Print evaluation

Print was my second and final textile option for this year. Have to say I really enjoyed print  matching the colours to my  colour palette could at times be quite challenging. I did love the drawing and it was so nice to sit down mix paints  to do my hand designs.  I forgotten how relaxing it was to sit down and paint without a care in the world, mind you on the other hand, painting can be very frustrating if the image is not turning out as you wanted it to!

 This is the colour palette that I've been working with.

 These images are of my flower data and my printed Illustrator
images on fabric. 

 These are my hand-painted designs in my  colour palette.

 It was very exciting to receive your screen with your own motif designs on knowing you will be printing these images onto your chosen fabric.
The first day in the print room was quite daunting having never properly screen printed before. Nothing is quite as exciting as taking the screen off the fabric for the first time and see your own images there before your very eyes. I must admit I got carried away and used fabric that was not in my colour palette but I wanted to try them. In some cases I actually dyed the fabric with coffee so it would tone down the background to blend in with my colour palette. Had a go at tie-dyeing but it is not my favourite look.
 I remember when it was very popular back in the 70s and I wasn't keen on it then, maybe I would use it to screen print over, but is not something I will be rushing to do again.
I found Illustrator difficult to get my head round although did manage to do a couple of images for my screen, I will most certainly try to master Illustrator as I can see the potential for the future. Another software that nearly drove me to distraction was Photoshop but fortunately it clicked and then I found I really enjoyed using Photoshop. Again I can see the potential for Photoshop in the future in my work as a designer.

Embroidery Evaluation

My first textile option was embroidery for this we used machine and hand stitching. First I used machine stitch, this I found to be very quick but isolating as one sits at the machine concentrating on what you are doing. The big mistake I made while working on the machine was over embroidering some of my black and white squares. I felt I must use all the stitches I been shown at once !! Lesson learnt, less is more. Mind you, not all my squares were over embroidered just a few. I did enjoy the machine part of the option and felt, I learnt more about different presser feet and their uses and the stitches they can create. I can see how this knowledge can be developed in future work.

The hand embroidery was very different option from using the sewing machine, as it was far more sociable and  leisurely. I loved doing the insertion stitch and as you can see above I used it in a lot in my work.There were errors in my hand stitching ideas. I used some woven metal fabric to sew into but do not think it was very successful, but it would not stop me from using it again as I can see uses for it in the future. What I really enjoyed was making the sculpture of my wooden lolly sticks tied together using garden twine. I am now in the process of moving this piece of work into a sculpture in it's own right using photography, drawings and moving it away from my journey.
Artiste research in its self is very useful for several reason's Seeing other artist's works helps with the development of ones own idea's, assess ones own work and monitor the progress of the work. 
I like using the studio with other people around me as it creates a good thinking and working atmosphere which I do enjoy. At home I check moodle for any changes or new information.Catch up with my sketchbook. Do my artist research in book form or on-line. Download my photographs from my camera and put them onto the computer and sort into folders for future reference. Last but not lest, update my blog.