Textile Surface Design on Vogue 1784

I'm continuing to use the fabrics I printed last time.  Every part of this process makes me happy, from printing to finished garment.  I love figuring out where to use the various pieces of cloth.  

Each piece is designed to have several elements so that one piece of cloth looks like you are using more fabrics than you actually use.  I've been studying with Pat Pauly for the last couple years, love her techniques.

Here I used three different fabrics, but it appears there are many more.  And it's stretching me to put fabrics together I wouldn't have tried before.

This last printing session I used more blue than I usually wear.  But I think combined with black and red (it reads pink when I screened it lighter) will make me pull it out of the closet more often.

This, again, is Marcy Tilton's pattern, V1784.  Third time I've made it.  This time I simplified the collar by omitting one pattern piece...after all, it normally used 5!  And I added a cuff in a different fabric.

It took me quite a while to figure out where all the fabrics would light since they were all very different.  

Stay tuned, the fun continues now that I've learned how to use Photoshop Elements to replicate pieces of cloth for Spoonflower.  I took a 3 month Pixeladies class online and boy are they great teachers. 

 I combined 3 different pieces of cloth to create the image below.

But mostly I've used one piece of cloth and worked on it in PTE to make a repeatable pattern.

I've printed three different fabrics so far.  I'm happy with all of them but the last one I got up the nerve to ordered enough fabric to make a tunic.  It was the first time I ordered Spoonflower's Cotton Spandex Jersey and I like it. Next time I'll try the Modern Jersey.

I've also tried their Signature Petal Cotton but it's a bit too heavy for my needs.  Wish they carried a lighter weight cotton.  I'm researching other companies that print on demand, there are several now.

California opens up tomorrow!  I'm looking forward to going into our local fabric store, Hart's Fabric without a mask!  If you haven't checked out their online store you need to.  They have so many great fabrics.  We're so lucky, here in Santa Cruz County, to have such a good fabric store.

That's all till I take pics of the tunic I made from the jersey.  I'm off to Diane Ericson's Design Outside The Lines in Ashland!  I'm so excited.  She is hosting Amy Nguyen, a textile and garment designer I've wanted to study with for years.

Thanks for dropping by!

 

Surface Design on V1274 Tunic

First, a bit of housekeeping.  As I mentioned last post, Blogger will not be allowing you to follow me by email, using their Feedburner link, after July.  So, I'm switching to Constant Contact as of this post.

If you follow this blog by email there is nothing you need to do.  You will continue to get this blog in your inbox, but it will be under the name gayleygirl and will be provided by Constant Contact instead of Feedburner.  In the email, there will be a clickable link to the post, just as before.

I have already sent out an announcement email to those of you who subscribe that way, letting you know of this change.  Hang in there with me while we see how this change shakes out.  I think it will work smoothly.

So, on to what's new.

My continuing obsession with surface design has been a life saver during COVID.  I took another 5 day class with Pat Pauly and continued printing for the following two weeks.

I produced a heck of a lot of cloth, got some new inspiration and tried a couple different techniques.  Here is a tunic made with Vogue 1274, one of my tried and true patterns.

Instead of screen printing I tried hand painting.  This is a beautiful Egyptian Cotton I got from Emma One Sock.  I can't fault the fabric, the dyes or anything other than my technique for the less than desirable outcome.  I'm not totally displeased with this but I sure learned a lot...mostly what not to do.

I was unhappy enough with the original design that I decided to add a block print I made last year.  It's the long black vertical lines of different circle shapes.  Think it helps a lot and I like the idea of mixing techniques.

I added a collar detail with a raw edged piece of lightweight cotton stripe and used the perfect buttons from my stash.  Yes, for once I actually had the right button for the job.

I have several new things to show you and will be posting more frequently, I hope.  Future subjects will include;

•  the Photoshop Elements classes I took over the winter with the Pixeladies and the images of my fabric I am creating in Photoshop and sending to Spoonflower to print
• my new career as a hat maker, having been taught by a wonderful Santa Fe hat maker how to replicate a straw visor I got in Tokyo 
• more clothes I've been making and a tunic I made using block prints, sashiko/boro techniques with vintage Japanese textiles.  

Now that things are opening up I'm re-inspired to start sewing clothes again.  I'm actually wearing makeup and dressing up again.

Enjoy this spring, we deserve it!