…Yes, just like that.

This painting (so far) is Procion MX fabric dye on cotton…and I’ll soon be adding the smaller details with some free-motion quilting. It’s one of the first few paintings that I’ll be doing based on dreams, memories, and short-stories that I’ve read. In a few days when I finish quilting it, I’ll be back with another photo—and will give you the longer version of the story behind the image.

*phew* It sure feels good to finally be “coloring outside the lines!”

The background fabric is hand-dyed…it was a leftover from the batch I did several months ago. I picked a thick piece of cotton that had a nice blend of yellowish-greens with a sprinkling of sky blue. As a reference for the foal, I used a photo that I took at a local horse farm. I then used chalk to do a line drawing of the foal onto the cloth, and as I couched the gold beads onto the surface (using the two-needle method), the chalk just gradually rubbed off. Small, fussy work like this is actually very relaxing for me, and I’m glad I decided to run with the idea when I was suddenly inspired to do it!

I’ll briefly mention my favorite artist and good friend Jennifer Zingg, who creates fabulous art from all different types of gourds… really beautiful work.Definitely not the kind of stuff you’d hang outside on your porch as a birdhouse. (Be on the lookout soon for an entire post dedicated to her work.)

I was a bit worn out (read: “cranky”) after being on my feet all day, but I met several very inspiring artists, and gained renewed interest in teaching myself more about shibori techniques.

Laverne Zabielski, one of the exhibitors at the show, makes wearable art at her Monticello, Ky studio.

Walking through her booth exhibit, it’s hard not to reach out to each of the silky, vibrant fabrics. I spoke to her briefly about her process. I also made googley eyes at a simple yet stunning black gown on display, with its few accents of white, snake skin-like shibori.

In my favorite fashion book I found this particular example of where shibori had been used beautifully on a haute couture piece. The fabric on this gown is actually left a bit “scrunched up” so the effect would be a sort of bounciness and flexibility, emphasizing the lightweight quality of the silk.

Next, some new vocabulary words!

Itajime– a resist dyeing technique in which which cloth is folded into a bundle, held together by clamping with shaped pieces of wood (such as circles) and then dyed.

As with any shibori technique, the results can differ greatly, but I like this visual on the hems of this shirt, a piece by Angelina DeAntonis. The article about her wearables and amazing costumes can be found in Fiberarts Magazine.

Bomaki– I’ve heard it described as a technique which involves using a pole to wrap the scarf tightly, which is then bound with twine or string before applying the dyes. Although, I have seen other descriptions that involve sewing the fabric into a tube that fits the pole tightly, then scrunching it to create pleats. I have reason to believe that either description could qualify as fitting the definitions of bomaki…but when I give it a try, I will be using the second suggested technique.

The bomaki technique is one that I know I’ve seen at some of the textile sites that I visit. One of them is “Making Shibori Now” the blog of Karren K. Brito, who shares photographs of the work from her studio. I really love how these artists are using the fabric three-dimensionally… this is something that I might soon be interested in.

The blog of Shibori Girl is also a very visually rich and informative place to visit.

Preparing and concocting

I took my large pile of plain cotton fabric (scraps from tees and sweats, etc) and prepared them for dyeing. I cut them into manageable pieces and washed them with Synthrapol to get them ready for the colorful chemicals.

After running them through the dryer (no fabric softener, of course), I bound many of the pieces with minty dental floss, folding some like fans, pleating and knotting others.

Tying it all up

I was ready to apply the dye, and the shibori shindig had begun! After a quick chemistry lesson, I used several different ways of applying the dye, including:

• stuffing the fabric into canning jars and pouring in different colors on top,
• using a plastic tub to squirt more concentrated colors throughout some of the larger pieces,
• placing some of the twisted and bound pieces into ziplock bags and applying dyes with a turkey baster

Shibori-tastic!

I got to unveil the results after letting the bundles cure overnight. I must say, I don’t think I could ever tire of witnessing such transformations from plain to spectacular! For those of you who are regulars at this sort of thing: am I right or am I right?

I didn’t really have an expected end-result in mind, other than accomplishing several shades of ocean-blues and greens with a few “bubbles” in there from the bound dots. I trusted that the fabric would succeed in being patterned whichever way it wanted. It would be an extra bonus if it actually “followed my advice.” I’m squealing happy I didn’t drop the F-bomb on it.

As a side note, I’m really excited to be participating in the Paper Quilt Project for March, so I’ll be talking about that soon.