Thursday, May 29, 2008

A Final Attempt




I've been messing about with more attempts to reproduce the shibori sample, most were failures for one reason or another. I decided to make one more try. It seemed to me that I had the dynamic correct but I wasn't able to get the fabric to move up and down smoothly. I decided to add some assisting stitches that would help to pull the fabric into place. Its really hard to see in the photo so I will attempt to describe it. I started with the same basic stitch pattern as version 2, except that all the "up" rows were set up to pull to the right and all the "down" row to the left. Going in opposite directions helped to keep all the bits of thread organized. For each row of stitching I then added another thread that caught the very tops of the "up" pleats on one side of the fabric and a thread that caught the very bottom of the "down" pleats on the opposite side.The purpose was to give me somthing to pull the fabric with to pop the pleats up and down with. Here is a diagram
Once again I think the theory is right but I'm not quite getting the practice to work, here is the final result. Over at the flicker pool we are thinking that it may be a form of woven shibori which would make perfect sense and would probably be a more effective way to do what I am trying to achieve with the assist threads. Someday maybe I will get a chance to try some woven shibori!

5 comments:

ACey said...

it is probably sacrilege but this piece makes me itch to embroider all over it.

Anonymous said...

another good try! i am impressed by your dedication to the project and inspired to stitch up one more- i have an idea suggested by neki on how this might be accomplished so i need to get it done! i am intrigued at how difficult this piece is to reproduce...even with a number of experienced textilians going at it.
i think your idea of adding the support stitching was very practical as it is SO difficult to draw up the stitches in the correct way. although i don't believe that the original was done using the woven shibori technique due to the dating of the fabric and the assumed fact that woven shibori was not being done at that time.....it does seem that some of the woven shibori seems to resemble the study fabric more closely than anything else so far!
Kudos for all your work, lisa.

alsokaizen said...

Hi Acey, nope not sacrilege at all
I often feel the same way about shibori!
Hi Glennis, I'm having trouble keeping up with the online discussion (my access to the internet has been drasticly reduced)so I didn't realize there was a discrepancy in the dating of the techniques...
This one is a definate toughie to reproduce. I'm quite sure that if I could get the fabric to rise and fall smoothly it would look a great deal like the origional. I seem to be lacking the required touch though...I look forward to seeing what you come up with.

Cyber Fyber said...

Hi!
I'm also impressed by your dedication to this project. Shibori is utterly mind-boggling to me! I found your blog through your stitchin fingers page.

My name is Susan Lenz. I'm a fiber artist living in Columbia, SC and I'm mounting an exhibition called CYBER FYBER next January 8 - 20, 2009 at Gallery 80808/Vista Studios here in my town. It will include traded fiber postcards and ATCs. So far, I've traded with fiber artists in 26 countries and 38 states...but none from Rhode Island. Please consider trading.

CYBER FYBER has a "site" which is actually a series of interconnected blogs. It is at http://cyberfyberexhibition.blogspot.com.
From this "page" there are links to the available postcards and ATC. Should you decide to trade, simply leave a comment on the card you want and then write a private email to me at cyberfyber@prodigy.net with your mailing address. I will send the card right away, edit the entry for the card to reflect our trade and with a link to both your blog and your stitchin fingers page, and wait for your card in return. There will be an on-line exhibition too. (I'd ber absolutely THRILLED if you used a piece of any of the supposed "failed" shibori attempts....but anything fiber will do just fine!)

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to write.
Thanks so much for any consideration at all!
Susan
Oh, my "personal" blog for my own fiber arts is at http://artbysusanlenz.blogspot.com
Thanks again!

juanita sim said...

Getting pretty close!