Wrapping a Small Piece around a Canvas

This is a piece I prepared for the local SEFAA square foot challenge. It is annual, no fee, and all are welcome. So, no pressure. Well, not much anyway.

My square foot piece for 2023 started with a thermofax screen from Jane Dunnewold. I am enrolled in something she calls Screen Club. Each month subscribers receive an original screen from Jane. I joined in March and so received my first screen recently.

After messing around to organize my set-up, I was ready to start screen printing on fabric. I've done this before and have a small collection of screens from Marcy Tilton and others. I have had uneven results.

My first attempts with Jane's screen were not successful. I got only a faint print on this eco-dyed fabric from stash.

I pulled one of my old screens and the result was darned good, if I say so myself. Same cloth, same paint, different screen.

Of course the screen from Jane is quite different. Hers has a lot of pen stroke line and a sketchy feel to it. It need not be totally crisp but I was a little disappointed.

I posted these results to the group asking for suggestions. The one that seemed to make a difference was the one that suggested that Jane's screens sometimes take a heavier hand than other screens.

Next experiments were more satisfying.

I got all excited and printed multiple times in approximately the same location on this true blue cotton. The effect is sort of out of focus. I decided to like that. A lot.

Then I added a print from a favorite stencil. I love the intricacy of this koi stencil and have enjoyed using it on other projects. It did not disappoint. The paint is a gold metallic.

Next I inserted a strip of greenish batik. And left it alone for a day. I decided I've been cracking* open a good bit lately so I thought - what the heck - and I cut it into 3.5" squares in solidarity with my cracking episodes.

I shuffled the squares and put it back together. Along the way, I introduced these little striped pieces to bring in another shade of green - chartreuse. 

I was ready to start stitching. Of course, I warmed up with a bit of sashiko on the striped bits. Then I used some thick gold rayon thread to couch onto the surface. 

I lived with that a day or so and took it out.

Finally I returned to simple sashiko, with the gold rayon thread, as well as a turquoise rayon thread. This process gave me joy. I do not know what it is about sashiko but it brings me joy. Especially when I just meander and don't try to follow a pattern.

Because this is going in a show, I wanted to wrap it onto a 12x12 canvas for a more finished, and less quilty look. I researched the web for best ways to cover a canvas with a quilt, took note of what I liked and what I did not.

I had already added the chartreuse border to give me plenty of room for wrapping. Also when I basted the batting to the back of the piece before the sashiko, I made sure the batting was just about 1/2" larger than the 12x12. I was hoping this would create a smooth but soft wrap without a lot of bulk from wrapping the canvas.

The technique I used was maybe an amalgamation of techniques I found on the web, though I did not spot anything exactly like this.

First, I marked the 12x12 square on the back of the piece with 4 little dots in the 4 corners. Then I drew lines connecting the dots and extended the lines to the raw edge of the piece. Then I used my favorite Linda Lee mitering technique to create a box for the canvas to fit inside.

This allowed me to trim some of the excess from the corners. I still had a bit of bulk when I wrapped it all the around to the back of the canvas, but not much. The back part of it was single layer with no batting. I mitered that too.

 Card stock paper was glued to the back side to cover the staples and raw edges. Then I signed and dated it. I'm pretty jazzed with the result. 

BTW, I am documenting all the steps so I can repeat myself some day!

Now it's ready for the Square Foot Challenge. The title is Welcome to the Deep End.

*As the saying goes, the crack is to let the light in. (Hemingway?)