Final Oh Baby! signatures

Oh Baby! Here are the final pages of the Oh Baby art journal. I finally took time to get them blog ready. The previous signatures are here, here, and here. The tutorial for making the cover is here.

We begin in the center of the second signature. Elle of Elle in da coop asked how I treat the signatures when I add them to the book. The first ones I made, I sewed the entire bunch of pages together down the center, then sewed them again when I added them to the book. That sometimes caused problems, because unlike Elle, or Melinda, who are fabulous seamstresses, I admittedly can't sew a straight line, much less twice.

To correct that problem, I have sewn the two ends at the seams, catching all the pages. I went up about 1/2". You can probably see the extra thread at the bottom, but I'm not sure it shows that well at the top. After I have sewn these pages into a signature, I then add them to the book.

Now realistically, if you are hand sewing them to the book, you should sew them all the way through the center fold. Since I am machine sewing the signatures to the book, I found this was a much neater way of adding the pages. Just start at the top (or the bottom, your choice) and place your needle directly over the seam you have already created. Begin sewing and try to stay on the center fold. I found this to be the most practical process for those of us who are not seamstresses.

Pages 72 and 73 above are a vellum log 10 chart. I really love the see through quality of these left over from my days as an engineer. I used double sided scrapbook paper on the back of this spread so it would show through and also highlight the chart name.

Page 74: Back of log1o chart and scrapbook paper. Page 75: scrapbook papers over a page from a scanner manual.

Page 76: Same scanner manual, with DTP dye ink for background. Scrapbook paper, magazine image, and a sticker from fruit complete the page. Page 77: Tea bag that has been stamped.

Page 78: More dresses from a fashion magazine, scrapbook paper cut with decorative scissors, strip of numbers. Page 79: Ledger paper and hand painted H2O paper on a paper bag.

Page 80: Another number strip pared with note paper on a background of spray painted paper bag. Page 81: Magazine image sewed to card stock, then sewed to map so it flips up for added journal space.

Page 82: Magazine images. Page 83: Image from a Japanese book of fashion and a rubber stamp on colored paper.

Page 84: Another stamped tea bag that took on a decidedly pink aspect. Page 85: Dictionary page and hand painted card stock.

Page 86: Window envelope with canceled stamp turned into a pocket. Page 87: Book page on hand dyed graph paper.

Page 88: Magazine words, stickers on hand dyed graph paper. Page 89: Magazine words and paint chip samples on colored paper.

Page 90: Paint chip sample, book page, scrapbook paper. Page 91: Magazine image, ticket and ledger paper on colored paper.

The book page on Page 90 above has this as part of the text. I couldn't help saving this you could see it. The book is from the early 1950s.

Page 92: Another math flash card. Page 93: Stamp and punched paper flower on card stock. All on colored paper.

Under the flash card on Page 92 is this book image of bridesmaids.

Page 94: Book page (from a book on hand gestures), scrapbook paper, quote colored and printed on a business card blank. Page 95: Strip of MS punched ribbon, held with a fruit label, painted (H20) address labels on colored paper.

Page 96: Book page, MS ribbon strip punched from a security envelope, and a magazine image with happy face stickers. I hope you've enjoyed these pages. They are the final ones for this book. I hope you have enjoyed these pages in this book.

Today I'm featuring a web site with encaustic art by Lynn Bregman Blass who lives in North Carolina in the US. She devotes a page to explaining how to work with encaustics and tips for applying and coloring. Her gallery shows some of her lovely pieces. If you've ever wanted to learn more about encaustics, today is the perfect day!

Frustration and exasperation

Frustration and exasperation set in on Wednesday. First, I went to the thrift store and came home empty handed. The fact that it was 95 degrees F when I returned empty handed should have forewarned of events to come. After doing a few more Wednesday blog hops, I had to get off my bottom and make art.

For those of you who were here a few days ago, you remember the tutorial I presented and the results I got from the traditional arashi shibori technique. In case you missed it, here is the original post. I decided to redo the fabric that you see in the bottom half in this photo (and fabric). I forgot to take a photo of the piece before I wrapped it, but just imagine that this piece has been torn in half at the "V." I decided to give it another try. I left the top half intact and wrapped the newly sized bottom half around the pole.

I am trying something new on my blog today, too. Not sure I'm going to like it, but I assure you, these small photos will enlarge to full screen if clicked on. If you like the look, you can let me know. If you don't like clicking for a larger view, you can let me know that, too. Of course, there's a lot of other stuff to discuss. It's brutal honesty day, I guess.

You can see, I've already wrapped the piece that didn't get much paint the first time around. After wrapping the pipe, I started my lunch by putting a pot of rotini on to cook. After all, how long could it take to spray three or four swipes on a cloth?

I took the project outside, but it was so hot, my brain must have been mush because I didn't photograph anything I did between wrapping and the completed project. I guess I was hungry and wanted a quick spray, then back inside. Of course, that's when all the excitement happened, and I failed to document the action with even a single photo. As an aside, the fabric the pole is sitting on is the same I used to wipe up the paint in the tutorial. I didn't paint it. It may be the best piece of all, although it is much stiffer than I thought the fabric paint was when I first used it.

To make a long story even longer, I had my paint upside down in the bucket of water, as suggested by Simply Spray. You can see some of the canisters are missing. That's because the black and the poppy red would not spray, even after I had taken such care with them. So I shook, I wiped the nozzle, I even poked a tiny straight pin into the nozzle, but NOTHING came out. And the black was the fullest of all. I had already sprayed cranberry and bright pink and needed a color to offset the two. I did everything but throw the canisters into my chiminea (and no, I wouldn't do that to the environment or my chiminea). In the process, I forgot all about my rotini.

When I came back inside to wash one of the canisters that was dripping paint, I realized I had left the pasta cooking well past the "al dente" stage and well into the "chef boyardee sans sauce" stage.

Here I was, my rotini was now mush, I had no black paint, the poppy color tried to work when I ran it under running water, but only managed to dribble out from under the cap enough to stain my kitchen sink, and I was one frustrated, hot, hungry person with paint staining my sink! At about $6.00 a can, I was appalled, but now pretty sure Simply Spray was right when they suggested these were ONE USE containers.

I was able to get the purple to work and managed to get a decent enough traditional arashi shibori pattern out of this piece. But I have no black (the black in the fabric is from the previous dyeing/spraying), I'm not sure the other colors will ever spray again, even though they are sitting upside down in water, and I ended up refrigerating the rotini and fixing a new batch. Unless you are sure you will use a can of this stuff in one setting, I suggest thinking long and hard before buying it. Even with a Michael's coupon, it is still out of reach for most artists unless you are planning to do it as a group. After all, you can do the math. There were six cans, one for each of six colors, at six dollars a can.

I do hope you'll let me know if you like the format of the smaller photos that enlarge, or not. I know some people use this layout all the time. By the way, I'm writing to Simply Spray to let them know my concerns over their paint. And so no one misunderstands my frustration or the focus of this post, it's not in my failure to get this product to work, it's in the product itself.

Today's blog has nothing to do with fabric. I guess it's because I'm really burned out on fabric for the rest of today. That's when I searched for a blog spotlighting my second love, handmade paper. I found some incredible pieces by a UK artist Sue Pegg. She incorporates wax and plaster in the paper to seal in lovely images and text. There are many layers to her paper, including hand stitched words preserved by wax in the paper. This is one stunning technique I'd never even considered before, and I was mesmerized by the process. I also like that Sue, like me, doesn't use a deckle. It makes for a much softer and frayed edge, something I also prefer in my own papermaking. Please check out Sue's web site today. Although there are not many images in the gallery (the only link with images), what are there are worth a visit. I'm sure you will be inspired for various reasons, as was I.

Simply Spray Fabric Paint: a tutorial

I recently applied for, and was awarded free Simply Spray Fabric Paint through Totally Tutorials, a great blog hosted by Dotty, that pairs sellers with persons like myself who are willing to write a tutorial in exchange for using their merchandise. I want to thank Dotty for all the hard work she does in the blogging community and for providing this unique opportunity. That means I get to try out some new-to-me products, while having fun experimenting. In exchange for the fabric paint, I will present four projects today. Feel free to double click on the images.

Supplies (Clockwise from upper left):
Plastic container for wrapping fabric (I ended up not using it)
Simply Spray Soft Fabric Paint
Masks
Scissors
Low tack masking tape
Wax linen thread (left over from a previous project)
Rubber bands
Coffee (not necessary for the tutorial, but necessary for me)
Bed sheet (muslin or any white fabric could be substituted)
PVC Pipe
Scrap fabric for wiping up fabric paint
Something to cover your work surface
Not shown: ruler

Before I began, I removed the spray paint from their containers. You can see the blue safety tab is still on some of the cans in the first photo above. I read the back of the containers and learned the paint is non-toxic and non-flammable. It is the only aerosol spray paint that can make that claim. Although I'm a "cool color" person and would have liked to see some green in the mix, I certainly can't complain with the nice selection I received.

In order to create this tutorial, I had to have fabric. My fabric for the first three projects was well-used white bed sheets I bought at the thrift store. I did not have to pre-wash these, but if you have purchased new fabric (sometimes called yardage) that is not labeled "prepared for dyeing" (PFD) or "ready to dye" (RTD), you should wash and dry it before you begin. Although you are technically not dyeing the fabric, removing the sizing, starches, and other finishes will provide a surface that will better accept the paint.

I began by snipping a piece of fabric at the 9 1/4" (0.2286 m) mark on the ruler. I then tore the fabric the entire length of the sheet. I found the middle of the strips, snipped, and tore each length approximately in half. Although the lengths varied, the widths of all these panels will be 9 1/4".

The first project is shibori dyeing. It is a modified arashi shibori. For this I used PVC pipe, low tack masking tape, and wax linen thread. I began by wrapping the fabric around a length of 1.5" (0.0381 m) PVC pipe. I held the fabric in place using low tack masking tape.

Once secure, I wrapped the wax linen thread around the fabric, which is wrapped around the circumference of the pipe.

After I had wrapped a manageable length, I pushed it tight against the taped end of the pipe.

It doesn't matter if the string is wrapped precisely or not. All you have to concern yourself with is keeping the string tight around the pipe. If it loosens, unwind and re-wrap.

Continue wrapping and pushing toward the taped end until you have reached the end of the fabric. Secure the fabric using the thread.

Although I did all my wrapping first, I will continue with this specific shibori technique.

Remove the blue protective tip on the top of the spray can and shake, shake, shake. Shake some more. Just like spray paint, you must be sure the fabric paint is well stirred. The little ball inside acts like a stirrer, just like spray paint. When you have shaken the can sufficiently, practice spraying a bit of paint onto your scrap clean-up fabric (or a piece of cardboard). It will help you decide how much trigger pressure you will need.

Now you can spray your first color. I chose cranberry. Pick up the pipe at the untaped end and turn as you spray, hopefully assuring even coverage.

As you can see, I used several colors for this first piece. I had read on the package that the colors were supposed to blend well, and I was hoping that would happen here. The colors I used for this are blue jay, deep purple, bright pink, and cranberry.

It took practically no time at all for the fabric paint to dry. However, after unwrapping the waxed linen thread, I was surprised the paint had not penetrated the folds better. I'm usually heavy handed with spray paint, but it appears I could have added more paint to this project.

For the second project, I used another PVC pipe, rubber bands, and a piece of fabric I folded in the center. For this technique, known as traditional arashi shibori, you begin by wrapping the fabric at least once around the pipe, keeping the folded edge at a 45 degree angle to the PVC pipe. It is important to always maintain this angle so you get the desired shibori effect. The patterns are always on a diagonal in traditional arashi shibori.

Tie one end of the fabric using a rubber band. Smooth the fabric again and check to make sure it is still at an angle to the pipe's edge. Continue wrapping until you reach the end of the pipe, then push the fabric toward the rubber band. Keep wrapping until all the fabric is wrapped and scrunched. Secure the second end with another rubber band.

For this project, I chose cranberry and black, hoping to get a nice maroon where the two colors mixed.

I sprayed, then remembered to lay my clean-up fabric under the piece. No sense wasting any of the paint.

Next I sprayed black, then more cranberry,

ending with black.


When the fabric was dry, I thought it looked rather dull and lifeless, so I decided to spray it again, this time using only the cranberry. I also thought by adding more paint, it would better reach the folded layer.

This is how the piece turned out. For some reason, the fabric paint didn't seep through to the second layer and it didn't make it to one end of the fabric. Although the diagonal designs are barely evident, you can see the interesting colors that came out of mixing only cranberry and black.

For the third technique, I began with one corner of a short length of fabric (bed sheet) and twisted until I was happy with the results. This is a modified tie-dye technique.

I tied the two ends together using a single rubber band, but you could use anything to tie the two ends together. Be sure you don't allow the fabric to untwist while tying it off.

I sprayed deep purple as my first color,

then sprayed blue jay for the second color, overlapping a bit as I sprayed.

I turned it over and sprayed even more colors until all the colors (deep purple, lavender, poppy red, bright pink, blue jay, and cranberry) except black had been used.

Although the design is not quite as exciting, I got decent coverage. I felt I got a bit heavy with the blue jay and bright pink, though.

Here are the three completed pieces flapping in the breeze,

and here they are from a different angle. Note how high the sun is now in the sky.

As mentioned previously, all the above used a type of shibori dyeing (with Simply Spray Fabric Paint). Shibori fabric is unique in that its patterns have soft, blurred edges. This is in sharp contrast to the precise edges created by resistance dyeing using stencils or masks.

For my final project, I used a child's tee that I purchased at the thrift store. I thought many people would like to know how the Simply Spray Fabric Paint worked on tee shirt material using masks.

To begin, be sure you protect the back of your project. Although I will be cutting my tee into pieces to be used for book covers, I still practiced safe measures. You could insert a piece of cardboard between the front and back to protect the back, but I folded my wipe-up fabric and placed it between the layers. Again, no sense in wasting paint.

Next, I added self adhesive masks. Similar to stencils, masks cover material (fabric, paper, etc.), while stencils expose material (design areas).

Begin by spraying your fabric paint off the piece and work your way onto the fabric. End off the fabric, also. Use your clean up fabric laid on a piece of cardboard for this.

I sprayed three times, but probably should have only sprayed once. First, I got too much paint which seeped under the mask in spots. Second, I continued the spray process, which caused the paint to leave drips. By continuing the spraying, I'm sure I also failed to put even pressure on the nozzle, something I believe I must work on if I am going to work with masks and stencils.

You can see how the paint crept under the masks, even though I thought I had them secured well.

Not to be deterred, I tried again, this time spraying only once on the back side of the tee. You can see how fine the spray is and also how I still got drips. This reinforces the fact that I need more practice using the aerosol sprayer, which is, in my opinion, much harder to use and control, than spray paint. Unlike spray paint, Simply Spray Fabric Paint leaves the fabric feeling soft and pliable.

One of the best things about these four projects is, I still have more Simply Spray Fabric Paint to play with, which means I will be experimenting more in the weeks to come. Because it got too hot outside to continue, I had to store my paint. Simply Spray Fabric Paint recommends you store it upside down with the nozzle submerged in water if you can't use the contents in one setting. I found that rather inconvenient, but certainly don't want to clog the nozzles.

I hope this tutorial gave you a few ideas for how you can use this Simply Spray Fabric Paint in less conventional ways than tie-dye (which is also a shibori technique).

Of course, my blog pick of the day is Simply Spray Fabric Paint. You will find all kinds of information there about this paint. Thanks Simply Spray Fabric Paint for your confidence in me. I appreciate it.