Shibori Water : Serendipity and the Art of the Quilt

Shibori Water

May 7, 2008 4:38PM | Filed Under Technique:Dyeing, Twelve by Twelve |

As longtime readers will know, I have had mixed results with shibori in the past. However, once again, a Twelve by Twelve theme has me reaching for my dyes and resists. This time my quest is water.

As I pulled the fabric off the PVC pipe and bottle, I was excited by the watery effect that unfolded. Alas, subsequent washing and rinsing removed all the drama and I was left with two rather boring pieces of fabric.

There are many possible causes for these disappointing results - I didn’t prewash my pima cottons; I used old mixed dye solutions; the weather was coolish; and I didn’t leave the fabrics to batch for very long. The centre two pieces show the potential of this technique and I decided to try again with some fresh dye solutions. Come back and look tomorrow.

6 Comments

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Brenda,

I love the finished colour, but can see with the potential of colour definition you would be disappoitned - better luck tomorrow.

Judy.

Comment by Judy — May 7, 2008 5:05 PM#
How sad that all that gorgeous shibori washed away. I’m glad you’re going to re-do it though — it’s very watery.

Comment by Kristin L — May 7, 2008 5:09 PM#
This doesn’t look very brown and orange!

Comment by helen Conway — May 7, 2008 9:51 PM#
The middle pictures look like water when you are looking from outside the water. The finished fabric looks like you’re on the bottom of the body of water, looking up at the surface. That shibori “texture” is wonderful so I hope it will stick in the next batch.

Comment by Leslie — May 7, 2008 11:26 PM#
While I love the finished pieces I can see your point. Lovely colors. I can’t wait to see the next result … and (begging here) a little more info on the process … I’d love to try this myself sometime..

Comment by Jody — May 7, 2008 11:36 PM#
The unwashed pieces are gorgeous, and the washed ones are not that bad.
I’m sure the next try will be better!

Comment by Francoise — May 8, 2008 12:32 AM#

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