Butterflies and Bags!

The Monarch butterflies are making their annual visit here on their way south.  Our neighbor's Bottlebrush bush was just covered with them this morning.

Here you can see one all the way open posing.

Monarch and friend.

Closeup of the Monarch from behind.

The wasp nest on our porch that no longer is....

I have been making these cosmetic/medicine/electronics bags which are 5 x 9 inches and lined with hand dyed fabric.  I will hopefully be selling some in a couple of weeks along with some of my purses and totes.  These were all made from marbled fabric that I did down here last spring.  There are instructions elsewhere on the blog on exactly how to make these (Instructions for Cosmetic Bag.}.

Marbling with Dianne and Becky Along with Some Marbling Directions!!

I haven't done any marbling in a couple of years so it took me a bit to get my "land legs" back.  

I wanted to show my friends Dianne and and Becky how simple this was to do.  I will give some of the directions at the end as well as a bit of the problem solving (although I have a LOT to learn still in this sphere.

This was my favorite of the pieces I did and is a little different from what I have done before.

This was a smaller piece done to test one of the "sizes" I had made.

 One of my favorite color combinations is demonstrated in this piece.

This could have been a nicer piece if not for the air bubbles.  I am not sure whether they are air bubbles or just "stuff" left because I forgot to clean the top of the size with the newspapers after the previous piece.

 Becky and Dianne were both apt students and were experimenting by the end of the day!!  These next three pieces Becky posted to her Facebook page and I thought they were outstanding!!  I know that Dianne did some beautiful pieces as well and hopefully she will post them too!

I suspect this one was a second print but don't know that for certain.  It is really beautiful.

Okay, now for some directions!!   (My first marbling class was with Judy Simmons whose blog is featured in my blog roll, but since then have taken two classes with Elin Noble.)  A lot of the information shared is from Dharma's website and a bunch is from those two teachers as well as my personal experience.

1.  You can use any kind of fabric (although I think the natural fibers were best as they are naturally absorbent) but you need to wash them first and then do a soak in a solution of Alum and water (8 tbsps/gallon). These need to be LINE DRIED not in the dryer. These then need to be cut into pieces that will fit into your marbling tray comfortably.  (You, of course could do the cutting first).

2.  You need to make the marbling size at least a half an hour before marbling.  I have been using Methylcellulose as my thickener. I used slightly warmed water.  To make the size,  you use 1 1/2 tbsps of Methycellulose to 1 gallon of water.  You also need non-sudsing ammonia and use 1 tbsp per gallon of water.  First add the ammonia and stir.  Then slowly add the Methylcellulose, using a whisk to stir it in, constantly stirring for about five minutes.  It will be slightly cloudy.  Occasionally stir over the next half hour.  IMPORTANT NOTE:  The size and the paints both need to be about the same temperature so if the size is still warmer than room temp, you need to add a couple of ice cubes to cool it down (ask me how I know this!!)  That is why you really need to make the size well ahead of time and keep it in the same area as you paints.  

3.  I find it helpful to have a second smaller tray to test my size and paints before roaring ahead.  

4.  I line my trays with either white or clear plastic bags so that I don't ruin the trays.  This also helps with cleanup.  I pour in the size and clear off the bubbles with strips of ripped newprint (save those newspapers, determine the grain -- yes they do have a grain -- and rip strips about three inches wide and the width of your tray).  Drag these strips across and capture all the bubbles -- a bubble equals a white spot on your print.  Keep a trash can handy as you will be doing a lot of this dragging of newsprint strips.

5.  The paints -- any acrylic paint will do but there is a lot of testing here as well.  Some work better than others.  I prefer Golden Liquid Acrylics which are about the highest pigmented acrylics on the market and they don't have a lot of binders.  It is also good to have either GAC900 (Golden paints auxiliary that keeps the paints open longer for working on fabric), airbrush medium or Synthrapol.  The first step with the paints is to add water to the  paints until they are about the consistency of whole milk.  I drop the paint on the size to see if it spreads.  If not, I may add a bit of the GAC900 or airbrush medium.  I keep fooling around with each of the paints I am using until I get some predictability.  If you don't have the GAC900 or the airbrush medium, you can use Synthrapol but very, very very cautiously.  I make up a solution of a few drops at most of the Synthrapol in a cup of water.  Add to the paint.  If it still doesn't float, add a few more drops of the Synthrapol to the water.  Too much Synthrapol (a strong surfactant) will eventually hurt your size. The most frustrating part is that even paints of different colors from the same manufacturer will act differently. After a while, like in dyeing, you get used to what paints need what.  I have also found that it is best to not use opaque paints until you are almost finished with your size as these tend to make things fuzzier  Opaques are great for working on colored fabrics though.

6.  Now comes the fun  part.  You drop the paints gently onto the size and watch them expand in circles.  You can use eye droppers (but don't let soap anywhere near them) or brushes made by putting elastic around a half to one inch bundle of broom straws.  The first colors you put down will contract and each paint will contract as you add a new layer. I tend to like to put lots of paints down but some do less.

7.  Once you have the top of the size covered, you can use rakes (for more traditional marbling), pins, anything you want, to swirl the paints around.  The options are only limited by your imagination.

8.  Next you gently lay the fabric on the size.  I hold the fabric on diagonal sides, holding until it is pretty level and then gently drop onto the size with the middle hitting first.  Doing it evenly is important for an even print.  Then after I have completed the print, I put into a bucket of clean water and get as much of the size and alum out as I can without doing too much manipulation.  Then it goes on a clothes line or rack to dry completely.  

9  After it is dried, I iron it gently as this will set the paints.  You can just wait a week or bake in the oven or any other method of making sure the paint is set  I prefer ironing as I am inherently impatient!!

10. After the paint is set, you need to launder the pieces.  I use regular laundry detergent and put on the gentle cycle.  It is VERY important to not fold the fabrics before putting the into the washer as paint lies on the surface of the fabric, unlike dyes which chemically bond.  This is also why I recommend line drying the fabric after you wash it.  I have used the dryer for  a bit to get the fabric a little dryer so I can iron the rest of the way. You could also wash out thoroughly by hand.  It is important to get any residual alum out of your fabric (especially silk) as it will just rot it.  Now you iron your fabric again and figure out why you made this fabric. 

My uses for marbled fabric:

I have made probably close to 150 yards of marbled fabrics in 1/2 yard and 1/4 yard pieces since I took up marbling.  Some are quite beautiful.  A lot are not so much!!  They are tricky to deal with however as the design is best seen close up, not from a distance.  So I have been experimenting on uses and here is my short list.

1.  Use as main or accent fabric in a jacket.  
2.  Make small items such as fabric wallets, cosmetic bags, book covers, needle cases -- something that you are not going to wash a lot,
3  Panels in purses,
4.  Stand alone pieces that you just quilt.
5.  Background for applique.
6.  Features in small wall quilts that you look at close up.

There must be many more.  I have used the marbled fabric like just regular fabric in a couple of my pictorial quilts.

All this being said, the more you do of this (and it is addictive if you like serendipity), the pickier you get when looking at your results!  The pieces that I really really like, I photograph and have Red Dog Enterprises reprint for me.  They are like Spoonflower but the owner is a friend in my Rochester art quilt group.

Enough Cosmetic Bags -- Time for Some More Purses!

Can you believe I made 55 of those cosmetic bags and actually made a dent in the zippers and marbled fabric stash?  If I get my act together, maybe I can sell some at our quilt show.  Need to figure out how to label them though.

Anyway, decided to switch to purses again as I really needed to try to see if I could figure out a solution to the "top sagging" problem.  I like to put zippered pockets in the lining of the purses and this has caused the top to sag down which is annoying.  I know I could do a line of stitching above the pocket sewing the outside to the lining, but this would be awkward and show.  My new solution which will hopefully work is to not let the bottom of the inside pocket be free to sag down when full.  I have sewn a line of stitching at the bottom of the pocket attaching it firmly to the lining.  I will have to use the purse to see how this works.  You can see I am using more of my nice marbled fabrics.

Here is the beginning of the next purse using commercial fabric this time. I brought down much of my half and quarter yard stash down with me.  I love using the pseudo suede in the purses as it really holds up extremely well.  I can get it cheaply down here and it must have repellent on it as it still looks like new in a lighter color on a purse I have been using for months.  I am going to head to the shop where I purchased it and get some in every color they have!!

The birds all seem to be pairing up as well!  Spring must have arrived. The Laughing Gulls are all laughing and showing their summer colors already. Here are the beautiful mallards.

Buffleheads.

Lesser Scaups.

Hooded Mergansers (which were not in their usual place).  

The weather has been gorgeous down here with temps  in the high 70s so much time has been spent outside these past few days but must get my act in order as guests arrive on Monday -- a full house!

Making the Cosmetic Bags!

Each bag requires:

7 inch zipper
2 pieces of fabric (main outside) 5 1/2 inches by 9 inches (in a perfect world, you could              make 4 outsides from one fat quarter)
2 pieces of lining fabric 5 1/2 x 9 inches
2 pieces of fusible fleece 5 1/2 x 9 inches
1 piece main fabric 2 1/2 inches x 3 inches

Enclosing the Zipper:

1. Cut the 3 x 2 1/2 inch piece  into 2  1 1/4 x 1 1/2 pieces.
2. Wrap one of the pieces, right side against the zipper around to the back of the zipper overlapping the two sides.  This should be about 1/2 from the ends of the zipper.
3. Sew the tube down right next to this and then trim the bottom of the zipper.  Do this slowly just in case you judge where the bottom of the zipper is. Trim away the excess zipper.

1. Pull the zipper through so it looks like the zipper is closed by fabric at the bottom.

1. Repeat for the top of the zipper.  I would suggest opening the zipper up a bit.

Making the bag sandwich:

1. Unzip the zipper halfway.
2. Take one of the fused main pieces and center the enclosed zipper underneath it centering it on the right side of the fabric (wrong side of fabric will be facing you). Hold it stable with a couple of pins.
3. Take one of the iining sections and place underneath the zipper with the right side facing you.  Pin the three sections together.
4. Sew using a regular presser foot and sewing just a presser foot width from the side of the fabric (I would guess that is between 1/8 and 1/4 inch).  This keeps the stitches about 1/8 from the zipper teeth.  When you get about an inch from the zipper pull, lift the presser foot, and move the zipper to the part already stitched.  Continue stitching until the end.  This will give you a nice even seam.

1. When you have finished the above, do the same on the other side of the zipper.  
2. When this step complete,  you will have a zipper in the middle, the lining fabrics below and the main fabrics on top.

Completing the bag:

1. Trim the excess from the sides of the zipper so that it lays in line with the outside and linings.
2. Make sure zipper is all the way open (very important).
3. Put the right sides together of the outside fabrics and pin.  Do the same with the lining fabrics.  Make sure they are even where they meet at the zipper.  At the junction of the zipper, push the seams toward the iining and make sure that the zipper facing is pinched in half.  Do for both sides.
4. Start sewing about an inch from the sides of the bottom of the lining and sew all the way around until you are about 4 inches from where you started on the lining.  Backstitch and end.

1. Trim the seams neatly and cut across at the corners (to reduce the bulk).
2. Turn the bag by pulling the outside through the lining.  Use a knitting needle or large scissors to make the corners square and to push the junction of the zipper and the bag so it sits nicely.
3. Either hand stitch or machine stitch the bottom of the lining so that nothing can slip through.
4. Give it a little press!  Sometimes I press it along the way when I have finished making the bag sandwich.

Its a little darker on one side because I managed to squirt water on it when ironing but it is done!

This is what it looks like looking down on it.  I could have sewed a little closer to the bottom of the zipper but you can see how the little piece of fabric makes it look a lot more finished on top.

A Use for My Marbled Fabric!

I love to do fabric marbling but have really been in a quandary about what to do with the fabrics once I have made them.  For the most part the fabrics are somewhere between a fat quarter and a fat half yard of fabric.  I tend to use a lot of color when marbling and can actually get two prints many times -- one dark and one a nice light print.

This is a long long ago example (and not the best one) of a second pull -- hard to go through all those files to find one of the better ones.

The first picture is of my design wall with the 30 or so "cosmetic bags" that I made this week while binge watching the very old BBC Jane Austen series -- acting terrible but keeps closely to the original books.

This is a closeup of one of my favorites.  Each bag is lined and is approximately 8 inches wide and 5 inches in height.  They all have fusible fleece giving them some oomph.

I have wanted to do something with the marbled fabrics besides using it in clothing (which I have done successfully).  They get lost in a quilt although some pieces could easily be almost stand alone.  It is a very serendipitous process (doing the marbling) and you really don't know what you will get many times.  I have been collecting quilt patterns that feature nice fabric but somehow it just didn't feel right.  I have dutifully brought these pieces down with me (about a third of my stash of marbled fabrics) hoping I would find inspiration.  A friend used some of these fabrics to make lovely notebook holders which she gifted to my school group of online friends.  It was a great use of the fabric.  

Here are three more closeups.  They are fairly easy to make.  I will put together a post on that as well for later!

I have a ton of 7 inch zippers that I bought years ago when making a lot of my own clothes.  Even back then I didn't use 7 inch zippers so not sure why I have so many (I used 9 inch zippers for skirts).  I have ordered a bunch of zipper pulls onto which you could add some sort of adornment.  Once I get these, I will see what seems right.  I have used thin ribbon in the past on the zipper pulls and that works well.  We shall see!