Totem Whipped and Pressed

Well, here it is. Finished, other than figuring out a hanging mechanism.

It's been quite a journey and I feel really good looking at the end result. I really like the effect of the triple cord whipping. It definitely "frames" the piece and was worth the extra effort.

Pressing it flat was as much of a challenge as I expected, but my laundry room floor worked well with wet towels above and below. I will probably repeat the process again, once it has a chance to settle.

I think taking one of the happiest moments of your life and turning it into a mat is a wonderful experience. Although committing to full, realistic portraits meant having to make people look like themselves, rather than indicating features, I think all four of us look like ourselves. (I may still have a little fine tuning on Laura's left eye and Rick's nose, but basically, I'm pretty pleased. If I don't stop now, this could go on until I'm 6o. LOL).

I really do love hooking people - more than anything else that I've tried so far. But they do present a unique problem (over and above the hooking that is). You really don't want to walk on them. And how much wall space do you have anyway?

So my next people projects - I'm planning a series of other happy moments - will be small 8 x 10 size, so that I can do a grouping on a wall, rather than a dominating piece. And the floor mats will become my faster, more primitive snacks between these realistic pieces. I like to mix it up anyway.

For those of you who will be at the Annual in Kitchener, I will have this piece on display. No matter what, they always look better in real life. (And even standing on a chair, I had a hard time getting the whole thing in, and as you can see, not crooked.)

Thanks for following along the journey with me.