Diana Trout's blog

Silk Scarf Dyeing Using Colorhue Dyes

After being charged with creating the silk pocket squares for The Wedding, I did a bit of digging around for the easiest  way to do this. I ordered ColorHues dyes and silk pocket squares from Dharma Trading but very little instruction was offered up on using the ColorHues.

Along came Juliann of The Sick Chick here. She also has color mixing tutes here and here. Really great information. About the ColorHues dyes: These are instant set, non-toxic dyes for silk (or other protein fibers). No heat, no boiling, no long set times. They aren't the cheapest option but they are the easiest. These would be great for a group or kids. Good summer fun.

After dyeing the pocket squares, I decided to see what I could do with a silk scarf, also from Dharma. So let's make a groovy scarf! 

I used the pumpkin, rose, goldenrod, yellow, green and turquoise dyes, mixed up in small plastic cups and used pipettes to "paint." Lay some plastic down on your work surface and have a wiping rag (another piece of silk?) at the ready.

You may want to ease up on the colors. Mine definitely looks like Gerry Garcia was here.

This was super easy. I wet and squeeze the excess water out of the scarf. Squeeze it really hard because excess water will dilute the colors. 

Take the scarf and fold it in half. Now twist it around really good and secure it with rubber bands every few inches. Simple tie dye. 

Using the pipettes, move along the scarf and squeeze color onto every section. Take your time and be mindful that you will get browns and grays if you mix rose and green in the same area. I don't mind this as I like muddy color in some areas. 

 

Your Freak Flag

Keep flipping the scarf around until everything is colored. The rubber bands will act as resist, as will the creases, giving you some white areas and distressed color. 

 

After everything has been saturated, squeeze the roll and massage gently for a couple of minutes. Dunk the roll into clear water and squeeze to discharge any unabsorbed dye. 

Now you can remove the rubber bands and unfold your creation. Hang to dry and let your freak flag fly!  

PS: I will be starting a new class called Taming the Critic in a couple of weeks. This is a reformated version of last years 21 Secrets class. Soon after that, I'll start the "very beginner" art journal class. So stay tuned. 

Stencil, Gesso: Art Journal Play

Blogging on Create Mixed Media today, with a tutorial using Stencils, Gesso and Watercolor media. Check out the post right here!

Spicy Colors: DIY, from Sketchbook Challenge

You can see this post at Sketchbook Challenge today as well. Get in the fun over there. This month's theme is Spice of Life. Check out this month's giveaways as well! 

... Look no further than your kitchen and neighborhood for this journal entry. Based on my experiments with botanical dyes last year, I decided to whip up some DIY stains for this month's theme. This is a great way to explore nature. 

Paprika, Turmeric, Walnut Ink & Pokeberry, Journal Page, Diana Trout

 

Paprika and turmeric are readily available at your grocery store. Add about 3:1 water to spice and let them sit for a while. You may need to add a bit more water as the spice absorbs and it won't absorb completely. It will be grainy.

Please note, this is just for playing around. The "paint" will be full of undissolved spice. I painted the colors on (see above), let it dry and just brushed off the undissolved spice.

Pokeberries grow wild and are usually in full berry right about now here in the Mid-Atlantic, US. The snowstorm we had last week clobbered our neighborhood bush so I was only able to gather a few. Put the berries in a little bowl and squish them with a fork (or your finger) to release the "ink." I don't mind getting messy, so I pick up one of my berries after squishing and pushed it around on the page. Great fun for adults and kids.

If you have a black walnut tree around, you can find the nuts on the ground in autumn. Smack one with a hammer (if it's not already broken) and then cook the outer hull in about 1/2 cup water. Just bring it up to a boil and simmer a bit. It is very intense! Badda-Bing: home-made walnut ink.

I did the little drawings and writing on this page with the DIY walnut ink and a dip pen. 

There is a clip at the end of this video showing me-self making and using pokeberry ink (the above page. The clip begins at 6:32 so skip ahead to that (unless you'd like to see my daughter in action at her post-grad job a couple of years ago :)

Enjoy!

Tutorial: Make Fabric Cloth

Precious.DianaTrout

Fabric Paper (paper cloth) rocks. It is a simple technique that yields a material with all of the fabulousity of paper: you can draw, paint, cut. The stuff retains all of the flexibility and strength of cloth. You can stitch away with no worries of compromising the integrity. Handstitching works as well and the more you handle the fabric cloth, the softer it becomes. 

FabricPaper.Longstitch.DianaTrout

There has been plenty of tutorials and articles published on papercloth but I thought I'd throw my own 2 cents into the pile. You can find videos, magazine articles (Cloth Paper Scissors), Beryl Taylor's, Making Paper from Cloth, a DVD from Interweave. I am using papercloth for covers in my upcoming series of online bookbinding classes and I wanted you to have the information!

I love the top piece here where the tissue tore and rumpled. 

On  to the tutorial! Here is the YouTube video and PDF for you. Below the vid is the text from the PDF if you just want to read. Enjoy!

Download Fabric Paper Tutorial.DianaTrout

and the text from the PDF:

The Fabric:

Muslin or other very lightweight cloth; patterned or plain (lightweight quilting cottons can be used)

The Papers: 

Any lightweight papers can be used: tissue papers (colored, white, printed, old sewing patterns)
Paper napkins (separated into the single ply); Mulberry papers or other lightweight Japanese papers; Lightweight book pages

Plastic trashbag for workspace
Acrylic paints, 
Any kind of pva glue, mod podge, acrylic matt medium. Mix some water into the glue to make it the consistency of milk. The glue should run easily off your brush. *NOTE: Lori W. noted (in the comments) that Elmer's glue does not work well. Thanks, Lori!
water, large brush (should be soft), Rag

The Method:

Cut your cloth to size. I am using approximately 12” x 18”
Spread out your trashbag to protect your surface
Use smaller pieces of plastic cut 3-4” larger than the cloth you will be making (trashbag cut, acrylic sheets, freezer wrap)

Lay the muslin on your plastic or freezer wrap.

Generously brush it with glue. Begin laying the papers on top of it. Brush more glue on the paper as you go along. Use the brush gently so that you don’t tear or dislodge the paper.

You can layer as much as you’d like, collage fashion, as long as you continually brush it with glue. Move the smaller piece aside to dry and continue making fabric paper!

When thoroughly dry - and this can take a while - gently peel the paper off of the plastic.Some glues may produce a shiny surface. It just depends how much water you put into the glue mix. You can stitch (machine or hand) on this paper. You will notice that with handling the Fabric Paper will become softer and more pliable.If your paper is coming loose from the cloth, sew, sew, sew to keep the layers together!

Make a Simple Sachet

Here's a super simple sachet to make: 

You'll need some muslin (or other lightweight material), pinking shears, sewing machine with contrasting thread, a rubber stamp and ink pad (I used Distress Inks) and lavender.

I just cut pairs of muslin into roughly 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" pieces. I didn't measure, just cut the pieces two at a time so that they match. Using the pinking shears provides a decorative edge, keeps the sachets from fraying and - bonus - you don't need to turn them inside out.

Sew only three edges. and use a short stitch length. Go back and forth over the corners so they don't accidently open up.

Use your stamp to decorate the front of your sachet.

Spoon in a couple of teaspoons of lavender.  Then just sew up the last seam. Done. I made a pile of these and put them in my fabric storage drawers. 

A quick and handy gift. I'm going to make larger ones to throw into the dryer with the laundry. 

 

Sketchbook Challenge: Book Review & 2 Giveaways

Sue Bleiweiss has put together a really lovely book here. Kudos to her for herding up 24 woman artists and 12 interesting themes (eg, dwellings, circles, weathered beauty).

Sue is the force behind the blog The Sketchbook Challenge which is currently in its second year. Her keen eye for design is present in this appealing book both in its smaller-than-usual size and, oh man, I am a sucker for rounded corners on a book.

The book lays out the themes and then two artists address their process from initial sketches to finished artwork. This is a broad overview, naturally. There are technique sections within each theme but, largely, this is a book to inspire you to find your own process. 

At the bottom of this post you will find the giveaways with instructions, OK? See the list of "hoppers" down there too! All of the artists from the book are participating.

My theme for the book is Dwellings. Yes, it was perfect for me. I started out with small drawings and compositional sketches, expanding on my stones and little hut-like houses.  Here are samples of some of the patterns, textures and compositions I was playing with.

In addition to a regular sketchbook or journal, I like to use small portfolios when I am starting a new series. This portfolio is of the rescued book variety. The instructions are based on this video. 

and my finished piece ... 
Now for the giveaways! There are two of them

From The Artist Cellar  A complete set of Artist Cellar Stencils - that’s 28 stencils total! Total retail value $120.

and

From My Creative Classroom:  a free seat to any of their online classes  Total retail value $45!

Wow! This is like a game show! 

SO, throw your name in the hat by leaving a comment on this post. 

Please Note
One comment per person
Leave a contact address

Indicate which of the prizes you would like 
Stencils OR Free Class

I will draw names on July 10!

Here is the blog hop schedule

June 26:
Jill Berry
Sue Bleiweiss

June 27:
Violette
Kathyanne White

June 28:
Kathy Sperino
Leslie Tucker Jenison

June 29:
Jamie Fingal
Lynn Krawczyk

July 2:
Jackie Bowcutt
Lyric Kinard

July 3:
Jane Davies
Kim Rae Nugent

July 5:
Carla Sonheim
Carol Sloan

July 6:
Susan Brubaker Knapp
Diana Trout

July 9:
Tracie Lyn Huskamp
Judi Hurwitt

July 10:
Jane LaFazio
Kelli Nina Perkins

The Sketchbook Challenge Blog Hop is sponsored by:

Mistyfuse
My Creative Classroom
ArtPlantae Today 
Gelli Arts 
Joggles
Sue Pelland Designs
ProChemical and Dye
The Thread Studio
Blue Twig Studio
ArtistCellar

Good Luck! And I hope you'll enjoy the book. 

Compose a Picture

Composition is something I enjoy working with. A cup of tea, my journal and a nice thick pen. Preferably feet up (wearing my sweat socks, of course). 

Working on a series of paintings, I decided to push myself and work with a square format. I did a whole bunch of sketches, thumbnails, doodles, whathaveyous. 

Lately, I want use few components and really get away from any kind of "realism." 

So after starting a few paintings, I found out today that the paintings due for an April deadline were to be rectangles. 

 

Out came the tea, the socks, the journal and pen. I worked late last night cutting different sizes of black circles and pasting them down on white paper. If it works in black and white: it works. And again, it's very enjoyable. Above are two books that I like to look at on composition: Notan and Molly Bang's Picture This.

When I get to the picture making, it is easier for me to flow into it without fussing around. More about this in a day or two.

 

Rollabind Journal

Happy Leap Day

Since you asked about this top journal ... I used the Rollabind (or Levenger) binding system for it. Stray pieces of patterned, black and white paper, old file folders: whatever is on hand. The rollabind system is nice because you can easily stick in smaller pieces of paper.

I like being able to add and remove papges. Raiding the junk drawer yielded some fancy used file folders and some stickers. 

Rollabind is a very nice system. The only drawback is the specialty hole punch which is pretty pricey. I hear the travel punch is not worth buying. I use this system instead of binders for all my workshop and business notebooks, including and especially my business plan. 

You get the discs and hole punch from either Levenger's (see the Circa Notebooks) or Rollabind. You can use any kind of stiff cardstock or cardboard for the covers (whatever you can jam into the punch). 

Edit: This just in ... you can get this binding system at Staples. They are marketing it under the name Arc. The hole punch is $39.99. Thanks Veronica, for your comment!

You could also collect your papers and take them to the office supply store and have them spiral bound. 

And here is a very nice fake smash binding tutorial from Callaloo Soup. I haven't tried it but it sure looks good. 

Art Journal Background Pages

Instant art journal backgrounds
 
A quick idea for you. I took some artwork and ledger pages and a bit of very unsticky tape. You could use temporary adhesive or just careful placement. Lay it down on a color copier and make a copy (or 2). I used a cardstock weight white paper. 

Nothing particularly new here, but still, I hadn't thought about it for several years. I have some pages in my new art journal that are quite thin. Gluing one of these instant background sheets to the back of the thin paper is fun.

You can make copies of ANYTHING: feathers, old journal pages, your hand, nuts and bolts, leaves, twigs, stitching. I've made copies of fabric which is quite fun. Whatever speaks to you and says "COPY ME!"

If you are copying objects, put them into a clear plastic frame first so you don't scratch the copier glass. 

Still slogging along fighting this flu, so blogging may be a bit sketchy. 

 

Woven Heart Pop Up Card; HeART Fest

Two hearts are better than one ... but you can choose just one of these paper techniques to jazz up your Valentine's Day cards. Use construction paper and teach your kids how to make these too.

I've included a short video, linked here (and embedded below) to illustrate the slightly tricky part of the pop up heart.

Woven Heart Pop Up Card

These instructions will make  a card that fits into a 4 3/8” x 5 3/4” standard invitation envelope. Perhaps you have loose envelopes lying about? Alter these sizes to fit your envelope.

Materials: Cardstock, gluestick, X-Acto blade and metal ruler (or scissors), scissors, pencil

For embellishments: colored pencils, markers, glitter, any embellishments you like 

You need 2 pieces of patterned (such as the double-sided scrapbook paper) or plain cardstock for each card:
For exterior: trim paper to to 11” by 4 1/4”
For interior of card: trim paper to 10 1/2” by 4” (I’ve used a heavyweight vellum)

Fold each piece and set aside

 

For the woven heart:

One piece of paper at least the size of your desired heart + 2”. I’m using origami paper. Or make a larger weaving * see note below.

Poke around a bit for scraps. I’m using book pages.

Draw a light pencil line 1/2” from the edge of your paper.

Cut strips into your larger paper t
o that pencil line.  I cut 1/2” wide.
Tear or cut your paper scraps into about 1/2” wide strips 

You can be as neat as you like or mix up the strips for a funkier look.

 

Now weave the strips in and out. Put little dabs of glue here and there to keep things steady because you’ll be cutting the shape from this weaving. 

Trim the raggedy edges from the weaving. Add dabs of glue to the edges under the woven-over strips. Just to keep things steady.

For your heart template:

Trim down a plain piece of white paper (or old folder or scrap paper) to 4” square

Fold that paper in half and draw half a heart along the seam. Remember how to do that?  Unfold and cut out your heart template. You could free-hand this, of course.

Place your template on the weaving, trace around and cut out your heart(s). Put your template aside you will need it for the pop-up.

Carefully (the heart may have some wobbly bits) apply glue to the back and stick it on your card.

You can also stitch the heart to your card with a machine or by hand. Just put a dab of glue on the back of the heart to keep it steady while stitching. 

*You may be able to get more than one heart from a weaving if your weaving is large enough.

For the pop up. You will need the interior cardstock, folded in half. Here is a brief video of the next few steps, just to clarify. The step-by-step written instructions continue below. 

Using your heart template again, place the fold of the heart against the fold of the cardstock, like this:

With a pencil, trace around the heart.You will only be cutting the top lobes of the heart, about 1/3 of the way up from the bottom of the heart. Like this:

Use an X Acto to cut the top part of the heart, along the solid line.

Pinch a fold along the dotted lines. Like this ...

You may have to reverse some of your folds to make the heart POP. (Valley Fold: Forms a valley between two mountains; Mountain fold: Forms a mountain). Here is a heart folding map showing the way the folds go. 

Using a bit of glue stick, glue the pop up insert into the card, lining up the gutter folds on both the exterior card and the pop-up insert and centering north and south. 

Your card is finished. Use markers or pens to write your message and embellish to your heart’s content. You can make a whole bunch of them in different sizes and shapes. Have fun playing with variations of this idea. Here, I stitched the woven heart to the front of the card. You could make a bunch of woven hearts, stitch them all together and make a banner. Ooo ... I might just do that!