Painted Shibori

I recently saw some lovely hand dyed shibori fabrics and was immediately in "lust" with them.  It reminded me that I my "someday" list had "try making shibori fabric with fabric paint rather than dye." Needless to say,  it had been on the list for some time, and I said "Okay, today is the day." Of course that extended to two or three days of experimentation.   

You should know that shibori takes a bit of preparation before you dye (or paint) it.  In one class I took the teacher suggested using rubber bands for the method I was using to help with the fabric compression. Other teachers suggest using twine.  So, I did some of both.  I started with the rubber bands because I couldn't remember where I had put my twine. Ha ha. Later I found the twine and used it for one of these.  I honestly can't tell which was which. 

 

Here are my resulting fabrics.  First is this green pieces, that was compressed a bit too tightly at one end. That resulted in some white spaces remaining. 

 

Next up is a piece that was pre-dyed with some purple and blue. However, most of the fabric was still white and I was planning to over-dye it, so it was perfect for this experiment. For this one the cloth was dampened prior to painting. 

I really love the colors peeking through. 

Next up is a piece on which I decided to use two color of paint.  Seeing all of the white, I can assure you that this was on dry cloth that was tightly compressed.  The paint doesn't bleed into the compressed fabric when it is dry and nicely compressed. 

I love the effect of the two colors both applied while the cloth was compressed.

The next piece looks a bit disappointing compared to the previous one.  The lighting wasn't good for this photo.  The fabric is actually while with just the blue paint on it.  This will work well for water or maybe a distant forest if it is turned ninety degrees. 

Overall, I would say that my experiment was a success for the most part.  I will certainly try doing more of this type of painted shibori.  I think any of them would work well as a "filler block" or part of a pieced block.  The should also work well in art quilting if I find the right place for them.

Until Next Time,  

Stay Creative 

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