Back to nature, back to basic dress 簡約裙子

 

Back to basic I used the botanical imprinted fabric to make the A-line dress. The leaves used are sumac, euc, onion skins and kinds of unknown from my area. Prints on this silk fabric just enough to make the front side.  The back follows.....

時裝設計非我強項, 簡簡單單用植物移印染的布料, 做了一件雙面穿的 A字裙子, 也有點看頭吧!

  

Lots of swatch of experiments in the stash, some nice some not.  Rather than idle,  I  made the two-sided dress with them.

                       Upper part is Sumac (漆樹科), down part is layout of assorted leaves.

Front and back of the dress

Down part of the back is euc (桉樹葉), Lagerstroemia Indica (紫微) and  little Strobilantes  (馬藍葉) made it purple

             The same dress,  reversible two-sided in different botanical prints. This side is with assorted euc and  rose leaves dipped in iron water, fabric soaked in alum .

                                                                        Back to basic, back to nature - my reversible outfit 

 A casual wear for any occasions

A friend said if I could make the background a bit color or bring out some colors of the leaves would be better.  Quite a nice advice. May be after some days I would put this in a dye pot for a change.

    

"Before and after " - just before I turned it into a dress.......See Mogi's territorial behavior.  He got it !

  

Well, time for a red after done.

Wool felt boots of styles 羊毛氈靴子製作

 

After the workshop in Cyprus by Natalya Brashovetska, I back home practiced the techniques learnt. A pair of fold-down collar boots was made. 

從小兒科到大孩子的靴子製作, 不一樣的做法, 不一樣的款式多得 Natalya Brashovetska 的獨特而專業的教授.

 

 The boots of styles with fold down and fringes 

 

 It's made with wool from Austrian mountain sheep and Wensleydale freece as well mulberry silk for the fringes decoration

 Quite a few steps to make the boots but with the tools and nice set up I managed to make the pair comfortably

 Shoe last to shape it ........

 ....then hand stitched shoe soles

 The professional way to make the boots with Italy design shoe soles

 My stylish boots for the upcoming winter

 Before I only made the slippers for babies. Now I can make the professional boots.  Thanks to Natalya Brashovetska.

I'm delighted to learn the making of wool felt boots from scratch to finish. The making is challenging but sense of satisfaction.

Precious time 珍視的時刻

 

"Sea & Wave" - the theme of the wool felted bottle cover. 

 

 The blue sea with rough wave is inspiration for the making.

與媽媽共度時光, 教她一點手藝創作, 活動記憶, 早上在碼頭看海看浪, 回到工作室就以 "海浪" 作羊毛氈瓶子的創作靈感., 這 "浪花" 瓶子就是她跟我一起完成, 不錯哩 !

Quality time with loved ones is not necessary materials-wise.  Being together to do some interesting things may be a good time. Last week I spent a couple of days with my mum in my studio. In the morning we went to the pier to see the early fresh fish sale then strolled along the promenade and the beach.  From there we picked some fallen nuts.  Those hard pods are nice collection.

My mother knows I always do wool felt stuff but does not know how did I make it. 

I took out the materials for the setting.  Some wool fleece and mulberry silk as well a foam template. She recalled what we saw in the beach and tried to imagine the layout.  She layered the white Icelandic wool then a little blue shades of  merino wool and the curly white fleece.  This is what we called "sea & wave" and this way to stimulate her imagination.

After the layering and rubbing.........

Put it over the rose wine bottle and shaped it with soapy water

 

In a short while it's mounted in a bottle.  This simple and easy craft is good for beginners.

 

A bottle of "Sea&Wave" captured our moments together.  It can be a vase or ......

........a container for the capsules -  the time capsules of our moment.  I'm happy my mother made this, it's a nice keepsake.

Natural painted fall theme 天然素繪金秋

 I wanted to have soft and yellowish contact prints. Thus damp the cotton fabric with alum, put the pecan,  tore the castor oil leaves and little euc branch.  After bundle boiled for 1.5 hours in clear water, outcome is not as expected.  

Above image is the "before & after"

這個秋天已來臨, 黃色的, 金色的........  用的葉子效果未如理想, 我再以天然的顏料 (鐵+胭脂紅蟲) 加工繪上我的金秋色系

 To enhance the prints I used the liquid mixture of iron water and cochineal  to paint the landscape.  I made the cochineal dye by crushing the cochineal crystal and soaked in warm water.  Iron water is made with rusty objects plus vinegar and water.  Only a drop of cochineal and iron water to make gray to dark shades.

 I painted the iron ink with a brush.  I accidentally spilt too much iron water and cochineal. Looks too dark but can't change !!

 The brown leaves outlines enhanced with iron ink

 Let dry then I pressed with an iron

 After pressed I washed to test the fastness.  It stays

 This small panel painting with all natural color.  Yellow from pecan and brown from castor oil with alum mordant fabric, little pink dots from cochineal, gray to dark from mixtures of iron + cochineal. 

That's the theme of my golden fall