Butterflies... by Nora.

It's not quite stitching, but it's just as good.

For a bit of background, I am a huge fan of hanging art.   Every inch of every wall should be covered in something special.  I don't have any 'standard' prints, everything I've got is either stitching, original photography or family photos (like of my grandparents' weddings), special art pieces, prints from local artists, or other unique prints that I've found at art shows or street festivals and even quite a bit of original art... I'd rather come back from a trip with something special to hang, rather than a tchochke sitting on a shelf, or a tshirt...

On ye olde FB, there is a group where Nora Adams (Corbett), of Mirabilia fame, occasionally auctions her art pieces.   I've managed to snag two (so far, though I think I might be running out of wall space, so I'll have to slow my roll).    I won't mention what I paid for them, but I will say that I think I got these for a steal when you consider they're original art pieces from an artist who is not exactly unknown (even if it's from within the stitching community).  Her art is rather diverse and I find all of it interesting, though I've honed in on one of my favorite subjects - bugs.

The first butterfly, I just *had* to have and I love it.  It's so beautiful, and I love the smudges.  I guess it makes the piece less crisp, but I feel like it gives that butterfly the illusion of movement.   These are both done in watercolor pencils and/or pastels (I don't know my mediums enough to be sure).

Sorry for the not-quite-flat picture, they came rolled in a tube, and I'm trying to keep them safe until framing.

And this guy - well, I can't believe I got him for the price I did, yay!

I can't wait to get around to framing these (along with the 5 other artwork pieces I've picked up... I really, really need to slow my roll... and finish painting the hallway so I can start hanging everything!).

Many cross stitch designers (Teresa Wentzler, Nora Corbett, Tracey Horner, etc...) are amazing artists who have converted their art into beautiful patterns for us to stitch, and I definitely love having the ability to hang the artists' actual art on my walls.