silk painting
Roger Fenton
Hello, all silk painters!!!!!!!
I have been silk painting for nearly a year now, having started
when I had finished a college course and was looking for
something to fill up all this new free time. My husband, who is
sending this for me, bought me a starter kit, and I was hooked!
I use Setasilk paints, which are iron fixed, as I do not have
access to a steamer, and cannot afford to buy one. YET!!!
I paint a variety of scarves for friends and colleagues, mostly
on a 'you tell me what you want, I'll tell you if I can paint it'
basis, which seems quite popular. Up to the present time I have
painted 54cm by 54cm scarves with cats, rabbits, even black
labradors!!!!
I also make handpainted greetings cards which I have persuaded
some of the local gift shops and craft stalls to sell.
The main problem I have found is the distribution, not the production.
The most popular cards are those with 'flowers', using the salting
technique - the results can be amazing!
Is silk painting very popular in the States? I feel quite lonely
here as I have only met two other people who paint silk.
I would be pleased to hear from any other silk painters, and
those who use batik - I want to try that soon, so any hints, please
pass them on.
Bye!!!!
Mandy..
--
Roger Fenton
BGroelz
painting (Seidenmalerei) is very popular there. Even the 13 year daughter
of my cousin was doing it in school.
I'm a quilter, but I love to dye and paint fabric, so I was constantly
picking up magazines about silk painting, with the intention of trying
some of the techniques on cotton, the fabric I use the most.
German quilters use silk in their quilts, however, and there are some here
in the State who use it in their work as well.
One technique that looked very interesting was that of brushing the paints
onto the silk fabric, then dipping a clean brush in alcohol, and running
it across the painted fabric. It made the paint spread apart, leaving a
white streak through the painted surface. Very cool stuff! Sometimes
they'd create a soft plaid effect doing this.
I saw two whole cloth painted silk quilts...really neat. I saw both
resist and wet methods.
I've got a question for you experts. Will these techniques work without a
frame? Is there any difference (besides the obvious ones) between working
on silk or cotton?
I'm glad I found you here!
Brenda Groelz
Quilter and corn farmer
from Phillips, Nebraska!
(or is that corny quilter?)
cynthia bonner
with my alginate which i use with my procion dyes but nothing happened. i
want to use bleach paste on already dyed cottons which i "silk paint".
thanks!
cynthia
epoole
Hi Mandy!
I am a silk painter too! I use H Dupont dyes which are steam set (yes, I
already spent the $750 for the steamer!!!), But of course, I sell my
finished products at Art and Craft shows in and around Texas. Where are
you from? I have been trying to do the flowers with the salt in the
middle but they just don't come out. How do you do them? I use the
salt technique on just about all of my products. I make - vest, ties,
scarves and hair accessories. Maybe we can exchange ideas! I haven't gotten
into the gutta work very much. It is too time consuming for me. Is that
what you are doing or are you doing the wax thing? Isn't this iternet
thing just wonderful!! I posted an article here about 2 weeks ago and the
response has been just great! I am having a ball hearing from everyone
across the US. Answer soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
BGroelz
I haven't tried it, but wouldn't urea work?
Brenda
Roger Fenton
Hello, silk painter from Texas!!!!! - and everyone else!!
I live in Manchester, which is in the north-west of England,
Great Britain. It's great to get a reply.
About the salt flower technique you mentioned - this is what I do:
- I do 12 card inserts at a time, on a 54 x 54 cm frame, using
outliner to seperate them. It works better on relatively small
areas.
- choose a pale base colour, (I generally use mid green
diluted down with water), and cover the area with this.
- place a circle of rock salt crystals (about 1.5 - 2.5 cm in diam)
Groups of two or three circles look good. Add a couple of drops
of paint to the centre of each circle, spreading it slightly.
I add a couple of shades of green as a bit of 'foliage', and
put a few crystals on the background.
- Then just wait and see!!! Sometimes it works beutifully, but
occasionally not. Colours such as orange, pale, but bright pinks,
lilacs, and yellows work quite nice. Poppy red is a good one.
Do you sew up your vests (do you mean waistcoats?), and ties
yourself? Thats one thing I would like to try, but I don't have
the space for a frame big enough for decent lengths of fabric.
Do you hand sew, or machine sew?
You mentioned selling your creations around Texas - do you make
a living, or is it a well paid hobby?
Do you use alcohol, or alcohol and water (dabs of each
alternately on a random background gives a good effect).
Better go, my husband wants his pc back!!!
Mandy.
--
Roger Fenton
BGroelz
Thank you for posting about your silk salt flowers. I'm going to try
that, but I work with cottons instead of silk, and I don't work in a
frame....just on a plastic dropcloth.
Yes, vests are waistcoats! I was just pictured in the British Patchwork
& Quilting magazine wearing a vest that was made for me by friends on the
Internet, and the caption under the picture called it a waistcoat!