Thursday, February 23, 2012
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Painted Chair Covers on Raw Silk
Supplies Needed to Reupholster Six Dining Room Chairs:
Silk Paints (Jacquard Brand), water based resist (note to self: purchase heavier gutta next time) and six yards of12 mm raw silk (only available on line): slubby and heaviest available. The silk was ordered from Dharma Trading for about $6/yd. Wash the fabric and dry in dryer on medium heat. The product says there is an 11 percent shrinkage fabric on this silk. This is correct!
Process: silk fabric was cut larger than the chair seat and a large canvas frame was turned over and re-purposed for stretching the silk canvas. A heavy staple gun was used to attach the fabric to the back of the canvas frame...the staples are easily removed after the project is completed. Resist was applied and painting started. Note: Allow paints to dry thoroughly and then steam following the technique using newsprint for wrapping and steaming (three hours). I used this tutorial from Dharma. Newsprint was purchased from the local art supply store.
As a learning experience, I used two types of silk fabric paint. One product for painting on silk must be steam set for three hours to set the dyes. The advantage of this type dye is that it allows colors to flow into one another and results in greater control of the colors.
These are a couple of pictures using this steam set type silk dye and paint brushes with the too-thin resist that spread much too freely, creating large areas that were barriers (resists) to the liquid paints.
Finished piece of painted 12mm thickness of silk before the steaming process:
This is the finished silk painting on the seat of one of the dining room chair cushions: steamed, dried, cut and stapled onto the bottom of the seat cushion:
The second type of silk dye is set by heat only (simply pressing on the back of the painted fabric with an iron set to the silk setting). This type of paint is thick and requires a $13 bottle of formaldehyde based thinner which some painters might not desire because of the associated negative environmental factors.
The above picture shows the same type resist was used (I was too frugal to purchase another gutta for the second chair cushion and wanted to start the second cushion while the first one was drying). The paint is the heat set type product, with little room for blending colors. Instead, the colors were applied one on top of the other.
Finished but not yet applied to the chair cushion: (note that the background is the natural color of the silk fabric):
Four more chair cushions to complete. I will continue using the dyes requiring the steam method. These cushions will NOT be matchy-matchy. For people with OCD, this might make you squirmy, but it is OK in this household.
Silk Paints (Jacquard Brand), water based resist (note to self: purchase heavier gutta next time) and six yards of12 mm raw silk (only available on line): slubby and heaviest available. The silk was ordered from Dharma Trading for about $6/yd. Wash the fabric and dry in dryer on medium heat. The product says there is an 11 percent shrinkage fabric on this silk. This is correct!
Process: silk fabric was cut larger than the chair seat and a large canvas frame was turned over and re-purposed for stretching the silk canvas. A heavy staple gun was used to attach the fabric to the back of the canvas frame...the staples are easily removed after the project is completed. Resist was applied and painting started. Note: Allow paints to dry thoroughly and then steam following the technique using newsprint for wrapping and steaming (three hours). I used this tutorial from Dharma. Newsprint was purchased from the local art supply store.
As a learning experience, I used two types of silk fabric paint. One product for painting on silk must be steam set for three hours to set the dyes. The advantage of this type dye is that it allows colors to flow into one another and results in greater control of the colors.
These are a couple of pictures using this steam set type silk dye and paint brushes with the too-thin resist that spread much too freely, creating large areas that were barriers (resists) to the liquid paints.
Finished piece of painted 12mm thickness of silk before the steaming process:
This is the finished silk painting on the seat of one of the dining room chair cushions: steamed, dried, cut and stapled onto the bottom of the seat cushion:
The second type of silk dye is set by heat only (simply pressing on the back of the painted fabric with an iron set to the silk setting). This type of paint is thick and requires a $13 bottle of formaldehyde based thinner which some painters might not desire because of the associated negative environmental factors.
Finished but not yet applied to the chair cushion: (note that the background is the natural color of the silk fabric):
Four more chair cushions to complete. I will continue using the dyes requiring the steam method. These cushions will NOT be matchy-matchy. For people with OCD, this might make you squirmy, but it is OK in this household.
Monday, November 7, 2011
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Vacation Watercolors
In Volterra, Italy, 2001, outside restaurant:
(Watercolor, painted from a postcard in Greece while on vacation, 1995, 11" x 14" - painted in 2001)
( Watercolor, size 8" x 11"...Italy)
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Sunflowers
For art lovers and those who enjoy beautiful images, please wander on over to It's About Time. This site will provide pictures and bio information about a variety of topics, including:
This is just one of the pictures found on one of Barbara's blogs. She entitled it Outside in the Hot, Hot Garden. Can you tell I am very much impressed by this prolific blogger and researcher? In part, she says:
A blogging buddy who lives in the UK doing her PhD (The Domestic Soundscape) introduced me to Audioboo and provided the bird call. (It is one of Felix's top hits!) Just click on the arrow and turn up your speakers and you will feel like you have a morning flower bouquet in your hand!
The picture of the yellow flowers In Anna Ancher's arms reminded me to put this small work of sunflowers in oils that I have been painting for a few weeks:
The stems have not been started, and the centers have no definition yet. We shall see.
- flowers and gardens
- reading
- motherhood
- outside art
- boating
- the countryside
- folk art
- working with textiles
- Madonna and child
- and NINE other topics for you to investigate for lovely illustrations
- PLUS Four, yes four, other blogs Barbara authors, each in its own separate blog space, and each fascinating in its own right
Michael Peter Ancher (Danish artist, 1849–1927) Artist's wife Anna Ancher
This is just one of the pictures found on one of Barbara's blogs. She entitled it Outside in the Hot, Hot Garden. Can you tell I am very much impressed by this prolific blogger and researcher? In part, she says:
I am a historian, the images usually cluster around some social, cultural, or academic theme or a timeline. I try to choose works that justify their inclusion on aesthetic grounds. There is a little museum in each blog -- no travel necessary.
A blogging buddy who lives in the UK doing her PhD (The Domestic Soundscape) introduced me to Audioboo and provided the bird call. (It is one of Felix's top hits!) Just click on the arrow and turn up your speakers and you will feel like you have a morning flower bouquet in your hand!
The picture of the yellow flowers In Anna Ancher's arms reminded me to put this small work of sunflowers in oils that I have been painting for a few weeks:
The stems have not been started, and the centers have no definition yet. We shall see.
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