Fabric Design

Yesterday's class was on fabric design. The tutor has had many pieces in Convergence Fashion Shows. I suppose the most interesting thing I learnt was her enthusiasm for sampling. She goes as far as trying out seams and buttonholes on her samples to see how well the fabric stands up to handling. The tutor, Sarah Jackson, had at least two items in the Catwalk Show which was held last night. No photos but I might get some when the pieces are all exhibited. There were about sixty pieces and only about five which you could walk down the street in without exciting comment. Some of the pieces were stunning. My favourite was a kasuri jacket. I would give my back teeth to be able to do that. It won second prize. But more on this when I have been to the exhibitions.

Rosie Price weaving one of her colour wheels. She says she has learnt a huge amount and is going home with four sets of samples as is Debbie who can be seen in the background above and below. She is winding yet more bobbins.

So what else? Well I have to confess to buying a Randall Darwall jacket which had hit the credit card badly. I started by looking at the scarves, found there was a rack of jackets, found this, tried it on and it fits perfectly. How could I walk away? I also bought yarn from Just Our Yarn. At Tampa Bay, I bought from them but made the dreadful mistake of buying one skein of each colour way I liked. This meant there was not enough of any one yarn to do a large project. This means skeins are to be bought in multiples and I did.

The yellow one is a singlet. Intended as an accent colour, of course. The bottom four are 20/2 tencel while the red and black at the top are cashmere. Useless as warp but will be okay as weft. Black silk warp?

Today we have a keynote lecture at eight so I must dress and get on. Two nice half day seminars today, one on turning drafts and one on network drafting.

I have, by the way, tracked down where the yardage entries are hung but could not take photos. The staff were setting up a banquet round them. I will return today. And there is more to see/buy in the Vendors' Hall.

 

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Newport

We drove to Newport yesterday and took the cliff walk. Lots of very large houses looking out to the Atlantic but most seem to belong to a University now. When I say large, I mean stately home size. There were summer houses on the cliff edge and even a Japanese temple. 

After which we returned to Newport, found a fish place to have lunch and I ate scrod. This is baby cod and Michael,  who visited New England a lot, used to rave about scrod. So there, I have eaten it and very nice too. Then back to Providence because Debbie and Rosie had to pick up their rented looms and warp them up which took several hours. Out for supper to the nearest pizzeria then to bed. 

Today I start a two day class on finger weaving. 

Boston and Providence

Rosie Price and I flew into Boston in good time and were met by Debbie Richardson. We collected a car and drove South to.Providence but diverted to visit Brockton and the Fuller Craft Museum. This holds the Small Expressions exhibition which I found disappointing. There does not seem to be as many exhibits as usual and nothing hit me. However, the rest of the gallery held some fabulous worldbeating stuff. A tapestry by Archie Brennan, a huge piece by Anastasia Azure photo below. It is about 24 inches across, made of wire.

 

This is a weaving with weft in Japanese paper. Debbie with her back to us. This is just a small sample of the many exhibits there.

And to crown it all, there was a book exhibition. The shop was selling small books by the artist, Dora Simpson Krause but then I discovered she had a written a book about her work so I bought that instead. Well worth the diversion.

To Providence and supper. The waiter was emphatic that we should watch a fire ceremony on the river which was no distance at all.

Lots of small bonfires on the water with boats full of musicians and singers moving among the bonfires. The above photo does not give a proper idea of the scene. Then to bed!

 

 

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Moving On

Kennet Valley Guild has set out on another venture. This time it is to make something which reflects Charles Rennie Mackintosh's designs. I put the thought aside but kept going back to images of his chairbacks. In the end I gave in and starting at 10 o'clock last night, created a double weave on 32 shafts.

But when I got up this morning, it reminded me of Vasarely.

 Not quite right yet and the colours want tweaking.

The back is wildly different. I have by no means made my mind up. There are 298 threads in a repeat but this is two cloths so the width of a repeat is about 150 threads. I set my silk, nominally 70/2 but actually more like 90/2, at 60epi which would make a repeat 2.5 inches wide. A bit 'in-your-face' either coloured or monochrome. Hmmph! Lining for a wool jacket? Do it in fine wool and make a jacket? I have lots of recently acquired 32/2 wool yarn. But the pattern repeat would be even larger. Do it in subdued colours and it stops being Mackintosh. This needs to simmer.

 

Speaking of simmering, I have managed to dye all the yarn I have for the small Newbury Coat. The Megado has sorted and soon I can starting tieing on the new warp. I want to get this off the Megado and go on to other exciting projects, like weaving up Hana-ori samples for the Japanese Textile Study Group. And the above Mackintosh project.

The Library of Gloucester Cathedral

The local group of the Society of Bookbinders visited the library of Gloucester Cathedral today. I know the cathedral well as we used to live 7 miles north of Gloucester. But I had no idea it had a library nor where it was. The entrance is through a small door in a pillar by the North choir and the spiral stone staircase goes up and up and up until suddenly you enter the library. It is parallel to the north choir and is very early (14th century ) with a glorious roof.

 

This is looking back from about half way down the library. The cardboard boxes all contain valuable items which need something doing to them.

Like these documents about rentals - note the earliest date is 1684.

And this is clearly needs some TLC. Note that it has its own cushion to rest on.

This is the librarian's desk, complete with computer, printer, files of paper - and a 17th century oak chair!!

The upper book has an embroidered cover, 16th century Book of Psalms, while the lower one is a Coverdale bible which is the cathedral's most valuable book. It is dated 1536. They do have a printed book which is pre-1500 printed by Wynkyn de Worde and Caxton.

And here is some of the stonework in the choir. I had forgotten what a glorious building Gloucester is. One of the finest English cathedrals. Hereford and Worcester are earlier and short and squat but Gloucester soars and the Great Window is truly great.

Lots of Paperwork

I am getting through the paperwork which I must complete before Friday when I set out for Convergence. I did finish another double cover binding.

The spine is covered with fabric as well.

And here are the endpapers. I found half a sheet of this and it fits very well with the cover. That is bookbinding over for a couple of weeks. If I do anything in this line this week, it will just be to prepare a few textblocks.

 

I have started on dyeing yarn for the small Newbury Coat. Or rather I have continued. I did a lot which has been turned into a warp but I need more for the warp. Last Saturday, I was handed a bag full of spun yarn for the warp and I am going to dye that and what I had left undyed, in total about 600 gms. I can only dye 200 gms at a time and it takes a long time. This is because, with these dyes (called Landscape and from Australia), I have to leave the yarn in the pan and let it cool down. I complained some months ago (February) that the bath was not exhausted and was given this dye about cooling by a reader for which I am very grateful. It works! But it will take all day. I am hoping it will be done by 8 this evening because I could do another lot and let it cool over night.

 

Yesterday I went round to the College to see the year-end exhibition. Very good and very interesting. The dress-making was fantastic. So was the sculpture. What did have repercussions was the calligraphy display. A thought struck me on seeing this and I got the College to give the tutor my name and phone number. She rang in the afternoon. What I wanted her to do was do a title cover for Sir Patrick Spens. I have been mucking about in Photoshop with fonts and sizes and not found anything I thought was suitable but these calligraphy pieces looked as though there was lots of potential so she has undertaken to do it for me. She probably thinks I am mad but you know that. You can see her work here.  

More Bookbinding

I forgot to include a photo of the endpapers of the last book. Nice dragonflies, a paper bought in Sydney Botanical Gardens shop! I started on a second book with a double cover binding based on a book of cartridge paper all made up, folded and sectioned. So I have got as far as putting the spine cover on. This has fabric on the spine as well as on the covers and was carefully selected as to where to cut out the three pieces. I should explain that, when I need to glue paper on to fabric, I always do three or four extra pieces so I have a supply of these waiting.

 

I wanted to print on the piece for the front and the spine piece using my substitute JetFX. The printer played up, I did not read the instructions carefully enough but I was using scraps to practise on. Eventually I got it nearly right but not quite and decided this would not do and I would bind the book without any title. But an hour later, I wondered if it would take better on plain cotton, that is, without the paper backing. And it did beautifully. The fabric with the paper on must be too stiff.  The next question is what happens when you try pasting paper on the back. I did not try that but I did try brushing the reverse side with water enough to make it quite wet.

 

Ignore the Liquorice Allsorts and note that the text is all there without a flaw. So that will work. But it adds time to the bookbinding, an extra 24 hours. I have to select the fabric, decide which pieces are to be used, apply the text which all takes about an hour. Then back the fabric with paper and wait 24 hours for it all to dry.  In which tine I can be getting on with the first steps in the textblock.

 

Yesterday was Guild day and we were very busy. There seems to be a lot going on at the moment. I handed over the double weave blanket to be embroidered. This morning, I spent several hours working through all my notes from yesterday and bunging out emails, writing short articles, arranging for a leaflet to be printed etc etc. It only lacks two phone calls which I will do tomorrow.

 

I also sorted out papers for Convergence and dealt with the air flight forms. I fear that the other thing I have done is to discover that there is a channel with MASH on it. I recall going to the States some years ago on business and discovering that, by channel hopping, you could watch for hours! This channel has two episodes back to back on weekdays and four at the weekend. It is still very funny.