Livingroom

I think of these “Tourist Travesties”…er, “Tapestries” as being the equivalent of paintings on black velvet for your floor. Not that anybody actually ever uses them as rugs. Come to think of it, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen them truly “used” at all. At least not the kinds that depict scenes of nature or far off exotic places.

When I was in college I had several mini “oriental rugs” in my dorm room, and I did use those on my floor. I wish I could find some of them now, they would make great pillows.

Anyway, what makes these “tapestries” Second Helpings is that I cut them into sections and paint and sequin designs onto those sections, and then turn them into pillows. Uno, dos, tres chic!

This is a set of four I made from a lovely sky, mountain, forest and water vista. Mother Nature would be so proud.

I first painted (using acrylic paint mixed with textile medium so the paint would remain flexible and not crack), and then sequined, the symbols for Earth:

Air:

Water:

and Yin/Yang, which represents the whole catastrophe:

I have also made a set from a technicolor Indian tapestry including a Taj Mahal-esque edifice and a peacock:

You can get quite a few pillows out of one “tapestry.” I buy inserts at a fabric store like JoAnn’s and personally prefer square, but you can buy your inserts first and tailor your tapestry’s image to fit your sensibility.

Now that I know what to do with these “Tourist Tapestries” do you think I can find even one with dogs playing poker? Or a sword wielding bullfighter? Or swooning Mayan virgin?

I know, the hunt is half the fun, but if you’ve got ’em and don’t want ’em, now you know who does!