dizzy for doilies!

what i've been up to lately, creatively:

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square doily tee

i made this doily-emblazoned tee in my silkscreening class. the class ended yesterday. so sad, because i LOVE silkscreening and want to do more of it. even more sad, i lack space in my current (minscule) pad to do it right now. perhaps in a new place, should we move (we're looking for a new, hopefully larger apt. where i can hopefully have a larger, more suitable home studio).
i actually made another tee, with a different doily, using fluorescent pink ink on a yellow tee, but it didn't come out right. QA issues to work out, obv. :)
i may sell these, once i work out the kinks, and perhaps some prints of the doilies (this square one and another one) on paper. BUT...it might be a while (see earlier lament about lack of space). *sigh*
stay tuned. :)

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felted granny blanket sample

the crocheted/felted granny blanket project is also coming along!
all the squares (144 of 'em!) are finished, all ends have been woven in. yay!
i took some extra squares (i made several more than i needed) and made a sample, using the techniques that i intend to use for the blanket itself, i.e., how i am going sew it together/edge it. i felted it in the washing machine with some towels to help with agitation.
i gotta say, i think it's gonna turn out pretty amazing! next step: sewing the whole blanket together, square by square, then edging it. then, of course, felting it...and DONE. woot! the end is totally in sight now.
some unfelted squares are on the right for comparison between how the squares look felted vs. unfelted.
as for that border color, i only used blue b/c it was readily available in the stash, but...i'll probably use some other color, maybe orange, pink, red, aqua blue....purple? anything but royal blue. :P i don't completely dislike royal blue as a color, but it's not at the top of my list of faves.

restyled denim dress

a couple weeks ago, i found this 70s denim dress at the goodwill down on haight street, one of my favorite local thrift stores. it had good bones: nice dark denim, and a fitted yet simple shape. but otherwise, it had it's faults: weird, cheap looking ribbon trim on the cap sleeves, neckline, and pocket edges. it buttoned up the back (odd for a dress...you have to be helped into it!), and was just a smidge too small for me, thanks to my stupidly large chest. it was screaming out for help! so...of course, i had to swoop in and do some magic (or attempt some magic, anyway!)...

restyled denim dress

restyled denim dress

restyled denim dress

restyled denim dress

the front was rather plain, so i gave it a bib, edged with bias. and used bias to edge the square neckline, hem, cap sleeves, and zipper placket on the back. the reason for the placket? well, it was a hair too small, as i said, so i opened out the button plackets for more room, and the new placket covers up the button holes and gives the back some interest. the buttons on the front are covered with a little of the fabric i cut off the hem before attaching the bias. btw, all the extra contrasting fabric is a herringbone weave chambray type fabric i had in my stash already.

it's not perfect, but it's a lot more fun than it was before. and it fits!

i love this kind of work...taking something that's not quite right and making it more so. and if it doesn't work out, fine. but when it does...so wonderful, so satisfying.

fluoro diamond prints!

remember how i told you that i'm taking a silkscreening class at sfai? and that i pulled a print of diamonds as a test print a few weeks back? well, i made a few prints on arches 100% cotton paper with fluorescent pink and orange inks the week after that. they are fun. here they are!

see?

diamond screen prints

i am really loving the silkscreening, the stretching into other mediums...beyond the fashion. oh yeah. and i'm getting all sorts of ideas, but...not room to do them. i wish i had room to do it in my current apartment/studio, but alas, this place is like a shoebox! *sigh*