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Can You Keep a Secret?


Shame on me...I didn't take any process shots of this one.  I think it's pretty straightforward, though.  It's hard to see the little girl well in this photo: she is lying with her head on a pillow, looking straight on at you.  There's a moon overhead, and the look on her face is so solemn (as in most vintage photos).  The phrase "Can you keep a secret?" came to me as I was looking at her.

Here are the layers of this small quilt:

1. A piece of sun printed fabric.  I used circles and stars to make the pattern, along with night sky colors of paint and some spattered silver.  Some of the shapes are outlined in silver-lined beads.

2. Commercial plaid fabric.

3. Vintage sheet music. This gives the answer to the question of what the girl is thinking about.  "Why did you make me care?...sweethearts should never part..."

4. Vintage photo image transferred onto muslin with text written on by hand afterwards.

5. Assembly was done with beads, buttons, embroidery thread, and clothing rivets.  

Copyright 2010 Cyndi Lavin. Not to be reprinted, resold, or redistributed for profit. May be printed out for personal use or distributed electronically provided that entire file, including this notice, remains intact.  

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Comments

That's lovely, Cyndi. Your mixed media work usually has such poignant thoughts or stories. That makes them special and thought-provoking.

Is the sheet music the actual paper or did you transfer that to fabric as well?
Cyndi L said…
Thank you, Eileen...I've been going through a "phase", I think!

The sheet music is the actual piece. It's a bit delicate, and if it had been any moreso, I probably would have either encased it in acrylic medium or done a transfer. But it's holding up fine so far :-)
Limarea said…
It's a beautiful piece :)
Cyndi L said…
Thank you, Limar! The little girl has such a pretty face...it's strange to think about how long ago this shot was taken.
Sherri Osborn said…
Love this project! Amazing....
Cyndi L said…
So much fun to try to tell a story...even a very little one :-)
Thanks for responding to my earlier question and also explaining your rationale. Sometimes I'm not sure which technique to use. Your thought process is helpful.
Lithi said…
Wow. I am starting to get a greater appreciation of mixed media. It's lovely.
Cyndi L said…
Eileen, I don't know that I really have a thought process ;-) I've got so much vintage sheet music that it doesn't feel to me like I really need to worry about "saving" any of it! But whenever it's delicate, that's a whole different problem.