Shibori Fun

For my non-textile friends I describe Shibori as Japanese Tie-Dye. But it's so much more than those words imply. Shibori is an incredible art form.  Using simple stitches, threads, clamps, and wraps as resist, patterns are created on fabric. It is detailed, finicky, surprising, unique and always lovely.

I took a Shibori workshop last weekend with Glennis Dolce. Her blog is here. Her website is here. Her work is amazing!

The workshop took place at the Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo, downtown Los Angeles. My friend, Kathy, and I spent two fun filled days stitching, tying, dyeing and meeting other avid Shibori artists. I highly recommend the workshop. Glennis teaches at the museum throughout the year. It is studio format. She teaches newbies as well as regular students who prep stuff at home to dye in the workshop. Not everyone has space to have their own indigo vat at home so it's a great opportunity to have vats and all supplies available.

What follows is a photo essay of what I did in the workshop.

Inspiring samples on every wall of the room.

My favorite piece on the wall was this large quilted Sashiko piece. The table had a selection of fabric pieces we were given to play with.

Silk Noil, cotton lawn, silk kimono lining, silk organza, silk jacquard, silk Habotai.

 I started with silk Noil and a selection of stitching samples. I used red nylon thread.

Pulling the red thread tight makes a funny unidentifiable wad of silk.

This is Kathy's sample.

Dye vat and my sample is now blue. When a pice comes out of the pot it is more green. Magic happens when indigo dye is exposed to air, a process also known as oxidation...it changes color! You can actually watch it happen.

There were two vats. One darker than the other. The piece on the right is from the lighter vat but it is still oxidizing and turning darker blue.

My two samplers, pressed with all the stitching remove.

Next, using cotton wrapped thread, I wrapped the silk Habotai around a tube (polypropylene in this case). Glennis has this nifty contraption where the pole sits on old skateboard wheels. I'd wrap a few inches and then push the fabric and thread up to one end of the pole.

Closeup of fabric scrunch. This Shibori technique is called Arashi.

The pole in the indigo vat.

The pole in the vat along with the whole dye table. Rinse buckets, water buckets, clamps and other tools piled up.

The finished piece of silk Habotai. It looks and feels like a cloud. I plan to sew the ends together to make a mobius scarf.

I forgot to take pictures before dyeing of this folded and clamped piece of silk kimono. It is still changing color.

Personally I think this piece was uninspired and not really attractive. But that's what sampling is for right?!?

Glennis showed us how to use stencils and fugitive dye with this cool little Japanese brush. Fugitive dye is color that disappears in water.

I stenciled these circles to stitch in the evening as homework for the next day.

All of this was the first day of the workshop!

Next morning, I finished stitching the circles. Glennis had us use tiny scraps of silk as anchors for the thread knots. It is a great technique for loosely woven fabrics and for finding your knots after dyeing.

The new wad of fabric. I had to poke up each of the spaces between the threads as I pulled tight so that the fabric would dye more evenly. I also added Kanoko knots in one corner. They are tiny wrapped points of fabric.

The circles half undone.

The finished sample with the rip in the upper corner when I got too aggressive in pulling the thread out. You can see where I pulled very tight (white lines) and not so tight (faint lines). It is a very pretty pattern that I will repeat again I think.

This is the organza that I did 4 different samples on. Clamped diamonds that I'm not sure how I accomplished. A scrumble (just scrunching the fabric with my fingers) below the diamonds. Then a spider web. The top right corner had spiral stitched lines that I forgot to pull tight. I saw the error after the first dip in the dye. So I pulled up and then dipped the corner again. You can just barely see the slightly lighter blue lines.

I dyed some cotton floss thread for Sashiko sewing. By this point in the workshop I was very tired and decided not to dye anymore.

But I did use the stencils to prep more samples to take home.

This is a sample from Glennis' collection. I just love the crisscross stitching. I hope to make something like this next time around.

This is another piece from Glennis' collection. All of the diagonal lines are made up of tiny wrap-tied points so closely crowded that the fabric feels at least 1/4 inch thick. The white tangled thread surrounding the flowers is released knots that reveal the design. I think I can safely say that I will NEVER be accomplished or interested enough to tie knots like this. Though it is incredible to see and feel an artisans work.

An amazing weekend of fun that I hope to repeat again.

Gala Outfit

I haven't sewn a garment for myself in a long time. My son's annual fundraising gala for his Mandarin Immersion Program was coming up. I thought it was a perfect event to make something special. The theme was Oscar's Red Carpet.

I have a pair of shiny silver sequin skinny pants a friend gave me as a gag gift a couple of Christmas's ago. I kept them because they were funny to me and really...who doesn't need a pair of shiny pants?!?

Well, I thought the shiny pants would be a perfect base for me to build a dress-up outfit around for the gala. I poked around for Chinese vests on Amazon and Etsy and didn't see anything I really liked. I had this idea to make a structured vest with a peplum.

I found this awesome embossed and quilted black faux leather fabric  at Joann's (of all places). The burgundy and black iridescent taffeta I had in my stash.

I pulled out a bodice sloper from a few years ago. When I say "a few years ago"... I mean, like, at least 20 years ago! After that length of time plus having a baby, I should have known that I would need to draft a new one. While my measurements had not changed that much, my proportions are TOTALLY different. The sloper did not fit in any way. The picture below shows what I cut hoping it would fit. What a laugh. It was too tight and too short. I ended up using a basic commercial vest pattern to start my canvas mock up.

Then I pulled out my book, Pattern Making for Fashion Design, for the peplum circle. It has this wonderful measurement chart for full, half, and quarter circle skirts. It's so easy to use.

This is the mock up front view after the first fitting. A friend of mine is making herself a Victorian ball gown and we traded fitting time. I love asymmetrical hems.

Back view of vest. Lots of pins.

The chalk line below is one side of my new waistline for the peplum.

This is the full peplum skirt pattern. The angle of the image makes the two sides look the same size. However, the far side is twice as long as the foreground side. My bed served as cutting table. The paper pattern just barely fit on the cutting board. I had to add a big pleat at center back to keep the fullness of the skirt while allowing the center front points to hang vertical. Function becomes design.

My intention was to make the inside look as nice as the outside. I had to get creative in how I sewed the pieces together. With piping and lining and fabric that did not want to be turned inside out I had to sew half seams, partial linings and pieced piping to put it all together.

I ended up having to hand stitch the bodice lining to the vest top. The lining was also a wee bit tighter than planned. I fixed that by taking out the tiny back darts to let the lining be more fluid. The inside is not as pretty as intended but it is fully lined.

My mother made these awesome Chinese knot buttons.

The zipper was a special piece I had purchased years ago. Separating zipper with rainbow metal teeth. It needed a special garment to be placed in and this vest was it.

Finished front. There is handmade piping at the armscye, around the collar and down the center front.

Finished back.

Me in the full outfit with really big hair.

It's a little Star Trek, a little disco, a little Jetsons. All in all, a super fun design and construction project.

My Backstrap

The 2nd assignment from Laverne Waddington beginning backstrap weaving tutorial is to weave my own backstrap. Previous post showed a folded towel doing the job.

I was nervous about working on a wide piece (4+inches) so I decided to weave a slightly wider (2.5 inches) tape first. This photo show the beginning of the tape.

This is nearing the end of the warp. I used a heddle stick and a shed stick tied with a shoelace for my two sheds.

A closeup of the weaving. The two sheds created a distinct alternating bump which evens out when the warp is off the loom and has relaxed around the weft yarns.

Finished tape with fringe. I think I'm going to sew a zippered pouch with a rectangular fabric base. Now I was ready to weave a wider piece.

These are the yarns I chose for my backstrap. Plymouth Yarn Fantasy Naturale. It's what Laverne recommends for the project. It's going to be plain weave but with color stripes.

Warp is wound for my backstrap piece.

I used a small square warping board as I have yet to purchase individual pegs for winding straight warps. It worked well enough.

I got ambitious and wound a few warps. Some are 6 and 9 thread ready for complimentary pick up. The turqouiose one is for a really narrow half inch tape. The middle bundle is for the backstrap. I love how easily you can store ready-to-weave warps wrapped around lease sticks (dowels and pencils).

Again I made a heddle stick for one shed and a floating dowel tied with a shoelace for the second shed. I used a plastic ruler with planets on it for a beater sword as I have yet to buy a bigger one in wood. It's on the list to purchase. The ruler was handy because it made measuring for consistent width easy.

I had been anchoring the end of the loom on my TV stand. But found it creeping across the carpet as I pulled and beat with super firm tension on this warp. I needed more tension on the warp for this width. So I moved to anchoring my loom under my dining table. It was very stable. I did have to use a longer tie for the warp bar so I did not have to crouch under the table.

I didn't really like how the yarn colors were mixing as I wove. Not sure if the colors weren't just right or if the large worsted weight yarn was too bulky.

But when I was finished weaving and I saw the whole piece as one I fell in love.  I especially liked how the variegated yarn made a faux Ikat wave of color in the center stripe. Totally accidental with how I wound the warp.

I braided the yarn as per Laverne's instructions. I twisted some natural colored cotton crochet yarn into a cord for the end loops. Because I had color changes in the warp I had a number of knots at one end to weave into the braids. The other end had easy loops to braid with no knots.

My finished backstrap. I have used it and it is fabulous!

The GG Robe

I made a robe for my son Ian a few years ago. That story is told in this blog post. He wore that robe all the time. It kept him warm and toasty for longer than a kid's robe is usually able to. Well, it was finally time to make a new robe.

I took Ian to the fabric shop. We walked down the cotton aisle and the flannel aisle. He picked out 3 cotton fabrics and 1 cotton flannel and said he couldn't decide which was his favorite. Then he asked me to guess which one he wanted. I said "all four?" He said "YES!"

This is what he picked out. Flannel pizza and smooth cotton for the rest.

I know! Crazy right?!? I asked him if he was sure he wanted all of them in the same robe. "Definitely!" He told me exactly where each piece of fabric was to go.

He didn't want a tie so he picked out 2 buttons from my stash. Both are vintage. He liked the metal button because it had military stuff on it and the leather button looked like wood.

Putting all these pieces together...this is the result...I especially like the attitude!

Front view. The hard alcohol print is for dad to enjoy. And the money print gave him buying power.

Back view. He especially liked the pixelated bomb in the print.

 Inside view. The flannel is warm, cozy and yummy.

He calls it his Gangster Gaming robe. AKA, The GG Robe. Everything you need to have a good time...food, drink, games and money. Everything an 11-year old desires.

Side note: I did knit his house socks too. I wrote about his dad's pair of socks in this post. Same yarn, same pattern. I made myself a pair, too. Then I got over my sock craze.

My New Obsession

My new obsession is backstrap weaving.

One of my guild mates weaves on a backstrap at most of our demonstrations and I lurk. I've been following Laverne Waddington's blog for about a year. I have an interest in all things weaving already. Backstrap weaving seems to be the next logical method to explore. It seems so basic and yet so full of variety and technique. It makes me feel connected to history in the same way spinning fiber does. Backstrap weaving is a visceral and tangible connection to humanity and civilization. Where would we be if early peoples had not figured out how to twist fiber into yarn and make clothing with it?!?

Anyway, with help from my best friend and fiber arts enabler, Kathleen, I wove my first tape in November. I'd watched Laverne's intro to weaving lessons online but it was really great to have someone show me in person.

My 3 color warp using 3/2 pearl cotton. I set it up using the complimentary method with 2 colors for pick up potential.

Wrapping my string heddles around my fingers.

Tying off my string heddle bundle.

With a couple of cardboard spacers in place I started weaving. Using my fingers the way Laverne describes on a narrow warp, I really had to work hard figuring out how to manage my body to get consistent tension. I am sitting in a chair here.

A close up of the tape.

I was so obsessed I finished the next day. The tape has no pick up pattern. I just loved how the two colors alternated so cleanly. I had to refer back to Laverne's blog to see how she finished tapes with fringe.

Close up of finished tape.

 I wound another warp almost immediately and finished it within the week.

 Close up of my second tape.

Here is the set up in front of my TV shelving. I attached a clamp on the edge. Folded a towel to use as a backstrap. I even used a bar to do the roll up of finished tape.

My son took this slightly blurry picture of me. I moved to sitting on the floor when I got home from Kathleen's. I found it more comfortable. I can sit in Dandasana (yoga pose) and work my legs! The floor is useful as a work surface too to hold my tools as I weave.

I love the simplicity of the loom being my body and an anchor point. I can hardly wait to start the next warp.

Stuff I Did While On Vacation

At first I thought I wasn't doing much crafting. No real focus. Then I catalogued what I did during the week of Thanksgiving. Turns out I was really productive.

1. Made a new bath robe for my son. Super funny combination of fabrics.

2. Crocheted a small coin purse inspired by something I saw on Pintrist.

3. With help from my friend, Kathleen, I dyed eight 4 oz. bundles of fiber in the crock pot.

4. She also helped me get started on my first backstrap weaving. I've been wanting to do something with a backstrap for a year now. I was so obsessed that I finished the tape the next day.

5. Dyed silk samples for a tie dye class I taught the next week.

6. I demoed how to spin a fun curly textured yarn from mohair locks with my Saturday Spinners.

All of these things will appear in more detailed posts in the coming weeks. Random photo: the big guy below is a resident at a spinner friend's home. He is just about as wide as the sidewalk.