M6, CHAPTER 7: USE OF DISSOLVABLE FABRICS

 

1. TESTING FABRICS

Five dissolvable fabrics were sourced.  All were tested for ease of machining and how readily they dissolved. All claimed to be dissolvable in cold water but I found that the speed and amount of water required to achieve this varied. Each film was machined in 3 ways: a firmish straight grid, a spiral and a looser zigzag grid.

Series 1. Soluble webbing (generic brand recommended by local Bernina store): Easy to machine, dissolved readily in cold water.

Series 2. Aquabond 2 film (Art Van Go): This plastic-type film peels off a backing and is sticky on one side. Not so good for general use, but handy for holding other bits of fabric or thread in place while you machine over them. Dissolved moderately well in cold water.

Series 3. Vilene Soluweb: Pretty similar to fabric 1.Easy to machine, dissolved readily in cold water.

Series 4. Romeo Film:  Appearance like a sheet of plastic. A bit more resistant/firm to machine but OK. Dissolved more slowly in cold water, better in hot water.

Series 5. Ultra Solvy: Appearance like a sheet of plastic. A bit more resistant/firm to machine but OK. Dissolved more slowly in cold water, better in hot water.

Below is a picture of the above samples after dissolving the soluble stabiliser.

After these experiments I concluded that all could be suitable for various machine embroidery tasks.  I decided to use fabric 1, the generic soluble webbbing for my next round of samples, due to all round ease of use, especially the dissolving step.

2. EXPERIMENTING WITH DIFFERENT STITCH METHODS

The next 2 pictures show the samples after machining and then after dissolving the stabiliser. Descriptions refer to row number then left-L , centre - C  or right – R.

 

Row 1 L: Grid pattern, straight stitch, combination of machine thread and thicker rayon thread

Row 1 C: Grid pattern, zigzag with low upper tension, combination of machine thread and thicker rayon thread

Row 1, R: Loopy pattern, zigzag with low upper tension, combination of machine thread and thicker rayon thread

Row 2 L: Combination of diagonal rows and loops, straight stitch, cable, two types of perle threads plus machine thread

Row 2, C & R: two attempts to construct a leaf shape using straight stitch, with perle threads  (C) and machine/metallic threads R

Row 3 L: Cable stitch in zigzag loops using silk chenille thread in lower bobbin

Row 3 C: Straight cable stitch in a zigzag grid using silk chenille thread in lower bobbin

Row 3 R: Straight stitch grid pattern with metallic and machine threads

3. SOLUBLE LACE SAMPLES BASED ON SEA AND SKY DRAWINGS & PHOTOS

Sample 1: Cloud pattern using straight stitch and combination of perle and machine threads. Generic soluweb was used as the stabiliser.

Sample 2: Bubbles in spa  using combination of machine and perle threads. Generic soluweb was used as the stabiliser.

Sample 3a (left): First attempt to represent breaking waves using loopy pattern with combination of perle threads, machine threads  and white knitting yarn. I felt this result was too heavy, so I created a second sample with a much lighter feel. Generic soluweb was used as the stabiliser.

Sample 3b (right): Second attempt to produce a more open representation of breaking waves using less dense loopy stitching with machine threads, slightly thicker rayon thread and very fine white perle thread. Romeo film was used as the stabiliser. This result was more visually pleasing.

Sample 4: Sunset produced with wavy stitching, trapped dark blue sheer fabric and combination of machine and perle threads. Aquabond film was used as the stabiliser.

Sample 5: Ripples on water produced with straight stitcing and combination of machine and metallic threads. Ultra Solvy was used as the stabiliser.

M6, CHAPTER 6: CUTWORK

Two multi-layered samples were produced using some of the earlier cut paper samples  as inspiration. Then I broadened the scope by making some variations based on my previous samples, drawings and photographs.

Sample 1: 2 layers with combinations of straight and zigzag sitching using a variety of threads. Bottom layer had been shibori dyed and top layer was coloured with painted Vliesofix.  I thought the combination of horizontal and vertical shapes in this piece was very effective.

Sample 2: 3 layers – bottom plain black cotton,  middle coarser green cotton fabric, top silk organza coloured with painted Vliesofix. Top two layers were machined, with a range of colours and thicker wool threaded through the stitching on the middle layer to give the wavy lines.

Sample 3: Design based on drawing of  froth/bubbles. Dyed cotton as base with a looser dyed cotton scrim on top. Combination of zigzag and straight stitching in perle, rayon and machine threads. Outlining added for emphasis after scrim cut away.

Sample 4: Design based on photo of waterfall. 3 layers – hand dyed light brown felt as base, middle layer aqua dyed cotton scrim and top layer white polyester sheer fabric. Bottom layer stitched with straight stitches, middle layer with swirls and top layer with white zigzag over the sheer.

Sample 5: Design based on photo of bubbles in pond. 3 layers – base was silk organza coloured with iron on painted film, second layer was hand dyed cotton scrim with frayed loopy white machine stitching, top was painted bubble wrap held down with straight machine stitching.

Sample 6:  Design based on a drawing of ripples. 3 layers were used.  The top layer was a sample from Chaper 4 - a synthetic mauve/blue sheer coloured with Vliesofix  which had ripple lines drawn in crayon. The bottom layer was  a Thai silk blue/pink shot fabric and the middle layer a coarse aqua  polyester cotton fabric. Ripple patterns were represented with wavy stitching using a combination of machine, perle , metallic threads and variegated wool with the middle and top layers cut away in turn. Additional straight stitching for added effect was worked to roughly follow the crayon ripple lines on the top layer. I thought the final result was interesting and greatly improved the coloured fabric sample produced in Chapter 4, which I didn’t find particularly appealing.