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.