I took advantage of all the sunny days in July to experiment with sun printing and Setacolor paints. Years ago I tried this but had forgotten the details of how. I experimented with buttons, leaves, cardboard cutouts and bits of vintage doilies. I tried linen, cotton and silk.
Lessons were learned: Press leaves first, cardboard curls up so try something else firmer, don't use a frame-tape fabric directly to the plastic surface. Mix colors before putting on fabric and do a test swatch (colors looked very different on the fabric than in the container! This is a fun and really easy way to create a new fabric. I will post the items I am making with the fabric later.

The doll group I joined had planned an exhibit for the Parkgate Library in North Vancouver. It was an underwater theme and they already had enough mermaids so I volunteered to make a fish. Robin Reid had taught us to paint faces at one of our meetings so I decided this was the time to practice. I loved creating a personality and she became Glory, a very girly fish, who loves bling! My stash had plenty of bling that complimented the fabric that spoke to me. A Purple and blue batik was the start. I sculpted her body from foam, covered it with a thin fibre batting, then shaped the fabric to fit. It  was a design that evolved as I went along. Such fun. She is currently on display with the other sea creatures at the library till May 29th.   

 My latest adventure has been into the world of dolls. I was invited to join a subgroup of the VGFA, The Coast Character Doll group. They were offering a workshop with Nell Burns on Free Motion embroidery and one spot was left. I attended and had a great day honing my skills and learning new things. I decided to formally join the doll makers. Never having made a doll I thought I had better make one so I felt like I belonged! The internet is a bottomless pit of ideas, patterns and advice so I found a pattern and was on my way. The group members steered me to some very informative resources online. My doll became a textile artist, apparently looking like me.  I have since learned that this often happens. My stash had lots of appropriate bits so I didn't buy anything. I crocheted her top, stitched her vest and skirt, made her jewelry, booties and stockings and even made her underwear. I had so much fun!  

Check out my new page. It is on the header. Lots of embroidery stitch illustrations.

You'd never know it! Snowing like crazy outside and has been for 2 days. I have finished my entry to this year's Cherry Blossom festival exhibit. Photos need to be submitted by February 17th. Hopefully it will be accepted. I will show you a snippet.

Finally finished my compilation of shapes and lines from my trip to Spain and Italy. I used the indigo batik from the summer as the foundation and underlined it with a multicolored fabric in my stash. I outlined and embroidered in many colors for detail.

I have been busy with life so my main textile project this fall was making a wall hanging from a 1920's wedding dress! My friend Jean allowed me to take apart her grandmother's dress that had been sitting in a box for decades. It was a simple cream silk habotai dress with a cotton eyelet petticoat and lining. It had a very simple tule veil with an opening for a band. There was some delicate embroidery around the collar points and the veil opening done in a metallic thread that had tarnished to a pewter color. I managed to save some of the details and the lace trim. It was fun to research design elements of the 1920 Art Deco era to use in my design. I wanted to maintain the layered nature of the garment so I created  several layers in the design that would move as the air around the piece moved. The materials are mainly from the original ensemble. I added my own embroidery in silk and cotton threads, some taupe dupioni silk for contrast and a bit of lace from my stash (some two tone cotton lace from London, England!) It was difficult to photograph so I tried on my balcony. The bamboo rod is only temporary as Jean will use a more suitable metal rod.
The title Layers of a Marriage seemed appropriate.  

My recent trip to Spain inspired me to create a project using lines and shapes from the incredible architecture. I also wanted to practice batik techniques using soy wax. I dyed the waxed fabric in indigo to establish a foundation for a this new creation. I only dipped the fine cotton/silk fabric once and the color was great. I wondered if the wax would come off in the vat but I was pleasantly surprised that it held up well. I could have dipped it more than once as long as I was careful not to stir it around. There will be much more done to complete this project but I am happy with the beginning (18 x 24 inch) image.  

I have been wanting to do some indigo dying for a long time. It is very popular right now but in the 70's I did a little natural dying as part of a textile design course at university. Indigo was the big deal then and there was this mystique around preparing the vat and whole dying process. Simon Fraser University offered a seniors' continuing ed. course this spring on the history of indigo and a dying workshop to accompany it. I was in!! The history was fascinating and the workshop gave me an opportunity to try various shibori techniques, get the inside scoop on creating the dye bath and all the details on the dying process. I was able to experiment with some soy wax batik too. Jean Kares is a fantastic instructor, knowledgeable and experienced. 
With each dip into the dye bath the blue color darkens. I only had time to dip my pieces twice as I wanted to try several techniques and fabrics. Here are some results: 

This was a clamping technique, very easy and effective.

Above are 3 different shibori circles, two straight line techniques, a few sashiko embellishment stitches and one tiny creative repair technique! Lesson learned to be careful with the stitch ripper when removing shibori stitches.

Pole dying on a gorgeous piece of fine linen I got in Italy! This is such an easy technique. Here it is drying on my deck before I washed out the excess indigo. The end result was about 2 shades lighter. One side is lighter than the other.  In this photo it is a hanging but right now I am using it as a table runner.

It is Cherry Blossom time again and I have another piece exhibited at the Silk Purse in West Vancouver until April 10. Here it sits on a chair before being delivered. I was inspired by mandalas and Japanese imagery so decided to put the two together. I found a small remnant of brown shibori silk at Quilters Dream that worked perfectly into my theme. Hand embroidery is my love at the moment so only the mounting is done by machine.  In this exhibit there are new interpretations of this theme that amaze me. I hear the gallery is slated to be demolished so this could be the last cherry show there! A shame.