My year first is nearly over and how fast it
has gone!
I was disappointed that I was not able to participate in all four of the options of Textiles in Practice and that I could only choose two of them. When I came for my interview to the University I was under the impression I would be sampling all the options in the first year. I know this is the first year, that students have only been able to choose two options and I feel sad that future students like myself will be so limited. It also reduces the content of the course but saying this, I have really enjoyed my first year at University and sad to see the year come to an end.`
The two options I chose were Embroidery and
Print. Embroidery was quite challenging as I over-embroidered everything I
could, but I did learn, ‘less is more’ from this experience. Using hand
embroidery was better for me, as it slowed my stitching down, giving me more
time to consider what I was doing. Learning to use the machine feet and
creating all the different stitches will be very valuable for future use. I
enjoyed doing the embroidery workshop and did consider doing embroidery for my
degree, until I did the print workshop. I fell in love with print, both screen
and digital and I knew during the workshop, this is the subject I want to study
for my degree. The techniques I have learnt in the embroidery workshop will be incorporated
in my future print designs and will enhance the appearance and texture of the
fabrics, creating a 3D element to my work.
In the
print workshop I used the screen method of printing, using a pigment dye mixed
with binders and liked the effect on my fabric. I did try some tie dying but it
was not very successful so I stayed with screen-printing, which I really
enjoyed. The digital workshop using Photoshop was at first a nightmare. Once I
got used to program I realized how much I could achieve with it. With
Illustrator I really struggle using this program and I still need more tutoring
to master it.
