I have been working on a rayon jacket for a custom order. I had already dyed the fabric a couple of years ago. My client really liked the fabric, but we both thought it needed a bit of embellishment. So I cut out the individual pattern pieces for the jacket and set to work using some iridescent Profab paint from Pro Chemical and Dye Co. and some Shiva Paintstiks.
I started out using a simple stamp of a square that I made with craft foam using Probrite paint in Old Rose.
Then I decided that the cloth really needed some texture. So I used a piece of this textured cloth that I
purchased a while back for just this purpose. I bought it in a large fabric store called Osgood's Textile that is located in Springfield, MA. I don't know what its intended purpose is, but it works great as a rubbing plate.
You can see it on the left of this photo. It has a kind of honey-comb design. I used the silver and pewter iridescent Shiva Paintstiks with the honey-comb stuff under the fabric and rubbed with the Paintstiks ontop. I moved the honey-comb stuff around so the design wouldn't have a regular pattern. This helps the viewer's eye travel around the piece without getting stuck on a rigid grid pattern.
I rubbed the paintstiks right over the painted squares. But even after all of that, I felt that the fabric still needed a bit more of something that would pop. So I used my square stencil and worked with the iridescent dark blue Paintstik right over the painted Old Rose colored squares. I thought it would simply cover over the silver and pewter paintstiks I had previously applied, along with the Old Rose paint, but much to my surprise and delight the honey-comb pattern did not cover. It actually became even brighter! Only the paint covered.
I am sure it had something to do with the fact that I waited a couple of days for the initial honey-comb rubbing to set before adding the blue, but in any case, I am always thrilled when an old tool becomes new again!
I can imagine so many possibilities for this discovery. Especially since I have recently acquired a Cameo Silhouette stencil cutting machine because of a new obsession I have with layering stencils.
But more about that later! For now, I had better get back to work sewing this jacket together!
If you'd like to see my latest Art Journal entry click here.
My next couple of teaching gigs will be:
Textile Paint Extravaganza - Monday June 30 - Friday July 4 at the Fletcher Farm School for Arts and Crafts in Ludlow, VT
Batik Basics with Soy Wax and Textile Paints - Saturday July 12 and Sunday July 13 at A Notion to Quilt in Shelburne, MA