More than one kind of weaving

has made progress...

The loom is not only threaded, but enough fabrics has been woven to reach and wrap around the cloth beam (only once, but it's still progress), and in between other projects, I managed to weave this nice little kit basket.


Somehow I forgot to blog my larger tote basket (noticed I hadn't photographed it when I went to blog the new one), so here it is. I think the name of the pattern was Attic Quilt Basket, and although I had expected it to be larger (yes, it did have measurements, but you know how it goes - it's hard to imagine a size), but it has ended up being the perfect size to tote my larger projects in, and it fits on the floor, between the front and back car seats!

Gelatin print pictures

I promised more pictures....

This first group has some of my favorites. For some, stamps were impressed in the paint covered gelatin, for others tools were dragged in, or items such as punchinella (sequin waste) were laid on top before printing, fork tines dipped in paint, and some have a combination.



One of the most difficult things was having enough paint on the gelatin, without using too much, although second prints from those over-inked prints were very interesting. Below are two prints with the left being the first print, and the right being the second print. Each have interesting possibilities for further enhancement.



Ellen printed these next two, so I'm not sure if she added more paint to the first one after printing the second, but I think she used leaves as a resist in the second, and then used them to print with (there may have already been a ghost image on the fabric). They are my favorite prints of hers, and I love the leaf detail in the first one.

I think this was my first print, and I found it difficult to control the stamps when trying to press it into the paint on the gelatin, because it was very slippery.

Gelatin Printing and stamping

Last week, my friend Ellen and I got together to try gelatin printing. I've been reading and thinking about this for quite a while, but hadn't tried it yet, and I had recently purchased another book that included the technique, it was time!

I pulled out my trays of fabric paint, brayers, stamps, picked some leaves from the garden and covered the table with a plastic tablecloth to protect it.We turned out the gelatin onto foil, so we'd be able to lift and move it if we wanted to.


At first, we tried to use larger pieces of fabric, but ended up tearing it into pieces that were just a bit larger than the gelatin, and found it much easier to work with. We poured paint onto the gelatin an dused brayers to spread it out, and sometimes forks worked even better to spread several colors without overblending the colors. We used forks, paint scrapers, and anything we could think of, including caps from spray bottles. Whenever we used stamps to create designs in the paint, we stamped the ink off onto another piece of fabric, or in my case, my painting apron.

The time flew by, and we ended up with fabric spread out to dry on two racks. Here's the rack that had most of our fabrics - mine are mostly in the front half, and Ellen's in the back half. I've taken some close-ups of some of Ellen's fabrics, and once I take some of mine, I'll post my favorites.



Although we only needed one gelatin plate each, both of us mixed up more than one pan of gelatin, because we didn't think they would hold up nearly as long as they did, and hopefully we'll use them to print more fabirc before they dry out and become unusable.

On the quilting side of things

The Square Within is coming along, and here is the growing stack of completed blocks. There are still quite a few remaining to be sewn, but I'm making progress!

Last Friday, I took Barbara Shapel's two-sided quilt workshop (Thread Duets Design Workshop). I learned a lot, but didn't make much progress in class. (I did get farther along than the picture shows, but need to pin it back up for a picture after returning home.) This is the "front", or main side, and I've already picked out and planned fabrics for the other side.

Another project that will be getting pushed ahead of these is a Madrona tree quilt for Madrona Digital.

Baskets

I'm a little behind on my posts, due to computer issues (it's great when they work and not much fun when they don't), so thought I'd separate the things I've done by type of project.

This first basket was not made by me, but by my friend Cathy. When she was visiting, I had asked her about making a napkin basket for our newly remodeled kitchen, and while I was working on the large basket below, she started making one for me. Thank you Cathy, it's beautiful!

This basket is big and strong, designed for holding lots of stuff! While Cathy was here, she taught another friend Ellen and I make these quilt baskets. I wouldn't have been able to do the fancy handle without her help, and suggestions, and it was a nice change to be able to work on a project while chatting away, as it makes the project go quickly. We worked on them together on two days, and I finished the rim on mine the next day (probably as she was flying home). I'm so happy with it! Thanks again Cathy!!!

My sister-in-law Sepideh, tried to make it to our basket making gatherings, and wasn't able to , so I did my best to help her design and make a bread basket. Since it was to be used for lavosh, a flatbread, it isn't the shape most people would expect to see, and I didn't even think about the low shape that she wanted until I saw it in use. I really love her choice of colors and think it came out great!

Lots of Blocks

Or rather, lots of partial blocks, because these are sections of larger blocks. Hopefully, I'll sit down and put these together later this week, as I'm currently reading / editing the page proofs for my book!

Beyond my Control - winner

Since there weren't that many interested in my little felted bag, I decided to just assign a number to the comments. The numbers were written on little papers, folded, and tossed in a paper bag. After shaking and stirring, one was pulled out - and the winner is......Knitchix!!! Contact me and I'll get the bag to you.