Digitized Shibori

One of my off and on love affairs of late has been Spoonflower. I love it because it is so easy to use, I hate it because--um, well it is so easy to use. I have had fun just cranking out designs and playing with the repeats of them. Honestly some of them are crap. I have also been playing around with Photoshopping some of my shibori samples. It makes me feel unclean to do this to my shibori. Shibori is done by hand, it is a careful zen like process. Here I am playing with it in Photoshop. It almost feels sacrilegious. Spoonflower is like my dirty little addiction.

I have to say some other designers have beautiful work on there that I covet and admire. There is also a lot of crap (my own included, so please, no hate mail.) Recent discussions on Slow Cloth have me thinking more about why I am doing things, what I am learning, and what I am contributing. The good, the bad, and the sometimes ugly. Is it okay to make ugly art if you learn and grow from it? Is it okay to share your ugly work? Or should ugly work be banished and hidden or even destroyed? Should I delete my Spoonflower designs that just did not quite work, or should I keep reworking them?

I took the plunge and ordered more swatches of designs I had previously done on Spoonflower. Time to decide to keep or eliminate. I also need to make a decision about what to make with these designs. I am thinking of upholstering a chair and painting the wood in bright colors?

Slow Cloth

Slow Cloth is a group started on Facebook for discussing the idea of Slow Cloth. Started by three wonderful, thoughtful artists--Elaine, Jude and Glennis. Anyone interested in textiles and what they mean in today's world should check out the discussions going on over there. The group is new, is growing, and is very active.

On with the New Year

So what does 2010 have in store? I have had lots of down time with the hand to start planning and thinking about projects for this year. I have been doing some soul searching and asking myself questions. Do I do projects for recognition or for personal pleasure? Do I try to do lots of small things for instant gratification or do I go for one really great big project? Do I try to teach and share or just selfishly do my own thing? What has been holding me back from getting things done? How do I get myself organized to accomplish my goals once I set them?

One thing I have learned, is that it does help to set goals and to actually write them down. Writing them down is like making a promise to yourself--if it is important enough to write down it must be something important to you--right? A great site for helping to plan and organize is diyplanner.com I love the templates directory and have even contributed a few myself. A simple dayplanner and a simple weekly planner and my DIY Voodoo Kit. The latter is just for fun. DIY Planner has some great contributors and I enjoy reading the articles on getting organized and how people share their creative answers for getting organized. I wish I could make an organizer system for artists, but what works for one would not for another so I just need to finish making the one I started for myself.

So let's see, back to goal setting... I want to test out my ideas for the dress I am going to make for my niece using kakishibui and indigo. I want to make a bib necklace using the awesome retro beads I found on Etsy. I want to get my shibori videos finished. I want to get my plan for my Japan trip in place. I want to get a better list of Japanese sewing term translations organized and posted. I want to sew my way through the rest of my Japanese sewing books. I want to get my Etsy shop going. I want to get my Spoonflower fabrics tweaked for better colors and make something using my own fabric. I want to experiment more with katazome (rice paste resist dyeing.)

Well I feel better putting that down. It did make me think about what was more important to me. Now I have some focus for the year. Two weeks until the pins come out. I better print out a calendar and start some planning on paper!

Hand Progress

Here is my x-ray from the day my cast came off. Kind of creepy, but not so gross as looking at my actual hand. I now have twenty three days until those pins come out and then will do rehab on my finger for a while to get my grip back. I am doing my flexes every hour like I am supposed to. I have got a little more bend back into the middle knuckle joint. The progress seems so slow right now. Hydrocodine and I do not get along! I am just taking ibuprofen now.

The pins get cold fast and the weather here in Indiana has been COLD. It is a weird feeling in my finger joint where the pins are when they get cold--bone chilling has new meaning for me now.

I am wondering if picking up being left-handed will make me smarter by forcing me to use the right side of my brain more? LOL, probably not. Simple things have been easy to pick up on doing left handed--like eating, typing one handed, and other simple tasks. Harder is fastening hooks and zippers on clothing, writing (I can do it but the angle is all wrong), and opening those dang child proof caps they put on everything. Oh yeah--and scissors! Scissors left handed takes some concentration. I have only a small understanding of what stroke victims go through.

I have to admit that fear creeps in now and again at this point. What if it does not heal correctly? What if it does not have enough grip ever again? What if it does not fuse? What if it hurts all the time? What if I can't do my art or have to relearn how to do my art? I guess I am just a little depressed right now. I know I need to think positive healing thoughts!

neglect

My poor blog has been sadly neglected of late. I had surgery to fuse the dip joint of my index finger on my right hand and am currently a leftie. No sewing, shibori, beading, knitting or any other of the things that bring me joy for the next six weeks. I have been really depressed about it, but I know in the long run I will get back to what I love and it will be without pain. I am studying up on arthritis and how to care for my hands. I am planning lots of projects in my head, but I am so fearful of losing them while unable to put them on paper. I find myself turning to typed notes using as many descriptive words as possible but it is not the same as capturing the pictures in my head. My dear hubby has been watching over my kakishibui to let off the excess gases so it does not explode. It is still fermenting away and hopefully I can do a test swatch in February. I am going to (if my hand is ready) stitch up a little bracelet using my plan for my niece's dress to test out the colors and technique.

I ran across another shibori book at JoAnns Fabrics---Mandy Southan's Shibori Designs and Techniqes. Some lovely work to study in this book. I also found a Japanes book on Amazon Japan that is now in my wishlist!

Spoonflower

Head on over to Spoonflower and check out the awesome designs in their calendar contest. One of my art teacher colleagues has a lovely entry called Peace Pixie 2010 Some of my experiments are at this link. I have had to put off some of my art to rest my hand, so I dug out the big crochet hook and the big knitting needles and have been cranking out some scarves. It was fun using up my stash of yarn and doing some immediate gratification work! Pics to come some. I worked with no pattern and just played with what my muse was sending me. It was really fun,

An artist's hands

When you are an artist that uses their hands, what do you do when you have injured your dominate hand? I have apparently worn out all the cartilage in my right index finger joint nearest the tip. Osteo arthritis and a little early on the start according to the hand doc. He wants to shave down the bones at the joint to remove the spurs that have been forming, clean up the loose bits caused by bone rubbing against bone, and then fuse the joint at an angle so I can still use it for my art. He could fuse it in the straight position and it would look prettier but I want it to work better. So it seems a fifteen degree angle it is.

How important an artists hands are. I knew they were getting sore sometimes but I kept working thinking it was just like over exercising. I will get therapy on my hand after they take the pins out. The therapists is supposed to go over how to take better care of my hands when I am working. I will be unable to do anything with my right hand for a few weeks and then a few weeks more before I can start back with my stitching.

Maybe that will give me time to do some left handed blogging?

Pojagi

Last year I had the privilege of working with a great group of students for after-school art. I had ten students total. It was a mixture of 6th, 7th and 8th graders. We spent the first couple of weeks experimenting with different ways to create pattern on cloth. We did some good old hippy tie dye, some itajime (folding and clamping), marbling, rubbings with paintstiks, thickened dye, potato dextrin resist, and sponge painting. It was messy and fun! What to do with all these samples? A pojagi banner seemed a great solution.



We were able to buy some books on pojagi from Amazon Japan.

http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/product/images/4877512365/ref=dp_image_0?ie=UTF8&n=465392&s=books

http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/product/images/4579107977/ref=dp_image_0?ie=UTF8&n=465392&s=books

We followed the great illustrations to figure out the steps for creating our pojagi banner even though the text was in Japanese. We did do our stitching with a sewing machine instead of by hand however as we were rushed by a deadline to finish. The students had a hard time with making straight seams, but who says it had to be perfect? It has lots of character and the students can look at it and they know which pieces of fabric are theirs and which parts they sewed together. Originally we wanted to hang it where it would be lit from behind, but as with most schools there was no money in the budget for anything like that.

I am hoping to get a grant to go to Japan on a fiber tour and maybe will find a shop that has some of the fabric they traditionally use for Pojagi. Pojagi is actually a Korean technique but seems to be gaining some popularity with Japanese crafters.

Stitch Magazine is out!

Quilting Arts Stitch Magazine is out and my hints and tips for sewing with Japanese pattern books is in it! I hope sewing enthusiasts find it helpful and lose some fear over using foreign patterns. The world is full of great designers and with the internet they are available for all of us to enjoy.
It was really great working with the people at Stitch. Elaine Lipson wrote the feature I {heart} Japan and I got to know her by e-mails back and forth and a few phone calls. Elaine has a great blog, Red Thread Studio. Which brings me to my next subject as I found out about it by following her blog now.

Have you seen Spoonflower.com? I hadn't, but I have been reading Elaine's blog and checking out the great links she keeps posting. I am quite the fiber junkie, and I think Spoonflower may be addictive! I sat and made design after design the other night. Check out one of my faves based on an old brain diagram here. You can play with different tile/repeat options, scale your design to different sizes, change around the colors and more. It really is fun. I have ordered a test swatch (only $5 plus another $1 for shipping) to see how the colors turn out and find out the feel of the printed fabric. I am going to go back and just explore the other great work on there and find some faves to follow. I even took a sample of my shibori and uploaded it to play around with here.

Japanese Hat Pattern Book part II

Continuing from my previous post, (link), this Japanese hat pattern book also has a chart showing some of the variations possible by combining different brim and crown styles. I decided to work with #14 which uses brim "A" and crown "B."


For a hat, you need a top crown, side crown and brim pattern. I have a big head (maybe it is all that hair?) and according to the measurements the size L would barely fit. I did not bother altering this pattern as I was not making the hat for me. It is important to remember to add a little for ease when measuring for your hat. Put a finger under the tape measure when checking your size to allow for a little fitting ease. Don't confuse the ease added to the pattern for seam allowances being included in the pattern. After finishing my hat, I found that although I could get it on my head, it was not a comfortable fit. I really need it to be about a 1/2 inch bigger. Making smaller seams will make the crown bigger around but not the brim opening. It is better to alter the pattern to change the size than to try playing with seam allowances. If you are not sure about it, use some cheap muslin for your first attempt. Making mistakes and figuring them out is a great way to learn.


Seam Tracers I ordered from Clotilde. They come in 1/4 inch and 5/8 inch. I use these where it is easiest to, but sometimes there is no substitute for using a ruler and marking the seam allowances.



My first step in preparing my pattern is to trace the pieces I need onto tracing paper. If you have a lightbox or sunny window it will be helpful. I trace them exactly as they are and translate the markings as I go. You will need to recognize symbols for front, back, center, on the fold, side, grain of fabric, and names of the parts. If you have problems with this, do an online search for Japanese sewing terms.



The above pic shows a pattern piece in progress.



The side crown and brim on this hat call for some changes to the basic pattern. The side crown is split and the brim is added onto in the front and tapered in the back. Following the charts for each hat is important to achieve the looks in the book. Once you have gone through this process, you will get ideas for your own variations. I make the changes on the tracing paper, taping on more paper as needed. A ruler and tape measure with centimeters on them are a big help with this part. If you have a flexible curve, it can also come in handy.




Using the Seam Tracer can take some practice. If you angle it too much, you will not have a true 5/8 inch seam allowance. I prefer to use tagboard for my patterns (call it a quirk), but you can use tissue paper, freezer paper, or paper made especially for patterns.



If something looks wonky, I check it with my ruler and correct it in red (school teacher in me has to come out sometimes.) I also trace over all of my lines with a Sharpie. Yes, yet another step but when I get done making my pattern I know it. I also like to go ahead and make any pieces it calls for cutting on the fold into full size pieces. I feel this makes it easier to make the best use of your fabric.



After getting all the pieces marked, I cut them out and mark them with post it notes. I like to put them on each pattern piece to label what needs to be cut from what and how many. As each is cut, the post it note comes off.



Below are my fabric choices for hat #14. I found I had enough fabric for two hats so I decided to
switch the fabrics around for two different looks. And it is almost as easy to make two as one!



After cutting the pattern out of the fashion fabric, the parts need to be interfaced. Depending on the weight and drape of the fabric, it may be better to use two layers of fusible interfacing instead of one. A really heavy interfacing may be too stiff and create wrinkles in my experience.

Colorway #1

Colorway#2

Sewing in progress, clipping curves, grading seams, and don't forget to press. A pressing ham and or a seam roll make this easier. It allows you to shape the curves of the hat as you press.




Gros-grain ribbon sewn on the inside helps hide the seam for attaching the brim and gives the hat a more finished appearance.



And these hats are packable! I think that is a big plus over other hats. The brim can be worn up or down, you can topstitch or not, add some ribbon trim, some buttons---whatever suits your fancy. I like to add pins to hats so I can change the look around. Making fabric flowers is a great way to use up those little bits of leftover fabric.



When my styrofoam head got to looking ratty, I tore up some wrapping paper into pieces and used some acrylic gel medium to cover it. I think it may be time to cover the other one!



Hat #14 finished in two variations. You can see how the drape of the fabric also changes the look of the hat.

I just found a link for a free hat pattern from Simplicity. It is a similar style if you want to try your hand at hatmaking without investing anything more than some fabric. Happy hatmaking!