Module 5 Chapter 9

This chapter has a choice of sections to work from  - I chose section A, drawing on cling film and manipulating the image.

Photo 1 5 patterns on cling film, each approx A4 size, scanned in.  Apart from the wavy lines, the patterns are shapes taken from my research into needlelace designs.

The following photos show a group of scans of the individual pieces of cling film folded to make new patterns. 

Photo 2 Using the heart shape

Photo 3 Filled in triangles.  The blue pen turned out not to be very suitable for plastic and hadn’t fully dried – you can see on the right hand scan that it has left faint images when I unfolded it, giving another layer.

Photo 4 The curved triangle – less interesting so I only made one folded scan.

Photo 5 Drawing of  buttonhole filling – this gave really interesting effects, especially the way the lines hang out over the edges.

Photo 6 Wavy lines – some more interesting patterns

Photo 7 Two pieces folded together.

Now I had all these images scanned in, it was  time to play on the computer and add a bit of colour.

Photo 8 Layering up details from 3 of the scans in Paint Shop Pro and adjusting the opacity and blend modes.
 
Photo 9 As 8 but changing the blend mode to difference giving a negative image.

Photo 10 I took the unfolded buttonhole filling image and used the mesh brush to distort it, then added colour by copying as a transparent selection and placing over a coloured background.

Diploma Module 5 Chapter 8

This chapter is all about making lace with wrapped frames dipped into paper pulp.  I hadn’t made paper before (it wasn’t in the syllabus when I did C&G Part 1), so Sian sent me some notes to get me started.  First, I had a play making up some pulp from old sketchbook pages (I always seem to have a collection of odd sheets removed when the books get too fat or where something unwanted has soaked through) and made a few trial sheets.  I only wanted small pieces, about 6” square, so I used plastic canvas as a mesh and a foil baking tray for the water and pulp.
Photo 1 Trial sheets of paper.  I added lots of snippets of dyed scrim and threads and tried getting different thicknesses of paper and making holes.

Photo 1

Now moving onto the real work of the chapter.  I had been wondering what to use for frames that wouldn’t be too big  - I have one small square wooden frame and of course lots of hoops, but wrapping circular objects sounds fiddly – and then had a eureka moment when I remembered there is a big wooden chest of Meccano in my bedroom.  It is one of those things that is too big and heavy to carry up to the loft and it has been sitting there so long it has become invisible.  As well as being convenient it fits in nicely with my theme.

Photo 2 This is buttonhole filling worked very loosely and dipped in the pulp – this is the only sample I cut off the frame.  You can see there must have been a bit of colour in the pulp, I think this came off one of the fabric scraps you will see further down.  I like the scrunchy feel of the paper on this.

Photo 2

Photo 3 This is the one that didn’t work very well – scrim stretched across a wooden frame and holes cut before being dipped in the pulp.  The pulp didn’t want to stick at all in the middle and now it is dry, the edges are coming away too.

Photo 3

Photo 4 The first Meccano frame, this is just 4 flat bars braced with corner pieces.  I wrapped threads and fabric around the frame and then stitched over to make a grid relating to the needlelace designs from the research.  The centre is wrapped with a scrap of silk.  All the fabric scraps used in this chapter are leftovers from the module 1 colour study.

Photo 4

I originally intended to cut the samples off the frames, but I like them as they are.  The back of this one is interesting too and gives a different mood, Photo 5 below.  I like the embossed effect of the threads.

Photo 5

Photo 6 Circles are easy when there are holes in the edge.  I added a few random bits to this one, a broken chain link and rusty washers, and some buttonhole fillings when the paper had dried.

Photo 6

Photo 7 Again, the back is interesting.  The depth of the frame means there is a space between the layers and the pulp stretches across adding extra patterns.

Photo 7

Photos 8 and 9 – Front and Back This is my favourite one. It is about 15cm tall. The frame is made from bars with right angled ends so there is a gap of about a centimetre between the front and the back; in places, the pulp has joined across the void.  As before, wrapped with fabric and threads and buttonhole fillings added afterwards on both sides.  On one side, I have draped a buttonhole bar – I was thinking of referencing the contrast in needllaces of the trailing designs over a rigid grid.  I am not sure if it looks quite right at the moment with just one, so I may add some more.

Photo 8

Photo 9

I had all the samples grouped standing on edge on a windowsill to dry and thought it looked a lot like my photos of the old Sevalco plant (see this post from chapter 2), and also made me think of the pictures I found of lace in architecture.  So for my resolved samples, I would like to use the idea of making a set of these frames using paper, silk paper and solubles to create the layers.  I can experiment with the Meccano shapes to include additional layers, make them deeper (eg a cube or other 3d form) and set layers at an angle. I am mindful of not wanting to repeat what I did in module 1, so will be aiming for the layers to be more lacelike (and less like girders).
 
I started chapter 9 while waiting for these samples to dry, but I will post that next time when there is more to show.

Module 5 Chapter 7

Exploring ideas for pockets.

Photo 1 A3 sheet of notes/ sketches of different kinds of pockets.

I wanted to follow on with my theme of machinery, so for the following samples I dismantled an old remote control that was destined for the recycling bin, and used the pockets to contain the numbers and control buttons.  I also photographed a circuit board and printed it in black and white onto an acetate sheet to make some of the pockets.  The photos include a 2p coin for scale.
Photo 2 A square of organza folded and held in place with clock hands.

Photo 3 Clear PVC cut and sealed into pouches with a hot stencil cutter.

Photo 4  Printed acetate sewn into a humbug (or teabag) shape.

Photos 5 and 6 This pocket was based on little clamshell purses that open when you squeeze the ends together.  This one contains some metal shavings donated by a friend’s husband.  It wasn’t intentional, but it does make it look like an interesting seedhead – perhaps I should make a bouquet.

Module 5, Chapters 5 and 6.

I have got a bit behind writing up what I have been doing, so this is a catch up session.
Photo 1 Following Sian’s suggestion, I added some more slashing to the centre of the last sample from chapter 4.

Chapter 5 was making holes and marks using devore paste.  I carried on with the same shapes used in chapter 4 on fabrics bought from Whaleys.  This is new to me so the results were a bit hit and miss.  All the samples started off white but some were dyed afterwards to see the effect more clearly.  The colour scheme is taken from the work in module 1.
Photo 2 First attempt – using cut paper stencils on silk/viscose velvet. As you can see, it was a bit messy and uneven as the paste escaped around the stencil..

Photo 3 I cut some larger paper masks and used them to screenprint the devore paste for the following samples to get more control.

Photo 4 Silk/viscose velvet – much clearer shapes.

Photo 5 same design on silk/viscose georgette  - I love the soft transparency created on this fabric.

Photo 6 Using the other mask on velvet – still a bit patchy but I like the little spots.

Photo 7 Using stitch on georgette as a resist to the paste, before applying.

Photo 8 And after – the stitched area is top right.

I also tried using the paste on cotton fabrics -  it either made no mark at all or, in the case of organdie, the sample disintegrated completely, so I haven’t repeated those trials.

Photo 9 On to chapter 6, making silk paper.  To get started, I pulled out the samples made at summer school with Sian some years ago, to remind myself what I did then.  These were mostly made with a silk hanky as a base and variously incorporate other silk fibres, pieces of silk cocoons, some glittery strands, knitting yarn and loose threads. They are all quite stiff and one has been pulled into holes while wet (this one did not use a hanky).

Photo 10 Two more of these samples – shaped into 3d forms while still wet. the one on the left is very smooth and shiny while the one on the right includes hemp and sisal with lots of spiky ends sticking out.

Photo 11 and 12 I used a bag of mixed silk fibres to try making samples that are less stiff/crunchy, more like felt.  Photo 11 shows a vey thin layer pulled into holes and photo 12 is thicker.  Both are soft and flexible a seem to be reasonably robust although the thicker one needed more medium as some of the fibres have shed.  By the way, they are green because that was a bag of bits I happened to have ready. 

Photo 13 A thick piece made from silk tops and embossed with the string block used before then rubbed with oil pastels. Although thick, it is still much softer and more flexible than the earlier samples as are all the following ones, which I put down to using a different medium.

Photo 14 Throwsters waste trapped between two layers of a silk hanky – this was cut up to add to other pieces.

Photos 15 and 16 Three samples on the same theme, getting progressively more transparent.  On the left in photo 15, layers of silk tops and added shapes cut from the sample in photo 14.  On the right, the same but using a layer of silk hanky.

Below, photo 16, I separated out a very thin layer from the hanky and used shapes cut from an old sample that incorporated sisal.  Finally, I added some loose, loopy stitches.

Photo 17 The same sample against a window to show up the shapes more clearly.

Photo 18 I used the leftover cut out centres and the edges of the silk hanky to make this flower as a reference to the Marc Jacobs dress on this sheet of cuttings.