Hand Painted Cotton "Over-Dyed" with Snow!

I know most of us have pieces of fabric we've created but never fully embraced the end result! Maybe you even have a piece of commercial fabric that has lost it's allure. If so don't give up - over dye it! Again with the snow plentiful I chose to over dye using that technique. If you don't have snow you could use ice cubes. 

I had a couple of hand painted pieces that got tossed into the catch-all basket waiting for inspiration. I looked at them for the umpteenth time but this time I decided to over dye with snow. I should have taken a before and after photo but I was so uninspired with the "before" that I didn't think of it! 

This piece was originally painted and has sunprinted leaves scattered throughout.
Next the hiking boots were screened across the fabric.
I over dyed with snow using a bright red.

Here is a detail shot. I was delighted the sunprinted leaves remained visible.

This piece was painted with pink circles and blue swirls.

Here is a detailed shot over dyed with brown.

The first fabric with the hiking boots is 34" X 42".

The second piece with pink and blue is 34" X 44". 

Each piece is $25

I would love to hear about your experience over dyeing fabric and creating a piece that's more exciting!  

More Large Snow Dyed Pieces!

Embracing snow dyeing has made me more tolerant of the snow piles that live outside my studio door! I pulled three more 3-yard pieces out of the dye bath today... fun... fun... fun! 

I was thinking about my flower gardens today and
combined 4 different dyes in this piece

This piece is Dutch Chocolate and Havana

This was my surprise piece. I added the three primary colors expecting something completely different than what you see here - I'm not disappointed
but it was a surprise! 

Yards and Yards of Snow Dyeing!

If you can't beat winter you might as well embrace it! I recently snow dyed three 3-yard pieces of 100% cotton. It's such a cool technique... you get to pile loads of snow on top of fabric - add some color and boom! Most artists squirt dye mixed with water and soda ash directly onto the snow but I use straight dye powder. I think it's just my habit from doing so much confetti and ice dyeing. Both techniques provide great results. 

Grey, Blue and Green

Raspberry, Blue and Green

Blue, Grey and Tan

If you have the perfect project for these pieces please contact me directly!

100% cotton

3 yard length

$60

... and the winner is!

Congratulations to the winner of the Wonky Lines fabric collection! 

Gale Dupell is the lucky lady! 

Stay tuned for the next collection and your chance to win.... you're going to like it!  

Follow The Printed Fabric Bee on facebook for updates and sneak peeks.

1. Lisa

   February 12, 2014 at 7:51 am

   Congratulations Gale!!!

CT. Fiber Arts Collective - Gray Matter Challenge!

At the monthly meeting for the Connecticut Fiber Arts Collective we revealed our "Gray Matter" challenge  pieces! Mary Lachman provided each person with a bundle of gray related fabrics and we we challenged to use at least 2 fabrics in the design. The pieces are mounted on an 11" X 17" canvas... so here you go - my piece is titled, "Acadia".

I started with gray hand painted fabric.
After adding the boat I layered tulle across the piece.

The shaded effect comes from the tulle and a little stitching...
it was so simple it worked! 

Check the CtFAC blog for the reveal of all the members Gray Matter challenge! 

Snow Dyeing!

The sense of urgency to get out and snow dye before it melts is calming down! I now realize it's only mid-winter and the snow will be here for a while! 

I love the results when dyeing with snow and can't seem to get enough of the snow-burst design. The "bursts" are created using recycled containers to prop up the fabric. Any container will do but the more unusual shape the better. I'm not sure what to do with the fabric but it's a whole lot of fun piling it up!

Hand Dyed Fabric Packs = Kate Themel's Magnolia Workshop!

Each fabric pack is slightly different from the other with
a unique ice dyed background!

Large Fabric Kit

My hand dyed fabric packs are ready for their debut at Kate Themel's upcoming Magnolia workshop! Twelve artists from the Sisters in Cloth group will be taking Kate's workshop later this month. Kate will be introducing her magnolia design and unique approach to creating a piece of wall art. Kate's developed her own technique over the years and the workshop will unravel the mystery of her style! Each artist will have the opportunity to create a customized Magnolia wall hanging. 

If your group or organization would like to participate in a workshop contact Kate or I for details!

Learn How to Win Free Fabric!

OK... it's time to leave a comment on Gerrie Congdon's blog or The Printed Fabric Bee Facebook page for a chance to win this beautiful and (almost complete) fabric pack! 

Good luck!

Wonky Lines = FREE Fabric!

The Printed Fabric Bee is ready to reveal the next collection of custom fabrics! 

Remember YOU can win a  6" X 6" fabric pack of the same collection!

Artist Gerrie Congdon was this month's "Queen" and she chose Wonky Lines! I know... Wonky Lines - that's just crazy talk! Gerrie's favorite colors are chartreuse and red... again... crazy talk! I went through a number of ideas and techniques to come up with my design. 

I used the flour resist technique to create Wonky Lines in the background fabric.

Once the flour dried I applied fabric paint.

You can see the Wonky Lines left behind from "combing" the flour resist.

Next I created Wonky Lined leaves from freezer paper!

Added some fabric paint...

Voila! Tons-O-Wonky Lines! 

Do you want to win the fabric collection this month?! Stay tuned for more info...

Thinking about Spring Colors!

As I watch the snow fall my mind is drifting off to spring with all it's lovely colors! Since the ground hog predicted another 6 weeks of the white stuff I'm settling for an ice dyed spring colored scarf.

There is actually no blue dye added! I used lavender, bright green and coral... ice dyeing can be fickle!