Tyvek

I really love watching Tyvek react to heat.

You'll know all about the grid sample if you have read Tyvek and Silk sample post. This was my accident which worked really really.

The top largest sample was distressed with a hovering iron, then when bubbling had occurred, I flipped it over and  ironed it as I would a pair of jeans, The sample was flattened and some of the bubbles burned through giving a futuristic lace effect.

The bottom sample was a Tyvek, scrim and rusted cotton sandwich, machine stitched, slashed and heat distressed. The distorted Tyvek pulls the cotton out of shape.

Im working on making my sketchbook more interesting. I have a tendency to cut something out very neatly and lay it central on the page.

I have a Pinterest board, you can find it here full of interesting sketchbooks to give me inspiration and get away from my boring sketchbooks.

Finished, now the written work.

Following on from the Tyvek and silk sample there came Lutrador and silk. 

Lutrador is constructed of spun polyester fibres, it comes in various weights and reacts really well to heat distressing, giving an interesting textural effect.

I rusted the Lutrador, but since I was using the lightweight Lutrador 30, the colouring was very faint, but just enough to knock back the original white colour.

I layered pelmet Vilene, patches of silk, silk noil, linen, scrim and cotton and then overlayed with the Lutrador. I then machine stitched the layers into place, using an angular design reflecting the architecture from my initial drawings.

Then the exciting bit. The heat gun. Lutrador doesn't need much heat before it starts reacting. I love watching the fibres curl and shrink back against the base fabric.

The collar is given structure by a layer of chicken wire and backed with Tyvek.

The layers are then hand stitched with crochet cotton, which I also coloured using the same rust method I used on the cotton and silk.

I would have loved to knit a white vest to rust, I thought it would have worked well for display purposes, but I just didn't have time. I made do with cotton Jersey from good old H&M instead.

It's finally finished, I can rest my poor tired gnarled hands, stitching through 3 and four layers of fabric and chicken wire takes its toll! Here are a few sneaky photos, full effect photos to come in a few weeks.

Dusting off the embellisher

A couple of years ago I bought a Jamome embellisher. It looks exactly like a sewing machine, but doesn't take thread. Instead in place of your sewing needle, it has a unit of 6 needles which are barbed.  You press the foot peddle, just like a regular sewing machine and the needles go up and down through your fabric and the barbed needles felt your fabric.

When I first bought it I made a few book covers and a wall hanging, using recycled sari ribbons, which give great results. Since then it's had a rest while I have worked on other projects.

I made this sample with it today, inspired by some colour block pieces in my futuristic research. I used a backing fabric of burlap, and in stages added wool tops and fabric strips, embellishing one section until it was fairly secured in to place, then adding the next. When the area I was working on was covered. I worked over the whole piece to felt it more securely, this also helps blend the fibres together, making it look more like one piece of fabric.  Depending on the fabric, I may not work a certain area as much, for example, silk roving, I tend to lightly work those areas as I like the feel of those parts.  I especially like degummed silk cocoons for those lighter areas.

You can also flip your sample and work from the back, this means the backing fabric will pull through to the front slightly. It gives and interesting effect. Especially when working with textural opposites like silk and burlap. Or use the back as your front!

The fibres are not permanently attached, if you wanted you could pull them apart. If you were creating a piece to be used as a book cover, I would recommend some hand or machine stitching to help secure it. Just in case.

Rusty knitting

I always think of knitting as finding the colour you want and then knitting. Not knitting and then colouring afterwards.

So inspired by the knitted transfer paint samples I did earlier.  I knitted plain cotton yarn patches and rusted them exactly the same way I would other fabrics.  Im pretty pleased with the results.

The top left, more orangey sample is rusted using vinegar and wrapping around an old rusty can.  The other two are created using tea and wrapped around rusty cans, this give more grey/silver colouring.

For my final piece, I would have loved to have knitted a vest to attach the collar to, but I really didn't have time and I'm not that good at kitting to create a garment. Although I haven't ever tried, maybe I should put that on my list of things to do...

The final sample you can see below, was knitted florists wire. It looks great, has great movement, but was really hard on my hands! Therefore a small sample, never to be repeated!

Photoshop Insomnia

Continuing on from yesterday's class. t's now 6 in the morning, I've been working on this design since 5.

I wish this was a longer module, there seems so much to learn, yet it's so short!

I was struggling to fit all the motifs onto the canvas, at least I've fixed that problem!

Chenille

I love raw edges, raggy jeans, unfinished hems. Much to other family members despair. So a chenille sample is right up my street.

Layers of four to six fabrics are machine stitched together.  Choose fabrics which will fray well, in this sample, I used my rusted cotton, for the top and bottom layers.  Then for the middle layers, I used white brushed cotton.

Ensure the bottom layer is not affected, cut between the stitching along the length of the top fabrics. Do not cut the very bottom layer or the whole thing will just fall apart.

Use embroidery scissors as they are easier to get into the small area between the stitches, but you can also buy a chenille cutter, it is super quick and just wooshes along the fabric without the fear of cutting through something you shouldn't be.

Lutrador and Rust

This has now topped all the others and become my favourite sample.

The first version of this was one layer of Vilene as a backing to give the piece some structure. Then a layer of rusted cotton, with a top layer of rusted Lutrador.  I then machine stitched a grid pattern to secure them together and using a heat gun distressed the Lutrador to expose the rusted fabric underneath.

It looked good, but I decided to make another, using the same backing, this time I layered smaller pieces of rusted fabric, varying the type. I used cotton, linen, silk and silk noil, making sure there were plenty of raw edges exposed!

I then followed what I did previously, overlaying the Lutrador, machine stitching and heat distressing.

This was a much more interesting sample, a great textural piece. Definitely one to use in my final piece. I love it.

Fabric Collage

Moving on from the paper collage, I selected four interesting squares.  I have translated these into fabric pieces.

Really simple but effective.  I overlaid the fabric and adhered them together with Bondaweb to hold them in place while I stitched.

A strong possibility to use this technique in my final piece.

Tyvek and silk sample

So all of a sudden the fabric manipulation module is taking off.  Finally, i was starting to lose sleep!  

Initial sampling is going well, I thought I'd share my current favourite.  I have 9 samples up to now, one only half prepped, so technically 8, but after a quick run through the princess pleater, it will take a little hand embroidery to finish that one.

Since the theme is futuristic, I wanted to use more of the synthetic and man made fabrics.  Trying to manipulate these is like trying to put tights on an octopus and I'm reminded why I love good old cotton.

I also aimed to use fabrics which I have coloured by rusting.  I just love these so much, its painful to cut them up, I keep hesitating before using them, touching and stroking them, then popping them back in the pile and 'doing a little tester' on some commercially coloured fabric I have bought.

When I did take the plunge, this sample is the result. I cut a stencil from mount board, the grid design came from the collage from my previous post.

I used Tyvek, a non woven synthetic fabric used to make those white forensic suits you see on CSI. It's perfect for heat distressing.  I laid the Tyvek square and the mount board grid on top, placing them both on a sheet of silicone paper and laying a sheet on top and put the sandwich in the heat press.  

I was hoping for a flat grid design and bubbling, which is what Tyvek tends to do when heat is applied, in the open areas of the grid, but I stupidly way underestimated the heat of the press. When I removed it, even though it had only been about 5-10 seconds, the open areas of the Tyvek were completely burned through.

My next stupid move, was to not place a silicone sheet between the tyvek and the mount board! The heat had fused them together and I had to ease them away from each other with a plastic ruler.

In order to salvage something of the sample, I loosely bondawebbed some of the rusted silk to the Tyvek grid and heated to adhere them together.

Then out of the overheated promise of a what not to do a sample came ...

I am so pleased I finally started using my precious rusts and that it wasn't a waste.  I love the tradition silk and modern Tyvek together.  I decided to allow the bondaweb to lay across the silk to give a lace effect over some of the squares and not others, so I could see which I prefer.  I've decided I like it better without, but glad I tested, so now I know. 

Now I need to decide how I'm going to use it in my final piece.  I have some thoughts of cutting an elaborate godet into the back of a straight skirt, but not sure this technique would work with that.  I probably should be looking more towards pleats and ruffles.  Then again, she who dares....

Collage

Collage is finished, I like the feel of it, but it needs an extra layer. Some kind of plastic maybe.

Manipulated cotton

I can't believe how easy it was to achieve a good example of this technique.

Fabric manipulation in its simplest form.

Dampen some cotton, and lay it over a grid or wire basket, I used a plastic fruit carrying tray, with even square holes, it worked perfectly.

Poke the fabric slightly through the holes in the grid and leave it to dry, before removing it, cut a piece of Bondaweb to fit the area of fabric and iron to fix it to the fabric.

Thats it! Remove it from the grid and the Bondaweb holds the manipulation in place. However great this looks, it won't withstand a quick whizz around the washing machine, so only suitable for non wearable projects.

Futuristic mood board

I thought I'd show you my mood board for my current module. I need to keep working on these, I have seen some lovely examples online.

The images are my own which I took on a trip to Switzerland, a selection of fabrics, Tyvek, rusted cotton, polyester, bubblewrap and rubber, all of which I felt fit into the futuristic theme of the brief.

I have added rusted objects and images I cam across in my research, I have decided to make an avant garde collar. Something big and over the top. The brief states 'wearable art' so really, I can pretty much make whatever I want!