For some time I’ve been trying to figure out how to satisfy the interest students have shown in fabric collage portraiture. Specifically, how could I teach this online—preferably in a recorded, independent way like the Fabric Collage Master Class?
What I finally realized is that I had already done it! During 2020 and 2021, I ran short Zoom presentations called Thursday Night in My Studio Live! Of the various 4-part series on different aspects of fabric collage, two of the series—eight presentations—dealt specifically with “Facial Features.” These presentations covered not only how to create a face in fabric, but what it is you’re looking for in your subject, and how to understand what you’re seeing. Watch the excerpt below for a sample.
Now, for the first time, we are offering these eight videos as a single product—the Facial Features eWorkshop.
Many of you are familiar with the Fabric Collage Master Class, my online learning resource, which has been helping people learn fabric collage since it was launched in March of 2018. In the following years, hundreds of people have learned the basics of fabric collage partially or wholly through following its instruction.
The Facial Features eWorkshop takes fabric collage beyond the basics to the next level of challenge: portraiture.
While the Facial Features eWorkshop does touch on fabric collage basics, the focus of each video is to expand on an understanding of the fabric collage process that I teach, and as found in the Fabric Collage Online Master Class.
Either way these videos will take your experience and build upon it, focusing on the particular features and skills needed to create a likeness of a person.
Facial Features eWorkshop
- Eight videos (over 8 hours combined length) collected into one convenient and organized spot
- Each annotated with “Jump Points” allowing you to scan forward and backward to the information you need
- Facial features PDF templates are included as reference and basic designs to work along with
- Like the Fabric Collage Online Master Class, membership in this eWorkshop is for life
$99
BUY NOW
The Eight Videos in the Facial Features eWorkshop
Each of the videos in this series of presentations concentrates on a different facial feature such as nose, eyes, mouth, neck and hair, with deep dives into the special challenges posed by glasses and teeth. A brief forward to each video introduces viewers to the facial feature being covered.
Because of their nature as live presentations, I have gone through each video (each over one hour long) and added “Jump Points,”or time-markers in the text. These “Jump Points” will allow you to manually to skip ahead, pause the playback, or repeat sections—easily finding and accessing the material most important to you.
Finally, for even more information on facial features, I’ve provided links to my blog posts on those subjects.
“Introduction”
This video introduces “Facial Features” with free-form faces intended to loosen up and get inspired with the idea of portraiture. Facial proportions are discussed with the use of a generic Face Template available free as a PDF through a link. This face template is used throughout the video presentations to build upon with each facial feature.
“The Nose”
“Start with what’s on top”—the sequence of assembling a fabric collage. For portraiture, the nose is “on top.” Watch the video and you’ll start to understand why I’ve found that the nose is the best facial feature to start with a collage portrait. Points discussed include selecting and cutting a fabric palette for fabric collage.
“Child vs. Adults Faces”
As a person ages, our features spread out more and become more pronounced. In this video, I introduce the Child vs. Adult Face template that compares how the features differ with age. Demonstrations included examples from my own quilts plus analysis using photos and drawings.
“The Eyes”
After the nose, the eyes are usually the next feature to tackle. This is when the portrait comes to life. This demonstration takes a loose approach to creating eyes, letting fabric choices—colors, values, visual texture, and linear contours—do much of the work.
“Glasses”
A detailed sequence of how to create the illusion of frames surrounding the eyes on a face—taking you first from the eyes themselves (photo selection, cropping for size, tracing onto vellum for pattern, tracing design onto foundation fabric)—all the way to construction of the glasses’ frames.
“The Mouth”
Multiple examples of mouths from my collage quilts and samples. Detailed slide and live demo on the sequence of constructing lips.
“Teeth”
If your portrait subject has teeth showing, you should still watch the first “Mouth” video to get a general overview of this facial feature. This video also contains a good explanation of selecting fabrics, not just for teeth, but for lips as well.
“Neck and Hair”
Continuing the portrait into neck and body with an extensive slideshow highlighting fabric selection for hair—using examples from finished quilts and “Template Faces” begun at the very beginning of this “Facial Features” video collection.
Testimonials
The original recordings from the Thursday Night from My Studio Live! presentations have been available individually since they first ran. I have referred students to them when they had specific questions dealing with those topics. The students below found them especially helpful.
• • •
Grace Crocker
I used several of Susan’s Facial Features videos while creating the sun face of my grandson, Austin. The glasses identified Austin but how could I show the very narrow frames? In the glasses video, Susan displayed a delightful technique that gave me exactly what I wanted. It is a variation of her usual method. I loved it! I also referred to the nose and mouth videos as I have created other portraits. They are all extremely helpful.
• • •
Jackie Dalley
I was so happy to have Susan’s teeth video when I was working on this quilt. Getting the smile right seemed really important for creating a good likeness. The video gave such a good step-by-step to guide me through the process. I watched the whole thing through and then went back several times to re-watch each section as it pertained to the area I was working on. It was a huge help!
The Origin of Facial Features: How We Got Here
As noted above, the videos in the Facial Features eWorkshop were shot during my “Thursday Night in My Studio Live!” presentations. This sequence of live Zoom sessions began in April 2020 and ran into January 2021—twenty-eight sessions in all. Tom and I came up with this creative outlet for my blog readers, students whose classes with me were cancelled due to Covid, and anyone else who found themselves at home and isolated and maybe a little stressed. Fabric collage is, after all, good therapy. We recorded the presentations and offered them as a follow up to attendees and to registrants who weren’t able to attend live.
At the core of these videos are my demonstrations. The demos tackle a few topics that can take a while to explain—specific questions or issues that sometimes surface in a classroom situation—such as a subject who has glasses or big smiling teeth. In this format, I’m able to spend an hour using photos and a live demo, discussing a single topic—to answer those extra questions that may get rushed through in the time available in a class day. I always wished I could be give a more comprehensive response. And that’s what the recordings of these Thursday Night in My Studio Live! presentations achieve.
As you will no doubt notice, these presentations are casual and conversational, as live events tend to be. They are mostly unedited and therefore include materials such as introductions and attendee questions that sometimes temporarily veer away from the intended topics, but nonetheless add to the information and understanding of the process of fabric collage. I think that maybe that’s what made the live sessions appealing to the very loyal Thursday Night attendees—they felt at ease to ask questions, and the information I shared felt approachable and doable—exactly what was needed to spark their own creativity.
Hopefully, the Facial Features eWorkshop will spark your creativity, too.
Facial Features eWorkshop
- Eight videos (over 8 hours combined length) collected into one convenient and organized spot
- Each annotated with “Jump Points” allowing you to scan forward and backward to the information you need
- Facial Features Templates included as PDF’s to download and work along with
- Like the Fabric Collage Online Master Class, membership in this eWorkshop is for life
$99
BUY NOW
the Facial features workshop link is incorrect
Sorry, not sure which link you mean.
Sorry, Judy, not sure which link you mean.
This is fantastic! Well done Susan and Tom!