Pounded Fabric Experiment

I read a blog post about Pounded Fabric and decided to give it a try. Of course, I didn't follow all of their directions. Silly me . . . will I ever learn? Probably not.

If I had started with a solid color of fabric like they suggested and didn't use transparent paint for the first layer, I would probably be done already. But no, I had to use some really UGLY fabric that I've been saving for some odd reason. Usually, layering makes the fabric more interesting. At this point, I'm not convinced that I should have wasted my time.

There are a lot of step by step photos so I'll only show 2 pieces of fabric today.

Fabric 1

 Hand dyed fat quarter. Not sure who made this, but it's not my style.

Squished fabric into a bag and added transparent Setacolor and Lumier paint. Still ugly

Squished fabric into a bag and added Neopaque and Lumier paint.

I still see the stamped design on the front side of fabric.

Back side of fabric . . . much better, but not great.

Fabric 2

All the steps are the same as Fabric 1.

I made this ugly fabric a long time ago using Soft Scrub with bleach.

 Setacolor made it worse.

 Front of fabric is still ugly.

Back of fabric is still ugly.

Am I completely wasting my time? Should I throw it away OR add one more layer?

More Fabric!

What can I say? I'm weak and I know it! I know . . . I always say my studio is ready to explode, but yet, I cram more in. The trip to Pacific International provided lots of opportunity to buy beautiful things. I was pretty good, but couldn't resist everything.This first photo has some purchases from a store in San Jose that Ellen Anne Eddy recommended called Fabrics R Us. If you like fabrics that stretch, shimmer and shine, this is the store for you! Actually, they have two other stores in the same mall, one has upholstery fabric and the other had and odd mix of stuff. I bought the lime green ultrasuede and three types of silk, and some plain white canvas fabric that is waiting for some paint. The three fabrics on the right came from PIQF.This is a sampler pack from Cherrywood Fabric. Cherrywood is the only solid fabric I ever buy. Well, I suppose that isn't completely true. I buy white to paint and dye and black to discharge. Anyways, if you've never seen their fabric before, you're missing out. It's all hand dyed and has a beautiful, suede like finish to it. Each piece is around 8 x 10" and there are a zillion colors.
I also bought some white on white fabric to paint and two patterns which I forgot to take a photo of. One is a Quiltcoat by Tabitha Quilts and the other is a Bellino Bag by Ghee's. I seem to collect patterns but never make anything! I'm sure I'm not alone . . . please, tell me I'm not alone!

I'm Back . . .

Sorry it's been so long since I posted. I have lots of excuses, however, none of them are very good. I've been busy and have a lot to show and tell, so lets get on with it.
Shopping: now that's a good place to start. I'm afraid a lot more came in this month than went out! I went to two quilt shows, one in San Luis Obispo and one in Camarillo, Quilt Visions in San Diego, F&S Fabrics and Pavilion Fabrics in Los Angeles. Another worthwhile stop was at La Jolla Fiber Arts. There was a wonderful selection of hand-crafted fiber items. Here's a small sampling of what I bought. Bought these beauties at the Seven Sisters quilt show in SLO.

This is yummy micro suede. Jeanne and I found this fabulous store in LA, Pavilion Fabrics, that is going out of business. Everything is 50% off!!! GOTTA LOVE THAT. There were around 40 colors and I bought 16 of them. We also scored some polyester thread and trim. F & S Fabrics has a huge assortment of everything you could possibly want. Didn't get out of there empty handed either.In case you didn't know, I'm a book-a-holic. All three of these are great and I'm really happy to add them to my collection. I bought both of the Jane Dunnewold books at the Quilt Visions Museum, but you can buy them here.

Speaking of great books, Rayna Gillman's "Create Your Own Handpainted Cloth" will be available in June. Yours truly has a piece in her book as does my friend Jeanne Surber. You can pre-order your very own copy here.

Here's a few painted pieces that I made with my Fibervision group on Saturday. Lora did a great job organizing this workshop and everyone enjoyed it. The top two are fat half yard pieces and the bottom one is about 24 inches square.

I've been working on the costumes for the musical Pazzazz. The deadline is looming, and things are getting a bit frantic, dress rehearsals begin June 6th. This has been a fun project, totally over the top and colorful.

I've organized an Art Quilting lecture that will be given to the Fiber Arts Guild in July and have begun to compile images of Fibervision's fantastic art quilts for a CD. I've also signed up for a Fabric Challenge at Art from Scrap. I hope I get inspired in the next two days!

Other Activities: I went to the Mannheim Steamroller Fresh Aire Tour at the Granada Theater with my friend Kathy. If you get the chance, go see them, it was a great show. I also went to see CATS at the Arlington Theater. This is the best show I've seen in a while. Next on the list is LOVE in Las Vegas!!

So, as I said, I've been busy and I'm glad to be back!