Judy Sall + Soy Wax = Great Tips for Batik!

Batik leaves by Judy Sall

Last week I posted about a batik project I was working on and mentioned I had trouble getting the wax off the fabric. Judy Sall came to my rescue! In addition to batik Judy is also proficient at fabric dying, fabric coil bowls, hand dyed scarves and more! As many artists are kind and generous souls Judy raised her hand and offered tips on getting the wax out. She not only shared her process with me but agreed to write a tutorial on her approach to batik. Below are Judy's tips for getting the wax out but please click HERE for Judy's complete tutorial on the batik process using soy wax!  

Judy says...
This is a follow-up regarding the final rinse/launder to remove the wax and set the dyes.  I have heard some people comment that they have difficulty getting the wax out, and compared to paraffin and bees-wax, I find soy wax to be a lot easier.  Short answer... hot water.  I do the standard pre-rinse with cold water to remove the soda ash, then wash with synthrapol and hot water, followed by multiple rinses with warm water.  If I can still feel or see wax, back into more hot water.  I plan on shrinkage, so I'm not concerned if I have any, but this is my magic formula, whether I'm working on fabric or cotton clothing.  I use the washer if I have several pieces, or a bucket with hot water if not.  And it is okay with the septic system, both according to the manufacturer as well as my own experience.  Hope these instructions help you to explore the wonderful world of soy wax batik!  Enjoy!

For a complete tutorial visit Judy Sall's blog! 

Judy's piece is ready to mount! 

COMING SOON - Guest Blogger Judy Sall Fiber Artist!

Judy Sall is an incredibly talented and creative artist. She's been working with soy wax for many years and I've asked Judy to share her tips and talents with us. In my last post I mentioned how I found it challenging to remove the soy wax from my fabric. Judy is going to debunk the mystery. 

Stay tuned for Judy's guest blog spot later this week!

Snow Shoeing + Lichen = Inspiration!

When I go snow shoeing I tend to get caught up in looking at the trees and rocks due to the stark contrast between the snow and everything else. I noticed this tree with beautiful lichen growing in circles along the bark. For the rest of the adventure I kept thinking about how to create that very cool lichen-look. 

I started by dyeing a half yard of cotton in the color Jade. Once the fabric was rinsed and washed I used a large round sponge to stamp melted soy wax in a random pattern... trying to channel my inner lichen! Lastly, I immersed the fabric in a dye bath of Havana Brown. It's a bear to cure the waxy cloth but it was the only way I could think of to achieve that lacy lichen look! 

I'm defiantly going to continue creating a lichen-look design only next time I'll tone down the jade to create a softer color. Maybe I'll try thickened dye rather than soy wax... to be continued!   

Ice Dye + Batik = Happy Fabric!

I've mentioned in previous posts that I have a basket where all my "unhappy" fabrics go. When I create a fabric that I'm not thrilled with I toss it into the basket to be reworked at another time. To me fabric is never unusable... just "unhappy" in it's current state! I recently pulled out some unhappy fabrics and using the batik technique I got some of them to a happy place... others went back into the basket... again! 

Hand dyed fabric with circles added using the batik technique

The original ice dyed fabric before adding soy wax

Once the soy wax was applied I dyed the fabric Indigo

#batik #icedyedfabric #handdyedfabric

Brick Fabric

Last weekend I had an opportunity to visit with my nephew and his girlfriend who live in DC. We had wonderful warm sunshine for exploring the city! I typically spend the majority of my time in more rural settings so I was fastened with the urban vibe and feel of the city. I took a gazillion photos of ivy, gates, sidewalks and doorways! I particularly loved the patterns in the brick walks in front of the homes. When I came home I created some fabric keeping the brick in mind.

I started by painting some PFD cotton using varies reds, browns and a few bits of green and white. Next I cut sponges to emulate two sizes of bricks. Using melted soy wax I sponged a brick pattern across the fabric. Next I mixed some screen inks to resemble the color of mortar and applied to the fabric. I left the piece alone for 24 hours and came back to iron off the wax. I washed the fabric, gave it a final iron and here are the results. I started another piece and will try to focus on a more specific pattern in the bricks... it's fun to try to emulate a texture!

Batik

I've always been fascinated with the Batik process but haven't made any consistent attempts to figure it out. Over the weekend I pulled out my soy wax, hot plate and found objects to see what would happen.

In the past when I dabbled with the technique I realized that soy wax was much easier to clean up and doesn't smell as strong as typical wax. I bought the wax already flaked which melts quickly in this form. I was mindful of never putting a pan of wax directly onto the heat source and created a double boiler from thrift store purchases, (no need to ruin my good pots!).

To apply the wax I used either a carved wooden block, a round sponge, a manipulated sponge or a paint brush. The details in the wooden block were lost and I didn't care much for the end results. That fabric went back onto the pile for a "do over" at a later date! I liked the round sponge as it created a mysterious pattern that could be used in many different projects. The manipulated sponge was interesting. I was thinking about the shape of grasses when I sliced up the sponge... not sure the design reads that way but I don't dislike it. When I painted the wax onto the fabric surface I used a light tough and wanted to create a fun free flowing design.

Here are the end results:

 

Round Sponge
Blue on white fabric



Round Sponge
Multi colored dyed fabric over dyed with lavender

Round Sponge
Raspberry on white fabric

Manipulated Sponge
Multi colored dyed fabric over dyed with purple



Paintbrush
Raspberry and blue on white fabric
I might continue manipulating the surface of these two pieces - what do you think?