Layers Upon Layers: Days 1-3
I think I'm getting some good work done this week. I'm still at the Barn, but this week taking Carol Soderlund's new class, "Layers Upon Layers." I'm glad that I've already taken Color Mixing I & II because I can focus the sequence of process and on color and zone out a little bit on the during some of the "How does this work?" question. Now, having said that I can also say that I've learned some new things about starch resists and fabric paint.
I decided before the class started that I would focus on a single motif for the entire week--circles and ovals. I'm seeing some interesting results from piecing before and/or after dyeing/overdyeing and from the interaction between soy wax and dye. For example, I'm getting a strong ghost image from activated strong black dye applied over soy wax, batched, dried, IRONED, and washed out. The expectation was that I'd get a strong resist. Instead I'm getting a fairly strong ghost image, which I like. The dye on top of the wax is being pushed down to the cloth when I'm ironing out the wax. And, it doesn't appear to be simply back staining, because I can't get it out. The dye paste should have been exhausted after 8 hours, but it was made with a mixed alkali so...keep experimenting.
OK, pictures.
Circles that were "drawn" by stitching strips of cloth to white fabric squares. These appliqued squares were subsequently cut in half and dropped into different low water dye pots. Here they are loosely reassembled on the design wall.
Greatly improved by overdyeing, but other colors are needed to be ready to make any sort of composition. And maybe some discharge?
An example of deconstructed printing on pieced fabric (a combination of muslin and pimatex.
If you click on this one and zoom in you might be able to see some of the soy wax/dye ghosting that I was talking about.
OK, out the door or I'll be late for class.