Chapter 6Preparing fabrics to dye

Having read through the chapter. I decided to make a resist to paint over a piece of cotton, so I mixed flour and water to create a simple paste and painted it quite thickly onto the fabric. I tried to take a picture of the process, not a particularly easy task!

Once this has dried completely I will scrunch it thoroughly in the hope it will look like elephant skin once dyed. We'll see

Next I stitched two pieces of fabric to create  Tritik Shibori pieces, one with straight running stitches and the other with zig zagged stitching. it will be interesting to see the results once the pieces are gathered up and the dye applied.

 

Next simple Arashi Shibori tied and ready for the dyes to be dripped on

 

various methods of tie dye

 

Nowhere locally stocks procion dyes so I am waiting for my mail order to arrive, then I can start dyeing. While looking at dyes on the internet I came across a textile artist called India Flint and was interested in her approach to dyes and dyeing. I don't think it would work for this project as we  have to focus on black and white, but I fancy having a go at her Eco dyeing. I have struggled in the past using commercial dyes as I often have bad allergic reactions to chemicals so her approach to dyeing could be a way for me to try gentler colouring methods.

 

 

India Flint with a large piece of eco dyed fabric.

 

detail from a piece by India Flint called Seven Sisters.