Dylan IV (Final)

I was very pleased to finish my portrait of Bob Dylan this week. I worked on this project longer this week than I had worked on it in previous weeks, because I really wanted to have it finished for the in class presentations. In my opinion, the final product is very good, and I think that my work improved very much from the first portrait. I am very proud of the work that I did.
This week, I worked on the sunglasses and the rest of the face as planned. It took a bit longer than previous weeks, I ran out of black thread. Therefore, I experienced a delay in finishing earlier, because I had to find time to go to the store and pick up more thread. After, I got my thread, I was able to finish the portrait without any trouble.

This project and several of the class readings have taught me more about crafts and the relaxing effects that making crafts can have. Also, craft making can be an outlet for individual expression. Both of these effects are appealing to me, and I can see myself continuing to embroider in the future.

Dylan III

This week, I finished emboridering the hair on my portrait of Bob Dylan. I did run into some of the same problems I experienced with my last portrait. However, I was able to fix the problems pretty well without much trouble. I really like how the hair turned out, because I tried to emphasize texture and curls. I also used three different colored threads to define curls.

For next week, I plan on finishing the sunglasses. They should be much easier because they are a solid color. I will probably put some gray or white on the glasses to show highlights. I may even start on the face, so that I will have a better chance of having the entire portrait done before the end of the semester.

My project this week reminded me of our class's guest speaker on Thursday. She mentioned how her family's mushroom hunting is mostly driven by being with together with people she loves and pride. She admits that she does sell some of her mushrooms, but for the most part, her hunting is not driven by the profits she could gain from her findings. I thought this realated to my project, because I don't work on these portraits to sell them. I work on them for fun, and after each portrait, I feel very proud of my work.

Dylan II

This week, I decided to continue working on the hair of my portrait. I used different color threads to make the shape of the hair stand out. I didn't finish the hair this week, but I got about halfway done. Next week, I'm sure I will finish the hair on the portrait.

Working on my project this week, reminded me of the idea of "cheap" goods. Most of the materials that I have been using for my project belonged to my mom. I did buy some fabric to embroider, and I wonder if the price I paid for it was fair. Reading some of the chapters from the book, Cheap, has made me think about some of the stores that I have shopped in the past. IKEA, for example, has some questionable practices for making their products, but they mask them with a good image. This information has made me think more about the production of products and the prices people pay for them.

Bob Dylan Progress

This week, I started by tracing my rough sketch of Bob Dylan onto fabric, so I could begin embroidering. I began by embroidering the hair. This portrait contains much more details, the hair in particular is much more difficult, than my last portrait of Obama. However, I have not been making the same mistakes as I did on the first portrait. For this project, I plan on making it more colorful by filling in more of the empty space of the fabric. I feel that my Obama project ended up looking very plain, and I want to take on the challenge of making this portrait as detailed as I can.




While working on my project this week, I thought about how it related to last week's lecture on good workmanship and whether it is "sound" or "comely". I think that my portraits are what people would call "comely", because they do have some flaws. However, since I am not very experienced at embroidering, I am trying to make my work as aesthetically pleasing as I can. Therefore, my work is "comely" because it is not perfect, but I intend for it to look how it does.

Bob Dylan I

I have decide that for my next portrait I will be embroidering Bob Dylan. I know that last time I said that I was going to be making a portrait of Michael Jackson, but I decided that I wanted to make something that my dad would appreciate and want. Therefore, Bob Dylan seemed like the best choice, because my dad and I both love his music. I might do a portrait of Michael Jackson after this one if I get it done in time to start another portrait.

I thought that this idea of making a particular craft for someone tied nicely into the reading about patrons and crafters. This is because I chose to make something specifically for my father. He isn't paying me to make it, but this portrait is going to be made to please him. Therefore, I want to make sure that it depicts a person that he admires.

This week I started out by sketching a picture of Bob Dylan. I found a good picture of him on the internet from the sixties, but I added a cigarette in his mouth. I thought that during that particular time, Dylan was almost always seem smoking and it became a signature of his in a way.


I also wanted to incorporate his name in the portrait somewhere, so I wrote "Dylan" in the puff of smoke from his cigarette. I'm not sure how much I like how this looks. I may end up just writing the name beneath the face like on my Obama portrait.

ObamaIV

This week I ran into some of the same problems, but I was able to correct them before they got too bad. I put the finishing touches on my first portrait. Mostly, I just put more coloring on the face to make the cheekbones more defined. I also put darker color on the eyelids to make the eyes stand out better. My first portrait is complete, and I'm not sure what I am going to embroider for my second portrait. I am leaning towards embroidering a portrait of Michael Jackson, because I am a big fan of his music. Also, I think it would be more of a challenge, and it would be interesting to see if I could pull off creating a decent looking portrait of him.

Working on this project is very relaxing to me, because I can even watch television while I am working. I also think it is fun to choose all of the different colors to make different features of the portrait. I think that even after I have completed this course I will continue to embroider.

Obama III

This week, I worked on the name part of my portrait. I used red and blue thread to make the Obama campaign logo. Then, I used more blue thread to spell out "Obama" and the logo served as the "O" in the name. It seemed that I had more difficulty this week with getting the threads tangled on the back side of my cloth. This doesn't create problems in making the portrait, but it does make the back or the portait look messy. Luckily, the messiness of the back is not noticeable when looking at the portrait from the front. Hopefully by the time I work on my second portrait, I won't have these problem anymore.



Last week, my plan was to complete my first portrait. I managed to finish all of the parts that I had originally sketched, however, I feel like the portrait is still very plain. I think that I might hold off on beginning a new portrait for next week and try and figure out a way to make my first portrait more detailed and decorative.