Taylor Doyle

Before & After

Final Piece

I ended up with a limited colour palette piece. I used a brown onion and avocado dye. The bottom panel is a Shibori swatch.

Because of the limited palette, I ended up using the frayed edge technique and then the couching stitch over it. I felt that using all those techniques combined gave it a cohesiveness. The paneling lent to the idea of the sheds, the frayed edges with couching stitch on top helped bring texture but also the tied down, restricted aspect. I also chose to have the contrasting panels to show the contrast of my life in lockdown.

To be honest, I loved creating and making all these samples, but when it came to construction I found it difficult as I literally had no idea what I was doing. It was really fun to be able to see and create textiles and research different methods into how to produce them.

The pattern is so basic, but I wanted to spend more time on creating the fabric, rather than the construction. Spending more time on the swatches and stitch application gave me a better understanding of how it all plays apart and how I could convey different concepts with various techniques.

I’m not really happy with the construction of it, but again, I did my best with the knowledge and materials I had. I’m glad I pared back the colour scheme and made it limited though!

Construction and Practice Piece

For the construction, I pinned all the patches together, then sewed them. I got my pattern and cut it out of the fabric.

I don’t have a dressmakers scissors, so I used a kitchen one that was blunt and I ended up making it extremely lopsided because of this.

Patchwork

I found this part really difficult! I find it hard to edit ideas because I just want to do it all.

I began with more intricate patches and tried to include most of my fabric, but as I went on, I decided to revisit my preliminary photos and felt coupious amounts of colour and shapes were not necessary.

My theme around this has been restricted, so although I made loads of different patterns and colours, I chose to scale back as this really conveys the concept.

Dye Variations

These are all the swatches I made for this project. It’s absolutely amazing how many shades I was able to create with produce from the kitchen.

I found that the bundle dying was beautiful for a watercolour feel and how they all bled out. The Shibori technique was very controlled. The benefit of using it helped me map out designs more structured.

Bode Fall 2019

Bode is a menswear brand that was created by Emily Bode. She has won the Woolmark Prize (2020). Part of her ethos is “creating heirloom garments and preserving these histories and techniques that otherwise would be lost forever”. I chose her Fall 2019 collection due to the variations of patchwork. Her work is absolutely amazing, I feel her ability to change and chop different methods is fab.

Bode began by creating special one off garments constructed from antique textiles. I love how she has these strong tailored work wear silhouettes and adds in elements of contrast by using quilting, appliqué and embroidery, which is typically female centered.

Couching Stitch

In the first photo, I tried a basic variation of couching. I used a regular thread, then layed another thread on top. For the second version, I used a strip of fabric.

I feel for the thread version, it’s a very delicate finish and for the fabric it is more intense and textured. When doing these I thought of trying to couch the different frayed edges as the leftover fabric would act as a good base for couching.

I love how differently each edge responded to the stitch.

Fraying edges

It was suggested I look at different ways of finishing edges. Fraying, I feel relates most to the project! I wanted to try different ways of fraying the fabric.

I wanted to make a chunky fray, so I cut into sections of the fabric at a noticeable width distance.

I then scaled it back and cut into the fabric a little bit closer and also a little bit frenzied.

For the final one, I wanted to create a definite fray. So I cut into it, then pulled parts of it to give more texture.

Shibori Samples

So happy with how these turned out. Even though I pictured four of the techniques, I ended up using only three.

For the Itajime Shibori you are supposed to have wooden blocks, but I don’t have access so I improvised with a two pieces from a veg tray. The Itajime yields beautiful squares and its definitely the most composed and structured.

Kanoko Shibori would be the most like tie-dye. I randomly created twists and bunches.

I tried my own variation on Arashi Shibori for the final piece. It’s generally constructed with a wooden pole, then twine wrapped around it. I used a stick and rubber bands to secure it in place. I think the diagonal lines showed up really well.

Yoshiko Iwamoto Wada

Iwamoto is a Japanese textile artist. She is known for using Shibori techniques. Her upbringing and her early experiences are the basis for her work, although she takes inspiration from many other cultures. Her Coca-Cola kimono is a merging of two cultures and it’s a hand woven cloth and she used an intense process for creating the logo (e-gasuri). Iwamoto founded the Slow Fiber Studio, which promotes culturally and socially responsible textile practices.

Shibori

While researching different ways of dying, in a more controlled manner, I came across Shibori. This process can be dated back to 238 C.E. It’s said that this orignated in China and then travelled to Japan. Early techniques included wax resists and folded and clamped resists.

Controlled Bundle Dying

Blueberries spaced out. I really like the repetition of this pattern. I think it’s the most composed of the three. I also like how the blueberry bled out.

Berry mix and tea bags. This is definitely the most chaotic. I think I managed to get some sort of diagonal pattern, but again maybe not!

Croquis - Design Development

I used the drawings of my hands bound and decided to trace over the lines to create shapes and silhouettes. Although I won’t be going as big as making a dress just yet, I found this process extremely helpful and methodical for grasping a layout for the patches of fabric.

I wanted the silhouettes to be close and cling to the body to really convey that tight, lockdown feeling.

I started off with colour, then realized this wouldn’t be indicative of the piece. I scaled back and decided to use a grey marker. I wanted to keep the patterns loose and wanted to try a variety of sizes, lines, tones and shapes.

Prep Studies For Controlled Bundle Dying.

Bundle Dying Samples

I wanted to really let loose and figure out how this process worked. These are sample pieces that have helped me understand the process a bit better. There definitely is an element of an organic response and fluidity too.

These are a bit time consuming, however they are worth it. Once you make the bundle, it needs to be steamed for over an hour, turning each bundle every 15mins to ensure the steam travels evenly. Then I left them overnight to steep within themselves.

While researching natural dyes, I came across another method of utilizing this process. I think it’s absolutely stunning and such a beautiful process that allows the material to naturally respond.

What grabs my interest most in this, is the unpredictability of how it reacts. It’s very tactile and the results are unique and organic. Which is far from the restricted theme I’m exploring. However, its basically pushing the boundaries of what I can do creatively and showing that through restriction, creativity can still flourish.

Drawing, colour and mark making

After a few days of exploring natural dying and the possibilities, I have returned to drawing and mark making.

I’m really interested in the details that the sheds hold. They have wires keeping them down and I thought of how the lockdown is restricting everything. This led me to the idea of being bound down and I decided to do a few studies of my hand being constricted. I think the visuals of hands or anything being bound really conveys the idea of lockdown.