Tuesday, July 24, 2018

Experiments

      Before I left for my daughter's and baby mode, my friend Elizabeth and I experimented with discharging on solid fabrics. We used directions from Dharma and what we found on the web. We used diluted bleach in a spray bottle. I tried making a paste with cornstarch, but it liquified before very long and all I got were blobs (the rust piece). 
     We found that the solid black Elizabeth bought from the Amish in Shipshewana on a trip was the best discharge color. The leaves were ones that we preserved last fall with glycerin. We used pennies to hold down the leaves when spraying. Needless to say, we did this outdoors. The fabric was hung to dry, and then I washed it all. Big mistake- all the threads mangled up making a big ball. Lots of detangling and ironing then. These were my attempts. When I showed them at a guild meeting, some asked what we were going to use them for. I hate that question. I hope to make some art quilts out of them, but I don't know what yet. These were experiments.
Used a quilt stencil to spray through
Used a quilt stencil to spray through
Dark blue fabric, quilt stencil
Tried scribbling with paste that was dissolving

Rust fabric, blobby paste

Rust fabric. leaf outlines
Lace over rose fabric

Spray over torn cardboard edge, gave mountain look or clouds if turned upside down


Dark blue fabric

One of my favorites- a center motif
Dark green fabric
Lace over dark green fabric

Another favorite

2 comments:

Debbie said...

Wonderful experiments! The stencils turned out great, but all the leaf prints are so great. I am sure you will find some interesting uses for them.

Cheryl's Teapots2Quilting said...

Interesting. Not all experiments turn into finished products (at least not quickly). I've 'rescued' some experiments from the thrift shops. They had fun trying something, I had fun with what they no longer wanted.