Sunday's Stitches - March 29th

Last month (?) Quilting Arts had a great article about glue gel resist batik-style dyeing. Considering how much I love painting on fabric I thought I would give it a try.

I already had everything I needed in the studio - Kona cotton muslin and canvas, Dye-na-flow dye - all I needed was the Elmer's School Glue Gel. After going to Walmart, Target, CVS - I about gave up then it dawned on me to go to Staples - they had it. I bought two bottles.

I washed a yard of Kona cotton muslin (I LOVE Kona cotton fine muslin) in hot water and dried it without a dryer sheet. I then cut a square and I did two experiments: (1) I doodled right onto the cotton with the glue gel on one sample; and (2) I placed a quilting stencil over the other square and brushed the glue gel in to the holes of the stencil.

After letting the glue dry thoroughly (I used a heat gun because I'm impatient) I painted on Dye-na-flo fabric dye and let it dry. Once it dried I washed out the glue gel (which was really easy) with hot water and Tide in the utility sink for about 5 minutes and rinsed really, really good. I then let it dry overnight.

Both samples came out great. So vivid and what a soft hand the fabric still has (unlike when I paint it with Lumiere or acrylic - even with textile medium it's a bit stuff.)

I will say that the sample that I used the stencil on (the purple swirls) -- the colors washed out a bit as that upper left corner was not totally dry before I washed it. (NOTE TO SELF: Next time - don't be so impatient and let the dye dry overnight or, out in the sun for at least 3 or 4 hours before rinsing out glue.) I am happy with both samples even though the one is light as it just adds more interest.

After drying the washed pieces, I decided to use the freehand doodle as my Sunday's Stitches canvas and began my hand embroidery and beading. I am excited about the possibilities with making my own fabric with the glue gel and Dye-na-flow. I am excited by the possibility of not only embroidering and quilting my own art quilts, but to also color the fabric myself - well that's just pretty cool.

Things I will do differently NEXT time:

1. Definitely have MORE patience in allowing things to dry thoroughly;

2. TAPE the stencil down to the fabric and tape the fabric down to a glass;

3. Play with watering colors down and maybe "spraying" dye on to fabric with a spray bottle; and

4. Draw out the design to be traced with glue.

Expect to see A LOT MORE of this technique. I can see it quickly becoming one of my favorites for journal covers, quilt squares, and embellishments for larger pieces.

Have a great week. I'll be stopping by to see what YOU are up to!

Laugh as much as you breathe,

and love as long as you live.

Sunday Stitches - March 15th

I really am enjoying this exercise - of stitching once a week and posting the results every Sunday. I am getting more out of it than what I anticipated at the onset, for while I am learning the art of embroidery (to some degree,) I have found that I enjoy "preparing" the surface for the stitches as much as I enjoy the stitching process.

Week's Stitches: I used some old favorites - French Knot, Open Chain and Star stitch, while experimenting for the first time with the Tied Cross Stitch (really like this one,) Fern Stitch and Tête de Boeuf Stitch, which I also like a lot.

For the Background - I used a stiff white canvas and Dye-na-Flow fabric dye. I'm excited by the way the Dye-na-flow interacted with the canvas. Instead of getting sucked into it, the color laid nicely on and went only where I told it to go with my paintbrush - and that's it. (Unlike with the Neocolors that have a mind of their own!)

I am finding there are three elements in play during my execution of my Sunday Stitches: (1) the stitching itself; (2) the design and preparation of the background; and what I do believe is my favorite element of the project (3) the color-play between the stitches and the background.

I'm inspired to start a small project using all of the knowledge I have gained thus far in this endeavor. Any ideas?