The Dandelion Muse

As a child I loved to blow on dandelions and watch their seeds disperse into the wind. They have such a delicate silhouette who wouldn’t be captivated by it? Once I began to examine their shapes more closely I found that they are endlessly varied in their appearance and personality . Some seem to have a regal perfect shape, and other are sparse and droopy. I appreciate many plants that are past their flowering stage, but none quite so much as the dandelion. I began created this pattern for wallpaper and fabric by sketching and then doing some paintings with ink on tracing paper.

Pattern Design, La Palma Jardin Collection

Developing a pattern collection is one of my favorite things to do. Considering current trends in combination with what I am being inspired by at that moment, I begin to gather images and material inspiration. Once I had several categories or themes I wanted to work with for La Palma Jardin, I began creating prints using various method: drawing, painting with ink and watercolor, printing with screen printing ink and objects and torn paper, and various resist dye techniques. Next I began to carefully consider my color palette I drew color inspiration from various sources and was generally inspired by Southern California and the Southwest as well as gardens in Marrakech. Next I began color mixing, first with watercolors and then with acrylic. Color mixing is fun and can be time consuming. Once I felt I had the right color set, I translated that into digital color space using my own color sense and some super adobe mobile software. I’m excited to see where this collection goes! Stay tuned or join my email list for updates on the launch.

Indigo and Shibori Dyeing

As posted in my Studio section the Pagoda Stage project completed in August allowed me to develop some unique textile patterns and experiment with natural indigo. I often jump head first into projects with complete confidence, then once I get there I realize that I am a total novice. It's an interesting approach that can be stressful at times but I learn considerable amounts just going for it. I thoroughly enjoyed working with indigo dye and hope to do it again. The only drawback I found was the impermanence of the color required that I put my textiles through multiple process to try to insure that bleeding was kept at a minimal. For more commercial projects this would certainly be a consideration. Overall really pleased with the results. Click right to see process and finished product photos.

Hex-a-thing Tessellation Repeat Pattern and Modified Stripe

Creating this tessellation began with drawing shapes that were hexagonal in origin, then moved to using card stock to cut out templates and quickly trace. Tessellations must lock together on all sides, which only certain shapes will do. Once I found my shape I brought it into 2D and created the design based on the size of screen. I was working on a large scale print (5'x9') on army carded cotton and printing with textile pigment so I could achieve bold colors. It took me hours to work on the color-way. Distributing the colors in a fluid way was paramount to the overall affect. After that project was complete I used the same shape to create a modified stripe which I eventually used to create rayon knit infinity scarves. 

Morning Birds, Engineered Print Design Procress

Morning Birds is a unique combination of hand painting,  and CAD. Utilizing both hand and computer aided techniques I created this distinctive, bright, design which was ultimately screen printed by hand using procion dye paste on silk. Because of it's precise nature Morning Birds was labor intensive, however it is an example of the strength that can be found by combining multiple techniques.