Twisted Textiles

“Now With New Shapes and Colors!”

(Seriously…that’s what the dogfood bag says.)
I honestly think I’m addicted to making these.

If you have pets (dog, cat, horse, birdfeeder, etc) that you buy feed for,
and will let me have the bags from the food,
Please let me know and I’ll pick ‘em up!

“The Whole Family Will Love It!”

While typing the title for this post, I accidentally typed “udderwear”…which is a completely different topic altogether. Perhaps one day I will make high-fashion garments for all the sophisticated and fashion-conscious cows out there—but not today.

This is another OBG (meaning Oldie But Goodie, not Open Bottom Girdle) from years gone by. Why, I remember as if it were yesterday…Sitting on the living room floor of my boyfriend’s apartment, sorting through piles of worn-out socks and underwear that he was planning on throwing out. Sometimes I get strange ideas and they turn out to be wonderful. This was one of those times.

Since the cotton from socks and underwear is very stretchy, especially when it’s worn, I had to use copious amounts of iron-on interfacing as a base. After cutting apart the undies to make them lay as flat as possible, I sort of “collaged” the pieces together on top of the interfacing, using the dress pattern pieces as a guide. Then I simply cut the pieces and sewed them together as I would when making a “normal” dress. I used some of the waistbands from the underwear as edging on the collar and sleeves. I also made a pocket with one of the, um, fabric pockets inside the mens underwear…which turned out very cute!

This piece is currently in the Address and Redress exhibit with two of my other works;
the Safe Release Hat
and the Dryer Sheet Dress.
This is the last week for exhibit, which is located at the Gloria Singletary Gallery in Lexington KY.

Mmmm! I’ll have mine with a side of packing peanuts.

Plastic and I sorta have this love/hate relationship going on. (It’s presence has saved human lives through technology and medicine, yet it’s sheer abundance has created a deadly “plastic soup” in the Pacific Ocean. Birds constantly mistake plastic pellets for food.)

I’ve also been noticing the new decorations in the trees on our street, put there by the recent harsh winds that have dislodged local litter from it’s hiding places. It has prompted me to go on a few garbage collecting journeys recently. Otherwise known as “shopping for art supplies”.

While trying to figure out new things to do with all this plastic garbage that I’ve found myself collecting, I stumbled across artist John Dahlsen, who makes daily trips to his local Australian shoreline to collect the garbage that washes up there. (See the short feature video at www.Overlander.tv to see John in action.)

This Blue Rope triptych (above) is something I could stare at for a long while. Found colors—whether it be colors of autumn leaves or colors of collected garbage—is something that intrigues me. The washed-up ropes, layered and intertwining together, creates a feeling that is both like a painted landscape and a geological diagram. To me it reads as layers of sedimentary deposits in the earth’s strata…mapped-out all neat and tidy. With just a splash of irony.

As well as assemblage art, Dahlsen offers “plastic purge sculpture” such as this one here (Bronze Plastic Purge 2005). These sculptures, byproducts of industrial manufacture, take on a variety of colors and shapes. I especially love how this one in particular reminds me of skin, or like a glorified internal organ. I could write many paragraphs about it’s tactile qualities, but I don’t want you to feel like I’m teaching a biology class here… (geology, now biology—yes, I’m a sucker for science of all sorts.)

Also, have you:
—heard the statistics on Ireland’s taxing of plastic bags in their grocery stores?

—seen a flyer posted in your local “health food store” notifying that they’ll be doing away with plastic bags in the next few months? (Although, toss-able paper bags aren’t that much better, considering how much energy and resources it takes to produce them.)

I can imagine that other artists are going in a similar direction as John Dahlsen (at least I hope so), and I’ll be doing more research in the future on problematic plastics.

These two were a lot of fun! If they could hold hands and dance in a circle, they would definitely do so.

I found a black plastic garbage bag in the unsurmountable “jungle of art supplies” in my garage, and knew that it would be perfect for a more crisp, formal look to these handbags (I’ve been making them mainly from plastic Kroger/Walmart grocery bags). The yellow on the smaller one is from the weekly newspaper-ads that magically appear at the end of the driveway. The creamier beige on the larger purse is from plain ol’ Kroger bags. All of the bright greens and blues came from various bread and produce bags, and the red was found on a package of bagels.

The patterns and colors were inspired by an Egyptian design that I saw in a book, and there are several others that I’d like to try next! As usual, they are very sturdy and very lightweight. The carrots that we buy come in bags with a beautiful, bright orange color that I’ll have to make use of next…

The larger bag is a good size for sketchbooks and such. I will probably take the smaller one with me to the Address and Redress exhibit opening in Lexington tomorrow night.

Well, this is my idea of bliss, anyway. And as they say, “It’s an Oldie but a Goodie!” (Just who are “they”, anyway?)

Also, it’s a Two-Fer-One deal! The dress is made from the fabric of an old recliner, including some of the covered buttons. The dressform is made of the actual Wood and Workings of the recliner (including the springs and the feet).

The photos are brand new (via the multi-artwork photo session with Jason), but the artwork is not. I made this years and years ago, but it has always been one of my favorites!
(*cue “way-back memory music”…)

This project definitely started me off in the direction that I’ve headed since then, which is increasingly focused on the “why?” of clothing and fashion.

I’ve got boxes of fabric/upholstery samples that will probably end up as another dress. Why a dress? Dresses have always seemed to be on this “higher level” of fashion for me, because I grew up at a time where girls didn’t have to wear dresses. They were something that were for special occasions, and I usually didn’t wear one unless I absolutely had to! So in my mind, a dress is super-special. It speaks of important things.

And art is important to me, so why not celebrate it with lots and lots of dresses?! Call me crazy. Please don’t call the insane asylum. Also, please ignore the drool on my chin.

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