‘Uppards’

[See here if you don’t know what I’m on about – or if you do and want a blast from the past.]

Uppards to the next program in my selected highlights of free image editing software.

Big Huge Labs is another site I used even before I started all this. I’ve mentioned the Hockneyizer and the Pop Art Poster, but amongst the rather eclectic collection of things to do with [or without] your photos there are some that might interest embroiderers. 

This is the ‘Bead Art’ effect. You can choose from 4 different shaped beads - these are circles. The site advises choosing  a strongly coloured image – so I did.

 

Definite improvement. These are cubes.

 

 

 

 

 

There are a number of options under the ‘FX’ heading, [sharp intake of breath from this old fogey], although you don’t find out what they are until you have loaded your image. I liked ‘Sketch’ – not embroiderable [by me] but pretty.

 

I liked the colours of  ‘Negative’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is ‘Halftone’ with the contrast and strength as high as they will go – you can do a certain amount of tuning of the images.

If you are very very dedicated this might be patchwork – but I think something interesting might come out of using it for counted thread work of some type. I like the idea of the image concealed behind a lot of black blobs. Well, I’m weird.

I turned the version above to black and white and tried playing around with contrast and strength to see if I could get something suitable for black work, but without success – I think the original image is probably too complex for that.

In another part of the forest – er – site – you can use your photo in an ATC. You can add text underneath if you wish. Nice if you are into ATCs.

 

 

 

 

Or, should you need one, you can make a motivational poster.

Perhaps I ought to make one that says ‘Embroider’.

 

Actually, I have been – embroidering, that is, not making a poster – apart from the one above, obviously. I’ve been embroidering sort-of-graffiti. See what Banksy has done to me? It is not in a fit state to show at the moment, and it won’t ever be brilliant, due to  a slight technical failure, but I have hopes it may lead to something better.

Watch this space.