It's November and the storm season has arrived with a vengeance on Vancouver Island. That means we are getting a proper drenching after an unusually dry and hot summer. November is always our wettest month but in the last 48 hours, we received record amounts of rainfall that more than compensates for the shortfalls earlier in the year. It's yet another reminder that we are living in time of rapidly changing climate.

For the sewists in the crowd, this about-face in the weather does have a bright side, however. It signals many of us to squirrel away in our sewing rooms and resume work on projects that were left to languish over the summer... or longer.

For me, it was a portrait of a lab that I started in 2015 that I finally finished (the chocolate lab, below). When I started this portrait, I was experimenting with fabric collage and I wanted to see how many values and pattern pieces were needed to create a simple pet portrait. I discovered that 6 values and about 15 pattern pieces were sufficient to create a likeness of an animal.

That discovery lit a creative fire in me. I put the lab project aside and continued making portraits with no more than 7 values, each time adding more fabrics. You can see the results in these two before and after shots. Both portraits below were made from the same photo, three years apart.

All that play in my sewing room led to a 'light bulb' moment when I realized there are two keys to success if you want to make a fabric collage from a photo, namely the ability to:

1. read values in photos
2. read values in fabrics

With these two skills, anyone can trace a pattern from their own photo and fill it with fabrics to make a collage with a striking sense of realism. And, no commercial pattern is required.

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In previous newsletters, I've demonstrated how light and shadows create shape and form and a method to identify values in a black & white photo. For this month's Artsy Fabric Collage tip, let's zero in on what to look for, what to see and what to trace from your photo.

Seeing vs Looking

These days, we are flooded daily with photos taken on our electronic devices. We spend fractions of seconds looking at them and swiftly move on from one to the next. When you select a photo to make a collage, you'll want to look at it and soak it in with all your senses to make sure it resonates with you. Then, focus on seeing. That is, see the actual shape, lines, and form in the photo.

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As the old saying goes: a picture is worth a thousand words so here's a visual guide to seeing those shapes, lines and form.

In the photo below, each arrow points to small circle that highlights one of seven different values, from creamy white through grey-brown to black. The large circles represent the seven values.

Cover the cat's face and notice the value in each small circle. Now, try to find other areas of the cat with these seven values. Start with white or black, then find the other values. Zoom in for a closer look.

Below is the same photo in black & white. Notice, how much easier it is to see the seven values in this photo.

Again, look closely at the small circles and at the areas that you selected above. Do your choices still hold true?

Next up is a version that I posterized using Photoshop. Posterizing reduces the number of values to a set number, seven in this instance. Notice how the values in the small circles match with the large circles on the right. This essentially verifies that the original value choices in the colour photo were the right match.

How close did you come to identifying all seven values on your own in the colour photo? Did you correctly identify at least 5 of them? If so, you can be assured that you have what it takes to make a pattern from a photo without posterizing it.

I encourage you to check out some other photos for more practise. And to be clear, this works for flowers or landscapes too!

Try this: print a photo on a regular sheet of white printer paper and try outlining shapes by value. With a little practise, you'll find that you're able to discern a full range of values in any photo. And with this new awareness, you can go ahead and break the rules to suit your own artistic and creative flair.

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As you can see, posterizing a photo makes it easy-peasy to see distinct shapes, lines and forms. But, before you decide that you need to posterize your photo, it might help to know that posterizing blurs details and merges shapes within the photo and can result in a coarser, less refined portrait. It can also add artefacts that need to be editted as you trace.

While I am all for using computers in creative ways, making your own pattern is much like hand-writing. It is your signature, a symbol of your personal creative expression. And, for that reason, I encourage you to make a pattern from an un-altered photo.

I hope these tips show you that with a little practice and know-how, you can unlock the mystery of fabric collage. The final step of this initial process is to trace around each area by value to create your pattern.

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Each month, I choose a different Fabric Collage topic so stay tuned for the next newsletter and do let me know if there's a topic you'd like to see in a future edition. You can check out the October newsletter for more Pet Portrait fabric collage tips.

If you'd like to get going on a pet portrait for a Christmas gift, then click the button below to check out the online course. You can work at your own pace according to your own schedule and I'm available by text or email to support you any time you need it.

How to Make Your Own Pattern from a Photo

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Thanks for reading and, until next time, be well.

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