The elements from the first studies that I choose to work with are:
1. Activated dye in print paste applied from a needle point bottle.
2. Scraping of applied dye as desired.
3. Discharge using Soft Scrub with bleach. Applying and scraping as done with dye.
I choose to work in a very straight forward way using Scarlet, Sun yellow and black dye (don't remember which one). I had a wonderful experience in the studio experimenting with this and after processing and curing the fabric I selected one piece of fabric that was approximately 18" x 24".
This is the piece I selected. I have been trying to work in a 12" x 12" format but I have decided that in some cases that is an arbitrary size and from this point forward I will choose to make the piece the size it needs to be but I will keep it small. I decided on the area I wanted to use in the piece, cut that from the fabric leaving myself some extra and then applied heavy stitching.
I used multi-colored rayon thread in several colorways. The stitching creates a wonderful texture and integrates the colors.
Previously I have finished the piece with just a zig-zag stitch but I decided to put a facing on this one as I haven't been so pleased with the zig-zag. The piece finished out to 14" x 14".
I am excited about the possibilities with this process and have several other pieces ready to take into completion so you will be seeing more work of this type. Yesterday I dyed the backing for a very large piece so I did it in the washing machine. While I sat there turning my machine on and off I re-read Ann Johnston's book Color by Design. Lots of interesting things to think about.
