to size and removes excess fabric, then glues the teeth to a backing of used plywood, cardboard, or another flat surface. The frames Petrell picks up for pennies at consignment stores or yard sales.“ The only new thing I buy is glue,” she says with pride.
Like any crafter worth her Fiskars shears, Petrell’ s work is inspired by her surroundings: bouquets of flowers, hill-and-valley vistas, a friend’ s cat. She doesn’ t sketch or photograph the scenery, though:“ Mostly I base the designs on what types of zippers I have,” she explains. Translation: Given lots of blue zippers, she’ ll make a landscape featuring water.(“ Water’ s tough— you need a lot of zippers,” she says, because they need to be glued very close together.) An image of a loon requires black zippers, which are as abundant in her collection as the bird is in Petrell’ s native Midwest.“ Everybody likes the loons in Minnesota and Wisconsin,” she says.
Much of her zipper art hangs in the homes of her family and friends. Petrell’ s three daughters also sell the pieces at fairs and small galleries, and through her website( zipperworks. home. att. net).“ People can’ t believe they’ re made of zippers— they want to touch them,” says Janet.“ We call them‘ eye candy for the fingers.’”
Recently, Petrell told me, a neighbor brought her a big stash of zippers in an old popcorn tin.“ It was a marvelous surprise,” she says, sounding delighted. We can’ t wait to see what she’ ll make of them. ■
BE A ZIPPER ARTIST
Materials
✂
Metal and plastic zippers of any color and length
✂ Tacky glue
✂ Backing and a frame. The backing should made of a material that can hold or absorb glue, such as pressed wood, a canvas board, or sturdy cardboard.
✂ Heavy-duty scissors
✂ Compass, ruler, or other tools for drawing and measuring
✂ Tweezers or needle-nose pliers
✂ Picture-hanging hardware
Instructions
❶ Sketch your design on the backing, using the compass, ruler, or other shapes for tracing and drawing as needed. Use anything to inspire your design: family photos, a wallpaper pattern, the view from your bedroom window.
❷ Using the scissors, trim away any excess material between the teeth of the zipper strands, and cut your zippers to fi t your design.
❸ Beginning from the outside in, glue the zippers in place. It’ s best to glue the zippers along the outline of each element of your design, then work inward to fi ll the pattern. Space the zippers as close together as possible. If needed, use tweezers or needle-nose pliers to position the zippers and hold them in place when gluing. To make spiral patterns, dab a circle of glue about the size of a quarter in the center of the design, then hold the end of the zipper while rotating it around your fi nger.
❹ Once the pattern is fi nished, attach the backing to your frame( if using one). Then, attach the
hanging hardware to the frame and backing. Hang at desired height, and enjoy the view.
Many of Petrell’ s works feature motifs of plants and flowers( opposite and top). Petrell shows off one of her creations( above).
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