For this week’s Throwback Thursday, I’m directing you to three past posts that cover fabric collage techniques I’ll be using in today’s Fly on the Wall presentation—choosing fabrics, cutting a palette, and gluing. Later today, watch live as I begin collaging my (soon-to-be) Bella Luna full moon portrait.
If you’re already signed up, the following posts will help to familiarize yourself with what you’ll see me doing later, as I talk through my thoughts on this particular piece. If you haven’t signed up, now’s the time to do it.
How do I start a collage project? Well, first I need to get Djinni Cat off the design. After that, I’ll show my prep work through a short slide show, then begin collaging this fanciful portrait. By attending live, you can ask all sorts of questions as you peer over my shoulder via Zoom.
Can’t attend today? Sign up and you’ll receive a link to the recorded presentation in tomorrow’s email to watch whenever you can.
Fly on the Wall: Susan Carlson Studio Watch—Bella Luna
July 17 & 24, August 7 & 14, 2025—7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (no class on July 31)
Each session will last roughly 1-1/2 hours.
All sessions will be recorded for viewing later if you cannot attend live, or to review whenever you’d like.
Price: $78
USE THIS LINK TO REGISTER
Click on Throwback Thursday links under the photos below.
Idea, design, fabric—and having a story in mind is helpful. I’ll tell you my thoughts on all of those and why I chose the fabrics you see above as a selection to begin with.
Getting started on a collage can be overwhelming, so I sorted out the initial selection of fabrics into what I have in my mind for the moon itself—the pinks, reds, and oranges you see clustered above.
Once I get somewhere around 15 pieces of fabric picked out as possibilities—there’s 13 in the “moon pile” above, it’s a good point to stop and cut a fabric collage palette—such as shown in photo below. I’ll be demonstrating what I’m looking for and how I cut into my moon fabrics in the live demonstration.
Before the end of today’s session, I’ll show how first I pin and trim the fabric palette pieces, then add some glue to hold in place before moving on and adding more fabric onto the collage! “More is better!”
Susan Carlson Fabric Collage Summer Special 6 of 16: Glue, Yes, Glue!
Join me starting today, via Zoom, for the first of four Thursdays in July and August as I begin and then progress working on this new project—a personification of a beautiful full moon—live from my studio.
Fly on the Wall: Susan Carlson Studio Watch—Bella Luna
July 17 & 24, August 7 & 14, 2025—7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (no class on July 31)
Each session will last roughly 1-1/2 hours.
All sessions will be recorded for viewing later if you cannot attend live, or to review whenever you’d like.
Price: $78
USE THIS LINK TO REGISTER
The moon examples you see above, are edited and color-adjusted using the image of my existing sun portrait collage. These are ideas as to what a moon portrait could look like. A full moon example for this Fly On The Wall does not, well, exist yet. However, you can watch my Bella Luna progress from drawing to fabric selection to cutting and gluing to background—beginning on Thursday, July 17, 2025.
USE THIS LINK TO REGISTER
Bel Sole (below), is one example of a celestial portrait—the yet-to-be-collaged Bella Luna will be a full moon using the same pattern—available free to registrants.
This next Fly on the Wall: Studio Watch Series begins at 7 p.m. Eastern Time, Thursday, July 17. The following evenings will be July 24, August 7 and 14. Note the skipped week in the middle—no class on July 31. All sessions will be recorded for viewing later if you cannot attend live, or to review whenever you’d like.
USE THIS LINK TO REGISTER
Though this isn’t officially a “class,” feel free to join me in collaging your own celestial portrait—sun or moon—if you feel so inspired. A link for a free Sun Portrait pattern which will also be used as the full moon portrait design, will be emailed upon registration for the series.
Why Bella Luna?
I’ve already begun a sun portrait—an exuberant Bel Sole—as an example for a class I’ll be teaching in Italy this fall. I started thinking that a glowing moon—a Bella Luna—would be a nice addition to balance the celestial presence. And as a summer collage journey I can bring you along with me, it felt that a full moon portrait would be good subject matter. If you’re interested in where the lunar inspiration will take me, please sign up, tune in, sit back and relax, as you join me as a “fly on the wall” in my studio.
The Origin of Fly On The Wall: Studio Watch—and How It Works
Occasionally after I’ve done a live demo in a class, one of my fabric collage students will say “Wow, I wish I could be a fly on the wall in your studio and just watch you work!”
Since October 2022, we’ve made that opportunity possible. One evening a week in four-week series held at various times, I invite you into my studio—to be the proverbial fly on the wall—as I work on a fabric collage.
Below, are three previous Fly on the Wall: Studio Watch subjects and the progress that registrants were able to see up-close and personal.
All sessions are held via Zoom and each starts with a short slide show (around 15 minutes) in order to catch you up .
Each Zoom meeting will kick off with a short slide show presentation to bring you up-to-date on the progress I’ve made in the previous week.
Then with a camera peering over my shoulder—hence the “fly on the wall” theme—I work for 30-40 minutes or so, live. While I work, I talk about my thought process, the decisions I’m making, give pointers on cutting and gluing, and perhaps go off on fabric collage or subject-related tangents—all unscripted and often prompted by the live Q&A.
After the work period, I invite more questions from viewers before discussing goals for the week to come.
A recording of each week’s session is made available the next day to all registrants. This means that when you register for the Fly on the Wall, if you miss a meeting you can catch up before the next week. The recording is yours to view whenever you’d like, “forever.”
Having the Fly On The Wall as a teaching tool, has enabled me to share some of my many ideas with you in real time as I work through them, such as my new:
Fly on the Wall: Susan Carlson Studio Watch—Bella Luna
July 17 & 24, August 7 & 14, 2025—7:00 p.m. Eastern Time
USE THIS LINK TO REGISTER
All sessions will be recorded for viewing later if you cannot attend live, or to review whenever you’d like.
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