Experiment

I should be doing laundry, but I have been working too hard lately and haven't had enough creative time for sure, so I took a couple hours today to experiment with monoprinting on fabric. It is the big thing, it seems. Everyone is taking workshops and classes. I haven't taken a class. As is usual for me I just forge ahead and try a thing. I would probably save myself some money and aggravation if I took a class and learned the "tips and tricks" part at the very least.

I took my newly purchased sheet of glass out on the patio, along with some acrylic paints, medium, brush, water and some homemade tools (comb bits and such). I painted medium and paint all over my sheet of glass, drug my combs though and then lay the fabric on top. I used my trusty rubber brayer to roll the fabric smoothly and firmly into the paint, then lifted the fabric to see what kind of pattern I had. I tried sprinkling some salt on some of them--didn't do a thing.

I laid the fabric out on the grass to dry. It certainly isn't as dramatic as the pictures I see of people's brilliantly hand-dyed fabrics flapping in the breeze, but it is what I was after. I wanted some subtle pattern and tone that I can paint into later. I'm looking forward to fooling with them some more. But first, the laundry...