To my dyeing day No.2!!

Posted on April 24, 2017 by mollywilliams551

Two metres of wide fabric is a lot to dye!!

The first piece is very deep pink – all over liquid procion dye applied with a wide brush. I left the fabric covered with plastic sheet over night to get a really saturated colour.
Shibori dyed with liquid indigo coloured procion dye. Cured 22 hours

3. Brush painting in strong pink, orange, yellow and green and black procion dye paste. Cured 20 hours

I poured the black dye paste into a silk paint bottle with a fine nib and drew the black outlines of pattern onto the fabric and then added the other colours with a brush. It was very random and I just had to keep going not really knowing what the outcome would be. The main problem I had was to get the black dye paste to flow evenly from the paint bottle. The nib was a little to narrow and I think un-mixed dye particles clogged it easily – a lesson for next time.

The finished design is really experimental and unpolished but I will persevere!

Here are the finished fabrics ready to be made into jackets this week – with some extra embellishment:

To my dyeing day No. 1!

Posted on April 23, 2017 by mollywilliams551

Actually two dyeing days as I spent the first day experimenting with dye colours and techniques on small samples of white cotton fabric that had been pre-soaked in a solution of soda ash for 3 hours.

I am very lucky to have a great assistant for a few days – Carmen is a fashion photography student who is doing 20 hours work experience with me and her work is included in the following sample images.

Techniques:

Lino printing – with a thickened procion dye paste
Brush painting with both liquid procion dye and paste
Combining the two techniques

Dye samples covered with clingfilm to prevent drying and left to cure over night – 18 hours

The results are interesting as I have never used dyes like this before and, although the samples are rather rough and ready, there is potential. The lino print is not as good as I hoped – some lines are indistinct as it is difficult to apply the dye paste evenly. I find using a brush is the best method as it gives me better control over the dye placement than with a roller.

So tomorrow I will jump in to this wonderful world of colour and dye 6 meters of beautiful Ottoman Rib Viscose/cotton fabric to make three colourful fabrics for jackets:

Plain colour – a strong pink mixing a little scarlet not magenta dye powder
Shibori tie dye with indigo procion dye
Brush designs in three – four colours with Ikat patterns in mind.

References

Shibori

Dye painting

Ikat

Fabric printing project – preparation

Posted on April 17, 2017 by mollywilliams551

I have been making Lino prints ready to experiment printing on fabric with procion dyes with inspiration from Ikat woven fabric and Ottoman textile design

I have used fabric paints in the past however as these are pigment based the prints are stiff and change the nature and drape of the fabric. Dyes are permanent and do not affect the hand.

Chemical ingredients

Soda Ash (Sodium Carbonate) – to fix the dye
Water
Urea – increases the brightness and intensity of dyes
Sodium Alginate – to thicken the dye mixture to a print consistency
Procion dyes – I will start with 4 colours – magenta, royal blue and lemon yellow and black. With this selection I should be able to mix many different colours and tones.
Synthrasol – to remove any trace of dye in the final wash

Equipment

Safety: face mask, rubber gloves and heavy apron
Table – lined with cardboard and topped with a plastic cover
Large plastic jug
Large bucket
Plastic spoons
Wooden spoons
Glass jars to store the thickened dye
Paint brushes
Rollers
Lino prints
Prepared sticker for the fabric pieces
Log book
Camera

: © Molly Williams

Pre soak the fabric – I have bought fabric that is already prepared for dyeing and will soak this in a Soda Ash solution over night

Mix 3/4 cup Soda ash with 7 Litres water in a large bucket and stir until the soda has dissolved. Then add half the fabric and leave to soak.
Wring out the fabric and then spin in the washing machine to remove excess water. The fabric must remain wet for dyeing.

2. Mix the dye base for 1.5 metres fabric:

Put on the face mask, gloves and apron

Mix together in a large plastic jug:

4 cups warm water
3/4 cup urea
1 tbsp sodium alginate

Mix well with a whisk as the mixture blends and thickens. Divided the paste base into 4 glass jars.

3. Prepare the fabric

As I am experimenting at this stage I will cut the pre-soaked fabric and unsoaked fabric into 20cm squares and lay them across the prepared table.

4. Mixing the dyes

Face mask, gloves and apron on
Add 4 teaspoon of soda ash to the paste base and mix in well
Measure out 1/2 teaspoon of dye powder into a glass jar and add 1-2 teaspoons of water and mix to a paste – it is important not to add too much water and to mix the dye very well so that it has all been dissolved. Unmixed particles of dye will cause streaking on the fabric.

Repeat this process with the other 3 dye colours.

N.b. Once the dye has been mixed with the soda ash in the dye mixture the dye will have short shelf life – maximum 4 hours so my experiment will have to be completed in that time

Experiments

Use a soak and unsoaked piece of fabric for each experiment. First label the fabric with:

S – soaked
US – unsoaked
Technique
Start time
Completion time
Comments in log book

Techniques

a. Lino print
b. Brush strokes – wide and fine
c. Water colour – spraying extra water on the fabric to see how the paste behaves

: © Molly Williams

d. Stencilling
e. Printing with a range of shapes – leaves, pasta etc

Finishing

Leave 1/3 fabric pieces on the table for 90 minutes before washing.
Leave 1/3 fabric pieces on the table covered lightly with cling film for 4 hours before washing.
Leave 1/3 fabric pieces on the table covered lightly with cling film over night for about 16 hours+ before washing.

Finally rinse out the fabric in cold water until the water runs clear and then wash with Synthrapol to remove any last traces of dye.

Questions

Does pre soaking the fabric make a difference to the final colour and design and colourfastness?
Which printing method is most effective?
Which colours look best with a white background?
Which colour combinations work?
Which techniques work well together?

References:

Books

How to dye your own fabric

Margo Price, Andrew Moore

19th century Ottoman entari

Posted on March 28, 2017 by mollywilliams551

This beautiful Ottoman entari is in the archives of the Clothworkers Centre, London and I had the chance to examine it closely and to make notes about its size and construction.

: Entari

: Entari lining

The main fabric appears to be of cotton with stripes of soft yellow motifs and darker black floral motifs woven into the fabric on a cream background, further embellished with hand embroidered chain stitch flower and leaf motifs in several shades of green, blue, soft brown and pink/red.

The lining is a deep blue fabric with a woven floral pattern

Scalloped edges are embellished with a gold coloured braiding

Garment measurements:

The sleeves are over long and shaped beautifully towards the cuff

Neck line detail – a scalloped edge and no buttons or evidence of closure

Finishing – to finish the edges of the entari I could see that the top striped fabric was hemmed at the edges – turned in together with the blue lining and hand stitched with whip stitch. The braiding was then stitched along the edges of the top fabric. I could not see any facings or interlinings.

Braiding is attached to the top striped fabric along the scalloped edge:

The Clothworkers Centre, London

V&A 16th & 17th C Ottoman children’s kaftans

Posted on March 22, 2017 by mollywilliams551

Childs coat V&A Museum, London

http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O85101/kaftan/

16th C Ottoman children’s kaftans V&A museum

The V&A collection of children’s kaftans were worn by Ottoman princes who died in childhood. These luxurious kaftans were placed over the graves of the deceased children and preserved in the imperial tombs. In 1595 the nineteen younger sons of Sultan Murat III were executed on the orders of their half-brother Mehmet III on his succession. The killing of younger heirs of the sultanate evolved to prevent any struggling for succession (interesting that this is also practiced by male lions that kill the cubs when taking over a pride). This cruel practice was never repeated after 1595.

Weave and fabric construction

‘Lampas’ weave – 4:1 satin with a 1/3 twill. Silk warp and weft with a third element – a metallic silver wrapped white or yellow silk weft brocade. Loosely silver wrapped white silk yarns allows the white to show through the silver highlighting the metal – yellow yarn peeking through the sliver lends a gold hue to the resulting brocade. Fabric width: 66cm – 68.5cm

Yarn colours

Predominantly white and red with touches of blue and yellow. Green was rarely used as there were no natural green dyes – green was produced by over dyeing yellow yarn with a blue dye. Red is used for the warp but never the weft – why?

Textile patterns

Cintamani & Tiger stripes – Turkic, Central Asian origin.15thC
Stars & Crescents – Designs from Constantinople. 15th century

Florals: Pomegranate – single and sprays of, Ogival lattice, floral lattices, blossoms, pine cones, medallions – 16th century.
Undulating parallel lines – 17th century
Geometric design were still used in the 16th and 17th centuries

Pattern drawing for the children’s kaftan

Kaftan pattern pieces V&A clothworkers centre, London

Reference

PDF: Wearden J. The Royal Garments, fabric, design, tailoring.Ottoman kaftans from the Victoria and Albert Museum, London

16th century pattern symbolism

Posted on March 22, 2017 by mollywilliams551

Traditional Turkish Ottoman motifs are unique to the history of the Ottoman Empire and have been used to decorate many words of art and clothing including fabrics, tiles, ceramics, carpet and decorative arts since the 13th century reaching their zenith in the 16th century. The motif designs include stylised flower and fruits such as the carnation, hyacinth and tulip.

Embroidered textiles were an integral part of Ottoman daily life, used for home furnishings and clothing. Textiles played a role in daily activities and were used as gift-wrappings, room decorations, daily linens, and clothing. Embroidered textiles were also used for more ceremonial purposes, such as weddings, births, and circumcisions. Handmade textiles were symbols of status and illustrated not only the wealth of a woman’s family but also her skill as an embroiderer.

www.idildergisi.com

Red, blue, green, yellow, white, and black were the six colours used most frequently in Ottoman embroidery from the 17th to the mid-18th century.

Carnation

The carnation symbolises spring, new birth, renewal and a marriage between earthly gardens and the flower filled fields of Paradise. The popularity of the carnation pattern originated during the 16th century from the ceramic workshops in Iznik. These workshops produced decorated ceramics and tiles for the Ottoman palaces and mosques. The carnation was grown in abundance in the countryside surrounding Iznik. The design was used widely on tiles, ceramic products such as plates, bowls and flagons, and also in the pattern design of fabulous clothing and home textiles.