March of the Gingkos

This month I began 3 pieces of work using the heatset Mokume Shibori Gingko leaves. I have managed to finish one of them. The other two are much larger and remain in a roughly laid out state. I ran into some indecision as to how to attach the different elements together. I decided to try one smaller piece with the one gingko leaf I had left over from the other compositions to see how well my ideas were working before committing to a larger piece of work. I used a softer polyester materiel in a pewter color for the gingko itself and sewed it to a backing of cotton to stretch it into the shape I wanted. Then I made another simple gingko leaf shape from some golden poly (flat not heatset), heat seared the edges and used it under the heatset shape to create some differentiation between the leaf and the background. I attached them together by using selective hand stitching in metallic thread along some of the veining on the leaf. Finally I attached the entire thing to an olive colored velvet ground and top stitched in some lines reminiscent of the leaf’s veining. I will probably use some of these ideas on the other two pieces in the next month.

Project Spectrum Finished Fire

Here it is the final result of all that work. This has been quite the learning experience. At times it seemed as though I made every possible mistake there was to be made. I think the next one will go a bit smoother through both dyeing and sewing. I certainly have never dyed as large an amount of fabric before using Itajime so I now know how to approach that in a better manner (different base fabric, more color differentation between lining and outer fabric, only one dyebath). Sewing? Well being familiar with the pattern now will help me to place the pattern better and I will pay more attention to certain aspects of the construction as I sew the next in the series…Earth (green, brown, and metallics)
I’ve chosen my recipes and the method I want to try for the Itajime already. To incorporate metallics I think I will use some details to it with metallic thread.
Time for another trip to the fabric store!

Slow Cloth – Acknowledging Diversity and Multicultural History

Principal 4 of Slow Cloth is acknowledging the diversity and multicultural history of textiles.

Inspired by Elaine Lipson at Red Thread Studio (link above)
I love textiles and ornamentation, they fascinate me. If I could I would travel the world to learn more about them. Since that isn’t presently in the cards I surf the internet, and read books to learn more. I love to see the individual expressions different cultures use textiles for. I worry that in this smaller more connected modern world the differences that cultures have may be homogenized away leaving us poorer in the end. This has begun to happen to our foods and many other aspects of our cultures. I hope that my participation in learning and practicing the crafts I do will help to preserve that diversity just a little.

The piece above is a cover for a ceremonial gift (rumal) 19th century depicting episodes from the life of the God Krishna

Slow Cloth - Contemplation

Inspired by Slow Cloth from Elaine Lipson at Red Thread Studios

Although I often find creative decision making difficult, the process of actually making things (once all those pesky decisions are settled) is meditative in nature.

I am not good at sitting still and meditating, my head is very full of to-dos. A great deal of the work I do is repetitive in nature. Stitching (especially by hand) and folding create a very soothing rhythm. When I can get out of my own way and let go of the end result, it becomes an activity that allows my brain to wander off and relax. Sometimes it feels as though I am rummaging through an old library of thoughts, ideas and memories.

This is the part of the process that has no grand ideas or investment in the end result, it is plain work. I don’t think of plain work in a negative way. I have an idea that plain work (sweeping, scrubbing, folding, digging or stitching) is something that is missing from modern life. In our quest for more leisure time we have omitted the most contemplative of activities. The absence adds to the stressed out feeling we can all fall victim to from time to time. Plain work is the sort of work that needs to be done in order to maintain an orderly life but it is repetitive, small work, no heroics involved. It can be a part of the creative process but in and of itself it isn’t creative. The repetitiveness of it allows the ever vigilant part of the brain that wants more, more, more to shut down. We are working and the dreamer in us can slip out between the stitches to catch a butterfly in our thoughts.

Tool-o-the-Week: Clamps!

I use a wide variety of clamping mechanisms for Itajime Shibori. It all depends on how thick the bundle of material I’m dyeing is once it is folded. For paper I have found folder clips to be effective. Fabric’s thicker bundle usually calls for the big boys… my faithful squeezy clamps. I even occasionally use clothespins for smaller or thinner material like silk. I’m thinking about purchasing some of those flexible strap type clamps for larger yardages of fabric sometime… maybe soon.

Slow Cloth - Joy in Process

Over at Red Thread Studio Elaine Lipson has been making the case for a slow cloth movement, based around the same idea as the slow food movement, consisting of 10 qualities…This was a new idea to me but I find I’m really connecting to it and I have been reflecting on how the principals of Slow Cloth fit into my experiences as a fiber artist.

The first quality is Joy in Process...That is one of the things that keeps me coming back! Joy can be tricky to find sometimes. Working with fibers and dye can be very unpredictable. As I’ve said before sometimes hours can be put into a piece of work for very disappointing results. However these same inexplicable unpredictable moments can just as often work in ones favor leading to wonderful new roads to explore. I think sometimes that I have chosen this medium because some of the control is out of my hands. I sort of set things up and see what happens. For me, a person who sweats nearly all decisions, there is something immensely attractive about making that roll of the creative dice.Once I’ve gotten my results I am free to see what can come of them. This medium allows me to relax my control freak impulses and luxuriate in the play of creativity. That is a joy!

Tool-o-the-Week: The Seam Ripper

Sometimes I forget to be grateful for the little things in life, in that spirit… I declare my seam ripper to be the Tool-o-the-Week.

Where would I be without you? My little redeemer with you my mistakes become do-overs. I rely upon you constantly for any number of tasks. Small and simple a hook an edge and a handle but I can’t imagine a more effective design. I can remove an ill considered seam or stitch, take out knots or tie them, pull threads through fabric or out of all those tiny crevasses my fingers are too clumsy to reach… With you I can cut, poke, pull, tuck, hook or nudge in a surgically precise manner…This is why you are the Tool-o-the-Week!