It’s pretty unheard of around here to sun print in March. However, the sun was out, the wind was calm, and it was 60 degrees so I thought I’d test it. I’ve not had much luck when the temperature is not real warm and the humidity is low. Anyway, I decided it wouldn’t hurt to try.
Here are my results.
One thing I did differently was to put my fabric in containers (a couple of my marbling trays) so they would be somewhat protected from the wind. I think it really helped.
On the left I used one of my fabric stencils as as mask with DyeNaFlow Bright Green. On the right I scrunched up the fabric using DyeNaFlow Claret and then painted the peaks with Periwinkle.
So here’s a closeup of the two fabrics.
I was really happy with the results although adding Periwinkle to the peaks of the last piece didn’t do much.
It was 60 degrees, with a slight wind, and 40% humidity. I’ll be teaching my sun printing class at Studio 4905 in Henderson, Kentucky June 18 with a rain date of June 25. If you are in the area and interested in the class, contact Sherry Wilkerson at 270-869-4469. It will be loads of fun!
Meanwhile, even though I’ve not been blogging much I have been working on several projects. I started Jane Dunnewold’s Color Studies Class. I am so excited to learn more about color theory. These are the color wheels we created for the first class. Love how the colors look on the black fabric. Yummy!
I’ve also been working on the Printed Fabric Bee challenge. I ended up with lots of masks from the stencils I created for the piece. I’ll be blogging soon about the Bee piece and the one with the masks. I love getting two for one!
I’ve also been working on another Back to Basics video. I have so many loose ends!
Oh, did I tell you both Dave and Ace had birthdays this month? I’ll be posting a picture soon of both birthday boys, but here is Ace on his day. He’s three years old now. What joy and craziness he has brought into our lives!
I also have two books I’m reading and working my way through right now. I’m trying to give them both equal time in the evening.
I love this time of the year. Even though there will be lots of outside chores, I love to see my part of the world come alive. I’m excited that I’ll soon be able to actually do some dyeing in my dyeing studio/garage. In just the last week I have felt my energy level increase after what seems like an all- time low!
Hope you are enjoying the weather in your part of the world. Are you reading anything special? Do you have a new project you have just started working on? I’d love to hear about it.
And as always, thanks for dropping by.
I love your sun dye fabrics. I wondered if I could do that on watercolor paper? Are you making your own stencils on the Cricut? Love it!
The sun dye clothes look lovely, I would never have thought of using a stencil! Love the puss cat too. What a difference four legged fur balls make to our lives.
Dolly, Thanks! I don’t know if you could or not. I’ve never tried sun printing on paper. I have the Silhouette Portrait which I absolutely love, love, love! However, if I knew I was going to use it so much I think I would have bought the Cameo instead since I’m limited in size with this baby. But I sure have gotten my money’s worth out of it.
Kathy, Not sure when it came to me but I had bought a lovely blouse from a thrift store thinking I’d wear it. Well, I’d go to my closet, try it on and it just wasn’t what I wanted to wear. I decided I would get much better use out of it as a stencil than a shirt and that’s how it happened. Since then I’ve found several lovely designs – just a new one this past week that I’m dying to play with. I’m excited that they work with the sun printing. I’m working on a post about using them as stencils. Yes, these little fur balls sure to change our lives. Thanks for dropping by this morning. Have a great day.
Your sun prints came out gorgeous!!! I did get a little bit of sun printing done before the “incident” and was pleased with the results. I won’t be sun printing outside today as it is going to rain and is very overcast. I think it is a good day to experiment with other things. 😀
Hi Lisa, Glad you got a little sun printing done. Sounds like you might be feeling better too. It’s a beautiful sunny day here, but have other stuff I need to work on. Have a great day.
Love your sun prints, and I think using your trays to block the wind makes sense! Glad your energy level is perking up… this time of year is a great rejuvenator, isn’t it? BTW, I really love your stencils… you make some real beauties!
Judy, Thanks! Yes, it’s been a really long winter! I do love my cutting machine!
Whenever i vist your blog i feel like i have stepped into the laboratory of the Mad Scientist and i love it. I feel so inspired every time. I will definitely try this “peak painting”. Thank you for sharing.
Ozge Basagac recently posted..“Balık bilir” çanta ve ilk sanat atölyesi/ “Fish knows” bag and the first art workshop
Ozge, Thank you so much for your kind words! They mean a lot to me. And sometimes I do feel like a mad scientist!! LOL! Thanks for dropping by and commenting.
Thanks for sharing all your sun printing techniques. If I did this on kitchen towels, would it mess up the absorbance for drying dishes? One more question: Does this technique work with a transparency sheet with designs drawn on it (like this: http://www.inkodye.com/projects/doodle-pillow)? Thanks again!
Hi Ren, I don’t think it would mess up the absorbance but the colors will fade. I sun printed an apron and even though it still looks good, after washing alot it has faded. No, the transparency sheet won’t work with the paints I use.