Block Print Repeat

Tonight I carved a linoleum block for my repeat pattern of feathers:

Color Theory for Textile Artists

I'm taking a bit of a diversion from pattern making and diving deep into color theory. I've signed up for an online class with Jane Dunnewold on color for textile artists. This week's homework was to work on some color wheels on both paper and cloth.

Repeats by Hand pt. 2

Here's how we take the torn paper repeat and turn it into a repeating pattern -- just trace, and keep going!

Finally, to make a print block with no cuts through the shapes, I just collect one of each type of feather.

The circled elements will become a stamp for this pattern.

Repeats by Hand

I'm taking an online class on How to Design Fabric on CreativeBug. Our first exercise is to make a repeat by hand, using paper. I reworked one of my feather drawings onto a paper. It's eventually going to be carved into a stamp block, where I'll add more texture to the feathers.

Fanmail

Today I have some fanmail to share. Artist Renç Korzay used one of my pattern designs in a drawing.  I love the color choices! Take a look:

To see more, follow him on instagram.

Candyland Tie Dye

I am literally dyeing over here... tie dyeing. 

I made this tablecloth for my roommate's birthday party. The theme is Candyland. It's 3.5 yards and I managed to not make too much of a mess, considering it's 40 degrees outside and I had to do the whole thing inside (Good dye fixation requires warmer temps). Anyhow, I'm pretty excited about the effects of tie dye, as there's a lot more than rainbow spirals. I will definitely be experimenting with more sarongs and bandanas once the weather gets nicer.

My cat wants to be the center of attention

Triple Spiral

Soaking in the dye

The inexact science of fabric dyeing

 The last month I've worked on a lot of color swatches with tub dyeing. Most of these were dyed for 24-30 hours in 2/3 cup chemical water (a mix of salt, soda ash, and water) and a half-plastic spoon of dye. The interesting thing about dye is that if you add two pieces of fabric at the same time to the same dye bath, each piece may come out a different color because of the way the dye fixes to the fabric. It's an inexact process, but I am getting a better understanding through these experiments. Now I'll have some good references for working with more fabric.