Friday, July 19, 2013

No Strings Attached Shibori - Part 1



Usually when I do shibori, I wrap the soda-soaked fabric around the PVC pole, wrap string around it, sometimes a rubber band at each end, scrunch it down, dip in or drizzle over with dye, batch, remove rubber bands, untie string, unwind string, unwrap fabric, rinse, wash, iron, and enjoy.  Phew.  I'm tired just writing about it.


But there has to be an easier way.  Right?  Since most of the work is in the prep, what if a couple of the steps were eliminated?  Like the string.  It's a hassle.  And, I've discovered, not really necessary.


I took my soda-soaked fabric, wrapped it around the pole, secured one end with a rubber band (I recycle the ones I get on broccoli and asparagus), scrunched, then secured the other end with another rubber band.

Then I rolled it in dye.  I mixed my dyes a little less strong than usual because I wanted to over-dye with a second round.


 I used two different black dyes to get this one -- love it just the way it is.

But this one which was wrapped around the pole with the widest diameter was not that interesting.

A perfect candidate for over-dyeing.  Along with the other two pieces I did.

Next:  the over-dye results.

I'm linking up with Nina Marie at Off the Wall Fridays.

5 comments:

Quilt Rat said...

I think both of these pieces are terrific.....I especially like the first one.......don't you love it when you find you can skip a step and still get great results!

Laura McGrath said...

Karen, I don't usually tie with string either. It's a pain to take off afterwards, for one thing! I also like to wind the fabric on the pole starting in a corner, to get diagonal lines on it. Shibori is one of my favorite things!!!

Beth@IHaveANotion.com said...

Shibori is soooooo much fun. Next time use some floss instead of string and you can have some unique.... colored floss too.... Using the thread is just an excuse to have some matching thread.

Jan said...

I love dyeing too, especially with this technique, you never know what results you will get.

Sherri said...

It is easy to like the first one. I love the subtle blue/teal of the second one though. It reminds me of looking at wings on the back of an angel. :)