Fiberart For a Cause Sale

If you want some wonderful fiber art and help a great cause at the same time take a look at the Fiberart for a Cause Collage Mania web site. While I did not donate a collage this year there are several I have my eye on. So, pour a cup of tea, sit back and take a look at all the wonderful fiber collages that were donated. Don't forget to have a pen & piece of paper by your side to jot down your favorites!

All 384 fiber collages donated by 161 generous artists are now available for
your viewing here:

http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/CM2009Collages1.html

Collage Mania, a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society, opens May 5
with a minimum donation of $80 for each artwork and continues May 6 and 7
when the donation minimum drops to $40.

Please read over the directions on how to participate in Collage Mania. NOW
is the time to send me a note if you need special accommodations in any way.
Once Collage Mania starts it will be wild and crazy as all artwork is
available on a first-come/first-serve basis.

All donations for artwork are made directly to the ACS through Fiberart For
A Cause. Patrons receive an immediate electronic receipt from the ACS.

Our goal for this final Fiberart For A Cause fundraiser is at least $20,000.
We have already donated over $170,000.

A Taste of Shibori

I am presenting a workshop this weekend on Shibori. Only one day from 10-3 so that is why it is just a taste - I think of it like eating lunch with the free tastings at Costco- they are generous and tasty but not quite a full meal. But, that's all we have time for.

I have been doing various forms of shibori since 1998. Using the book Shibori, The Inventive Art of Japanese Shaped Resist Dyeing by Yoshiki Wada, Mary Kellogg Rice & Jane Barton (which is THE definitive book) I made samples of every technique and kept excellent records. So, I have been having fun going through them. Amazing the information I took away the last time and what I utilized. There was SO much information in that book I think I absorbed and used only a fraction. That fraction has served me well, but it is nice to visit 'my old friends'.

I especially forgot how much I enjoy stitching designs. Ironically, loom shibori was created by Catherine Ellis because she didn't enjoy the stitching process and wanted to recreate the idea on her loom. But, I find it meditative - and a lot easier to carry around! The designs that can be created are endless and beautiful. One of the major kimono pieces I created used strips of 4" wide silk matka - each of which had a different stitched design. My inspiration for this came from an exhibition in Rochester, MI on Japanese Indigo dyeing. One of the kimono's they had was a salesman's sample. Each strip had a different design that the shibori house could recreate- all in different techniques. Now that I am writing this I remember how much I enjoyed carting the strips around and having something to pull out of my purse when those odd moments of idleness occurred. Maybe it's time for another.......

Three Creative Links I Like

Thought I might share a few links that have been passed my way recently.

1. Bruno's Art Sculpture Garden
http://sz0023.ev.mail.comcast.net/service/home/~/BrunosArt%26SculptureGarden.pps?auth=co&loc=en_US&id=1283&part=2

This was one of my must sees when I go on that trip to Australia - you know the trip I want to go on but can't swing quite yet but someday... Well, another lesson on why you should make sure you do things when you can - on February 7 there was a devastating wild fire there and yes, this garden was affected. Bruno and his family are safe and report that they are rebuilding the garden. He created a garden path with wonderful wood sculptures at every turn. Some will make you laugh, others are poignant and some will make you tear up ever so slightly.
Meanwhile, click on the link above, toggle it to the full screen and enjoy. When I need a quick break from my everyday I find this link to be quite refreshing.

2. Elizabeth Gilbert on Creativity
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html

I have been a fan of Elizabeth Gilbert since I read "Eat, Pray, Love". I enjoyed reading the book so much I requested as a holiday gift the audio of the book so that I could listen to the words read by author herself. I have since read another book and continue to follow her. This is a 20 minute lecture she gave talking about nurturing the creative spark we all have. Well worth a listen, but I will warn you that there are many intriguing links to other talks on similar subjects that can keep you going.....

3. You Are Worth the Time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EaUb4zk0Ow

The shortest of the 3, this is a 7 minute YouTube video that reminds us that no matter what is going on in our lives we are worth taking time to honor our creative muses.

Hope you enjoy these links!

More Loom Shibori....Or the sister is off the loom

Putting a special warp on the loom is always an exciting experience. I like to make at least 2 items per warp and showed the first half of this warp in an earlier post:

Handwoven Loom Controlled Shibori

This week I finished weaving the last 5 yards which I lovingly call 'her sister'. Right now, she is destined to become another shorter kimono. This time I went a bit color crazy with the middle section and most every color is well represented. I enjoy going from the somewhat quiet and contemplative project to one that is more vibrant. To make it even more exciting and I decided to vary the spacing between pull cords : I would throw 6, 9 or 12 shots in between merely depending on my mood. I suspect that after pulling, painting and discharging the shibori 'flames' will look pretty much the same to most people. But, it made for more interesting weaving and reminded me how much I enjoy weaving painted warp with black weft. Perhaps I will follow up by painting the entire warp, not just the middle.

Why Are You Here? A Favor Requested

No, I don't mean that in a larger, spiritual sense. I mean it literally. I have taken a personal vow to keep up with my blog by writing at least once a week. I see the blog as a way to communicate about my artistic process and everything that goes with that. But, I am having trouble figuring out WHAT to write about. So far, I have written about my shows, workshops and exhibits I attended, a tutorial & new work. I enjoyed writing about all of these. I am curious though about what YOU are looking for when you click on my blog. Would you like more tutorials? Or how about seeing experiments? Or perhaps you feel there is a good mix and I should just keep it up and post more often.

If you could leave a comment for me I would appreciate it!

Thanks, Debbi

Handwoven Loom Controlled Shibori

Sometimes a customer likes my work, but wants something different. I welcome these challenges - although at times they seem daunting. A customer saw my new silk kimono's and really liked them, but as a petite she needed a different size. She also wanted it to be long and mainly black. Here is the one she tried on :

This one was done entirely with Procion dyes, but the only way to really get a good black on silk is with Acid dyes. So, that is why I decided to use Lanset dyes for the middle warp painted section. I wrote about this last week:
http://artweardesign.blogspot.com/2009/04/warp-painting-with-lanaset-dyes-in-10.html
From there I warped the loom as normal. I had 10" of hand dyed black, 10" warp painted, and 14" of hand dyed black (the extra 4" was to create a band to go on the front center). I used a monks belt threading. After every 12 shots of plain weave in a hand dyed black silk weft I raised either shafts 1-2 or 3-4 and put in a 'junk' weft.

After weaving 5 yards I cut it off the loom and pulled the junk weft tightly and tied it off. The warp (a silk noil from Treenway silks) compressed from 34" on the loom to 4" pulled tightly. In the original kimono, I used thickened dye to 'paint' the top of the compressed fabric - each side got a different color. Because I used dye both colors showed on the fabric. But, using the black any dye I used would be totally lost. Therefore, I decided to use paint and discharge techniques. I lightly painted one side with red fabric paint. The other side I used discharge paste which I steamed. This proved a wee bit trickier than I thought. Naturally, the sample was perfect-but I don't have a professional steamer and the fabric took up most of my steam pot. The paste was quite stubborn in removing the dye. After the first try- with minor success- I repainted the discharge paste on half of the cloth and steamed that. Then I did the other half. This proved to work a bit better. If I were to do more of this, though I definitely would need a bigger steamer.



I never put just one project on the loom - so there is another 5 yards waiting to be woven off. It is also black, warp painted and black. I haven't decided what I want to do with the shibori bits yet, though. I just got some shimmer paints from Pro Chem that I am itching to try, so some of them might just sneak into the next piece.



This technique was created by Catherine Ellis and she graciously shared her ideas with us in a book: Woven Shibori. If you are interested in this technique, I highly suggest adding this book to your collection. I, personally, am looking forward to exploring other ideas on my new (to me) 8 harness loom!

Kimono as Art Exhibit - Canton, Ohio - Eye Candy for Fiber Artists!

I can't think of a better birthday present than the one my husband gave me this year - a trip to Canton, Ohio (a 4 hr. drive each way) to see the Kimono as Art - The Landscapes of Itchiku Kubota Exhibit. All I can say is if you even think you might like it - GO! It will only be there until April 26 and who know when or where it will be again?

SOME HISTORY:

In 1937, as a young artist, Itchiku saw a piece of 350 year old fabric in a museum that fascinated him so much he studied it for hours trying to figure out how it was done. It was shibori but it was different -more magnificent than the anything he had ever seen. The technique was called Tsujigahana, but the directions had been lost in time. As with most of us, life got in the way of artistic exploration. He married and was creating kimonos for a living. Then the war. Even as a POW in Siberia he was couldn't shake his memory. When he returned to Tokyo in 1951 he was raising his family and his kimono business began flourishing. But that little scrap of fabric still eluded him.

Then in 1977 - when he was 60 years old - he finally achieved what he considered to be an equivalent piece of fabric. He named his interpretation "Itchiku Tsujigahana" and spent the rest of his life working on his artistic vision of creating kimono's depicting the changing landscape in the four seasons. He fully expected to live to be 120 to realize his full vision (he had plans after the landscapes of creating the universe), but left us in 2003 at the age of 86. The kimono's he left behind are magical.

THE EXHIBIT

Starting with a good example of the work that goes into shibori as well as some fabric to touch the exhibit had a nice 15 minute or so movie depicting Itchiku and his exhibit that was in the Smithsonian over a decade ago.

Then on to the kimono's:

Itchiku wanted the viewer to have a personal experience with his work and the exhibit was generous as the viewer is not hampered by glass between you and the kimono. While, naturally, there is no touching you can bend over and look- getting to within a foot of the fabric to really see it up close! The first half of the exhibit had about 10 different kimono's to enjoy.

But, it was the next part that was so delicious words fail to describe how delightful. You enter the long rectangular room. In a 'U' shape on three sides are 8' tall kimonos arranged cuff to cuff in such a way that they depict one continuous scene - starting with the mountains in the fall and ending with winter. He wanted to do all 4 seasons, but with each kimono taking up to a year to produce time took it's toll. Standing in the middle was a spiritual experience - the majesty of the project and the mastery of the execution was enough to take your breath away. Even people who had no clue how much work went into each kimono were taken aback. You can get some feel for this in this YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rd6pixh7m2s&feature=PlayList&p=AF72090841EADF51&index=0

So, if you are even thinking this might be a good exhibit to attend , I can pretty well assure you that it will not disappoint.

For a different look at this exhibit here is another blog I found:

http://creativityjourney.blogspot.com/2009/04/kimono-as-art-landscapes-of-itchiku.html

The link to the museum exhibit complete with pictures to whet your appetite and all that stuff you need to know to go (hours, location etc.):

http://kimonoexhibit.com/exhibit.htm

Now, all I need to do is to take a trip to Japan and see the exhibit the way it was truly meant to be seen - at the museum that Itchiku built in the woods for his kimono's!

Warp Painting with Lanaset Dyes in 10 Easy Steps!

First I want to say: OBSERVE ALL SAFETY PRECAUTIONS - ie. no eating or drinking, use a mask to make the dyes, wear old clothes and rubber gloves.....

1. Wind your warp as usual. Mark every inch or so of the warp (depending on the design you are trying to achieve). I like to use tyvek squares marked with numbers tied to one end of the warp

2. Wash your warp using a drop of synthrapol - make sure you have protected the warp with plenty of ties

3. Make your soak bucket. I add 105 g citric acid to 4L (1 gallon) of water. I prefer citric acid to vinegar because of the smell (citric acid has none)

4. Put your warp in the soak bucket for at least 1/2 hour.

5. Mix your dyes - I like to use 5g/250ml water- that is I mix 5 grams of dye in 250 milliliters of water.

6. Lay out some plastic wrap on your table. Have your soak bucket at one end. Pull your warp out and lay it on the plastic wrap in order.

7. NOW THE FUN PART! Using a paint brush ( I like the foam ones) - paint your warp . I like to let serendipity take over at this point. The most important thing to do is make sure the underside warp is painted also - you may have to flip it over and check. You may also have to mop up any excess dye - I like to use cloth that I can process later to create something beautiful instead of paper towels.

8. As you continue to paint lay more plastic wrap on top of your warp - either a new layer or fold the sides in on top - the important thing is to keep the warp moist at this point. Roll it up as you go and pull out new warp to paint until you are done.

9. I let the entire bundle rest for about 1/2 hr or so - it can rest longer, but that is the minimum.

10.Then I place it in a steam basket and put into a pot of water- making sure it never touches the water and steam for 30 minutes. I let it rest again until it reaches room temp (this is the tough time to wait and see) and ***NOW FOR THE MAGIC *** unwrap - it's like a birthday present every time!

Complex Cloth Workshop

Earlier this month I was privlaged to attend the Complex Cloth workshop in San Antonio hosted by Jane Dunneworld at her studio. I was really a last minute decision as I came home from the cruise with a couple of dollars in my pocket and my husband was scheduled for a business trip the same week. By the time I made all the arrangements I had less than a week to get everything together. Luckily, I had most of the supplies already, so no problem there.

I anticipated the first part of the week would be devoted to dye, color theory, etc. Since I have my Certificate of Excellence in Dyeing, I figured I would sail through these days and the last days would be the most exciting.

Just goes to show you how anticipation can be so wrong. Of course, Jane did start with dyeing, but we quickly moved on from there. She emphasized making our own tools to create designs on the cloth. We were soon carving soap erasers. Here are some of my shapesThen the real fun began! Using discharge techniques, overdyeing, silkscreens, and other techniques we decorated our samples. For me, this was the part where food and other necessities of life became secondary. Where I look at the clock, and then glance at it a few minutes later only to find that several hours have gone by! Here are some of the samples that I came up with in the class:

This is a close up of one corner of a sample. It has been dyed twice, bleached out with a stamp, stamped with blue paint and hand painted some of the trails made by the stamp.

Some more of my samples. These are not quite done - but this is the last day so I will have to finish them at home.

I should have known what a wonderful, moving experience this week was to be as I walked into Jane's studio:

Beautiful artcloth everywhere!!!! Who couldn't be inspired ? True, they were getting ready for a show / studio walk, but it was quite magical to see this as my first exposure to what lay ahead. Most of this work was produced by other area (lucky) artists who have worked with Jane over the years. And the studio space was wonderful. There were 9 of us in the class and we each got our own table with several tables left over for other needs. There were even 2 tables for lunch!

It really was quite a treat to have all that space!!! She even had a library corner with chairs for the lecture / critique time. The over stuffed chairs were upholstered with hand decorated velveteen!

All in all it was a wonderful week. Jane is an excellent teacher, very encouraging but also is able to lead you to think for yourself. The most suprising thing that came out of the week was the level of mindful thinking that came out of it. Everyone was there for a purpose, mostly because they were searching for a piece of their artistic self (like me) and was very supportive of the others.

Mermaid Cruise

Went on a cruise January 12-19 with a group of women brought together by Rebecca Floeter a.k.a. "The Mermaid Queen" on Ebay. She has been selling clothes to what she calls 'mermaids' for years. In her words : "I am dedicated to the Mermaid Archetype who holds the pathos and mythos of the Goddess Aphrodite and the Magdalene Archetype. The Mermaid holds the power of transformation for love, death, life and inspiration. I believe we dress who we are from the inside out...so please join me in celebrating your mermaid diva-ness!". If you are in the plus sized category and enjoy funky and beautiful clothing look her up (Ebay name: beccaben).

Anyway, there were 74 women all of whom were interested in artwear clothing, Ebay and transforming their lives. Included in the cruise were classes on Ebay selling, Selling as an Artist, Feng Shui, Life Mapping and also a shaman by the name of Wendy Luckey (http://wendyluckey.com/cms/home) who offered both group and private readings. I participated in both of these and I can tell you that they were powerfully transforming! Oh yeah, and it worked with a couple of enlightened men, too! Probably one of the most interesting weeks of my life.

One of the highlights of the cruise (at least for me) was an artist trunk show. Along for the ride were Steel Pony (http://www.steelpony.com/), HVC Byrd, Amy Brill and about 6 other people who created their own artwear or jewelry. The ship gave us the uppermost bar for this venue - the one overlooking the ocean. Very surrealistic and gorgeous - I really love the ocean. When we came up we just staked out a spot and put our stuff out. Only lasted 2 hours - but it was a good 2 hours. First time I ever went on a vacation and came home with lighter suitcases!

Really got to know many of these women quite well and I feel lucky to have found this opportunity. Everyone went for a slightly different reason and many of us are keeping in contact. Rebecca is planning another cruise next April - this one goes to Belize! I have always wanted to go there. And there are Mayan ruins on this cruise. That is something I have always wanted to see, so I am planning on going on this one too!

Snow Dyeing

Can't believe how long it has been ! But, I am going to give this a try again if for no other reason than to document the experiments I have been doing lately.

Last weeks experiment is snow dyeing. I have been reading about it on my lists lately, and since I am not a natural snow lover, thought it might be nice to have some good use for the stuff. I also needed something for my Designworks group with the theme 'nature'.

So, I presoaked a yard of cotton fabric and let it dry. Then I left for a week. So, when I came back I soaked it in soda ash again and layed it out in the snow. I squirted dye all over using 3 colors, a mocha brown, butterscotch and a green. I piled some snow on top and squirted indigo on top. Looked pretty colorful sitting in the snow.

I left it for 2 hours in about 35 degree weather. It looked like most of the blue had absorbed into the cloth.

Then I brought it inside and nuked it for 4 minutes. I was hoping that would help the dye set, but in my heart I knew better. After washing, I lost much of the color. In the end it is an interesting piece, but I would rather not snow (we are in the middle of a big storm right now - all the weather people are SO giddy).

Pretty, but not interesting enough. I will be cutting this up to give everyone a piece. So I stamped and stenciled some leaves, dragonflies and some funny little prehistoric looking bird.

Hard to believe that all these pictures are the same fabric. In the end I still think I could have achieved simular results without standing in the snow, but it was interesting.

Ann Arbor Art Fair

Well, another AA Art Fair is done. It was a very interesting show. The first two days were hot and humid, but the last two were perfect. I debuted my new Twist Wrap and was very happy with everyone's reaction. I especially like seeing it on so many different people. And many people had ideas for how it could be worn. I haven't had time to professionally have it photographed, but it is the first two racks of silks. I have made it in silk embroidered chiffon, silk charmeuse and raw silk. I look forward to exploring other fabrics and am considering a handwoven one.


Ann Arbor Art Fair is full of interesting events and people. This year Mother Nature gave us a Sun Dog. I don't remember seeing one before. There seemed to be a full circle rainbow around the sun and a 'second sun'. The inner core was darker than the sky. A customer said it was a sailors term. That made sense since there was a restuarant that my parents used to frequent by that name and the owner was an avid sailor. No one was sure if it was considered a good sign or a bad one, so we decided it was a good sign.






Another great thing that came our way was the annual visit from Robert. He makes the most wonderful costumes, puts on roller skates or 6" high boots (added onto his 6' + frame) and takes a walk down Main Street. He doesn't get very far, though. I have never seen so many camera phones! He always stops to talk to us and we look forward to his visit. The hours at the fair are quite long and his visit is a brief vacation. Thanks Robert.

Relay For Life Walk

This weekend is the local Relay for Life Walk. It is a 24 hr walk to benifit the American Cancer Society. It will take place at Walled Lake Middle School on the track field. Lots of other activities, too. Pizza, DJ's, survivor and caregiver laps and at dusk they light hundreds of decorated luminarias. For $10 you 'buy' a white paper bag and decorate it. Most people dedicate their bag to a certain person. I bought one, but couldn't decide how I wanted to decorate it. I finally decided to make one dedicated to all who put up a good fight. I will be there walking at midnight, so if you have some extra time drop by!

Kalamazoo Show Report

What a beautiful day! Temps in the 70's, sunny with a slight breeze. Couldn't ask for a better day to spend in the park. Kalamazoo has a wonderful vibrant downtown area. There was a Do-Da parade with lots of imaginative floats (I could see parts of it from my booth and I got reports from people who were there). And there was music at the nearby band shell all day. Big Band, Bluegrass, Classical - they covered all tastes. Fifteen minutes before the 5:00 closing the heavens opened and a thunderstorm ended everything. Very dramatic closing! But, I will definitely look at this show again when deciding my yearly route.

I didn't get a chance to post pictures from last weeks dye time. But I did take one at the show. I just love the colors!

It's Dye Time!

OK- the last of the shawl coats and shrugs have been washed, sewn and ironed. Ready for sale. Now I move on to my silk dyeing of scarves, shrugs and tops. I love seeing the colors as they emerge from the dyebath. Then I need a few days to organize for the show. Hope to see you there!

First Show of the Season!

I have cut 50 yds. of cloth off the loom and washed/dried it. Now I need to get back to the sewing area and cut and sew my garments. My first show of the season is June 3 in Kalamazoo, MI. It is a nice show produced by the Art Museum that I haven't done for several years, so I am excited to return. If you want more information the URL is: http://www.kiarts.org/museum/art_fair.shtml

Measure time: How About LOVE?

For some reason, eblog wouldn't let me post this pic in the last message and it really is the whole point of the song.

The best way to measure time is LOVE. All kinds. I truly believe that we are put on this earth to love one another. Now, this sounds like an easy thing, but ultimately it is the hardest - especially with some people. But, the important thing is that we TRY.

This turned out to be an interesting study. Realizing mathematically how fast time is spent made it even more evident that the small petty things in life aren't really important. (again, easier said, but just keep trying).

Time Project : Seasons of Love

Been busy making stock, but last week the final project for my "Designworks" group was due. The topic for the year was "time", interpreted any way we wanted. After coming up with many ideas and rejecting them I shared my frustrations with my daughter and her friend. They suggested I use the song from 'Rent' titled 'Seasons of Love'. I liked that idea, but it took a few more weeks to come up with the idea of making an altered calendar using the lyrics. These are some of the pages:
The front cover with other pages peeking out

You can measure time in 'cups of coffee'

Or in measurements:'inches' or 'miles'

This was the most signifigant part to the lyrics for me. We only get 525,600 minutes every year. Only about half a million? But, do the math and that's what it is. Take off 1/3 for sleeping, more for the daily grooming (shower, hair etc), more for the daily working for money, more for the making and consuming of food, more for the daily upkeep of life (cleaning, repairs etc) and that leaves very little 'other' time. If nothing else can convince one to use that time wisely...................do the math!

First Post

I have decided to try my hand at this blogging thing as a way to have an art diary. I will try to post something I am working on at least once a week, and I welcome any constructive criticism.

Currently, I am trying to get ready for my first show of the year. I decided to branch out a bit and try for the Kalamazoo Art Fair the first weekend of June. I used to do this show and it is a nice one day show in a park. Since there is always that part of me that is sure I won't get in there was no big push to get stock done, but now there is. I have 50 yards of cream warp on the loom and am working on shawl coats and shrugs. So far I have woven 10 shawl coats and 5 shrugs. But of course, that is only the half of it. I still have to stabilize sew them, wash and dry, stitch them into form. So, there is still much work ahead. I hope to be able to stop once in a while and do some postcards. I figure if I can accomplish one or two a week I will have several to donate to FFAC.