The limpets shell revisited

Oh how I do love shells. from the previous work in project one I think you guessed that. An opportunity within this exercise meant I could work a sample using different threads and yarns to create texture. I do find it hard to separate all the elements these exercises demand. They all correlate. The shell would lend itself brilliantly to this exercise. With shiny and rougher, matt even  dull areas and flecks and blocks of directional colour and texture. How could I resist. Using the viewing frame to focus my attention on a small area i choose a textural study this time to work from. One that was a little more abstract. It focussed on the colour elements, horizontal curves and vertical lines. It offered both shiny and matt areas having been worked originally in wax resists and acrylic washes.

It offered possibilities to incorporate some more unusual materials such as vhs tape and hand spun yarn from rose fibres. Using my trusted 21st century threads to blend the subtle tones and incorporate the contemporary element too. I found two potential fabrics but decided on the grey wool. It suited the texture I wanted to create and had subtle markings with black flecks ideal for the colours of my shell.

Although it was time consuming to build up the layers using satin stitch offered so much scope for variations and inclusions.

I twisted the vhs tape into a twine and couched it down then incorporated it into the sating stitch to achieve a more flecky result, more subtle. The rose fibre was incorporated by satin stitch but then further worked in using the silks. It offered softer textures against the hard lines of circular demarkation.

Stage Five Stitches that create texture

I had incorporated some of this exercise into the front cover and did feel I only scratched the surface. Previous experience of stitches gave me some firm favourites like satin stitch and herringbone but I also had opportunity to try out some more contemporary ideas. Mark making in Textiles Helen Parrott was a great inspiration as well as older more dated books I picked up in the charity shops and markets, encyclopaedias of embroidery mainly.

Finished cover ready for posting!

Using french knots loosely and tight.Loops and chevrons

Satin stitch and running stitch used randomly, uniformly and varying the spacings

Spirals in running stitch varying the spacings, stitch length and closeness

The same stitch but different threads achieve different effects. The silk reflects the light whilst the matt threads show more texture

Fly stitch, herringbone and chain stitch detached and random

I explored a couple of different effects here. Blending threads myself rather than using my prefered space dyed threads. I worked blanket stitch back to back producing a pleasing ribbed effect. Then cross stitch using the blended threads. I finally used different combinations of blended and solitary threads of two colours in different thicknesses to see what effects they made.

Here I used different thicknesses and variety of threads and yarns. Emphasizing the tail of the fly stitch, exploiting the variables in width and length too.

Using different threads but attached in a haphazrd way with couching by machine. Exploring curves and lines to create texture with the machine.

Using the machine again I worked circles in different ways watching the play with the light on the cotton thread dependent on which way it was sewn.

Crosshatching ideas using machine sewing. A trail of dots within a line.

I included the further textural stitch studies to the cloth sketchbook made for project two of assignment. It included machine worked samples made at the beginning of the project.

The finished additional page

Further adventures of the ‘mossy studies’

The mossy adventures definitely lends itself beautifully to the requirements of this exercise. It offers the subtleties of the texture and offers scope for capturing these in stitch application of different threads,fabrics and beads.

I do not think I made it clear in the previous blogs regarding this exercise that we were asked to think of words to describe the items that distinguished their textural qualities. I am able to put these on my cotton pages by ‘Bonaweb’ a wonderful, albeit man made invention to iron on and glue different mediums to fabric. Some of the words I choose for the mossy studies were billowy, feathery, soft, greens, yellows and golds.

I selected various fabrics for their colours or textural applications. Some were eco dyed, a method where plant material is used in such a way that a chemical reaction takes place with natural dyes and the plant material and leaves an imprint. One very good subject for this method is rose leaves.

This was a very tonal inspired piece. Working spontaneously with the machine to attach pieces of different fabrics using a zigzag stitch. I then slowed the pace down using herringbone, random running and satin stitch to build up a textured effect using soft colours of greens, yellows and browns. For the soft billowy feel I added french knots and beads. An addition of some hand spun slubbed wool in green and yellow helped too. With the french knots I made some tight and some much looser. I was overall pleased that I achieved the desired effect in a spontaneous way

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finished ‘board’

Stage Two Exploring marks and lines through stitch techniques

I have started a cover for the sketchbook that will contain this work. I have tried to work spontaneously on it showing examples of the stitches asked for in this exercise. I have also worked a few examples using different thread thicknesses as separate samples. They make up the first page in the book. The pages of the book are made of cotton fabric so are easily pinned up to work with independently when necessary.

The development of the sketchbook cover using the stage Two exercise

On the cover I mainly worked with the yarns I work with a lot 21st century fine silk threads. They are space dyed and give beautiful tones. They reflect the light being silk. I have used couching to include some different threads and yarns. Some with a more matt finish, where the texture is more prominent and they do not reflect the light as silks do. They are also chunkier and cover the area quicker. The surface becomes enhanced by the thickness where it may take several layers of silks to achieve a raised surface. However the silks can be blended because of this to display more subtle tones and colours. The thicker yarns are reliant on their incorporated fibres so choosing an appropiate yarn fibre is important to achieve the desired effect. All the  threads provide a textured appeal by the choice of stitch to a more or less pronounced result.

a dabble into the possibilities of machine techniques too! There will be more on these particular samples in later blogs.

Finished cover ready for posting!

I loved the recommended book Mark Making in textiles Helen Parrott and explored several of the exercises in the book, especially the radiant running stitch and french/reef knots and loops. They feature on the first page. Together with the thick and thin samples, loving the way this could be exploited, something I will be exploring further. The thin threads retreat whilst the prominent thicker threads are dominant. It helps to bring the stitching alive in a dimensional way, something that appeals to me; loving dimensional embroidery as I do. I always feel that stitching, however, beautifully executed needs depth to really bring it alive. This is one possible way to do this.

radiant stitch – making use of the humble versatile running stitch.

first page

apologies for the photo! An exploration using chain stitch

Thick and thin threads

Different spirals using different threads and yarns some handmade from rags

This example of radiant stitch creates a cocentrical pattern as a result of the stitching. A very valuable textural effect

I love working with silks building up textures with a simple satin stitch and must admit up till now That is my comfort zone. I do use other stitches but tend to rely without thinking on this trusty favorite as it is so versatile. You can create so many textures using this simple combination of thread, stitch and method. I was getting stale. This has been a breath of fresh air to experiment again. It also leads me on to the developing of my own threads to suit a purpose or idea.  I love spinning with all kinds of natural fibres from nettles and rose fibre to soy, bamboo and banana. I shall enjoy opening up to combinations and different textures learning how they behave when stitched.

I love running stitch for its simplicity yet diversity. Different combinations of working produce so many effects I spent so much time on just this one stitch and perhaps did not give the others the same attention, something to be redressed. I must keep my mind open to other possibilities and not result to the same stitch in the same way. I did feel I had begun on that path.