Seam Light on the fish fins.  I found that it really gummed up my sewing machine need. I'm going to be experimenting with Soft Fuse as soon as I can order some. I'm also going to keep using Misty Fuse.