Breaking the Rules

One more image of The Three Brothers Tomb. Currently the sides are hand hemmed, and the tops and bottoms are awaiting stitching when my machine becomes available.

My WholeCloth Banners are dyed using Procion MX cold water dye. I am able to achieve all sorts of outcomes with these. However, there does come a point where yet another layer of dye will not be effective, the fabric has absorbed all it will take and/or another application is not going to give the depth of feature I require. This is when I move on to using a textile pigment/paint (the screen printing type). I have fairly large containers of pigment in just a few basic colours as I prefer to mix my own colours.

When pigments are applied to an already dyed piece, and because they are opaque, they will often appear too heavy particularly if painted as a block of colour. To overcome this I will leave the pigment to air dry for a few hours (but no heat setting at this point), then take the piece to (depending on the size) the bath and while it is soaking, scrub the pigment painted area. Surplus paint will come away leaving a much 'softer' appearance, allowing dye colours underneath to show, and will not make the fabric stiff which is a disadvantage of pigments. Then the fabric is dried and the pigments heat set.

The white area behind this mummy is pigment, initially very opaque. Scrubbing has left it transparent and, in reality, it does show more of the dye colours underneath than appears in the photo.



Everytime I go to the library I like to grab an art book to browse during the following week or so. I deliberately don't choose a textile-related book. It is surprising what one can learn. Last week I brought home a recently published book on John Drawbridge, a well-known New Zealand artist who died in 2005. The book is full of paintings and artworks, quite inspirational.

Re-visiting piece

During the last few days I re-visited my piece on the Three Brothers Tomb (Palmyra, Syria). It is always a good idea to put some pieces out to rest, and to get on with something else for awhile. It seemed to work this time and I have managed to move it on from 'blah...' to something with much more panache. I am now about to do the finishing.

Edges measured carefully and trimmed and ready for the hand rolled hems on the sides. Selection of threads to match the various colours in the piece. The top and lower hems will be machine stitched. The top hem will accommodate a clear perspec flat rod with nail holes already punched in either end. This becomes almost invisible when hung. The lower hem will have a strip of curtain weight secured within it. This piece has no lining, wadding or stitching, so the weight helps to make it hang nicely. It will measure about 125cm(length) x 100cm (49" x 39").

A couple of details of the piece. I will not be publishing the whole image as I prefer to wait until it has been exhibited in public.





The rata flowers outside my studio window.

Last Holiday Photos

When in Syria I purchased one of those wooden printing blocks 'passed its use-by date'. I chose this one because it was simple, but it needed to be rejuvenated. Last two photos from Syria and Egypt follow.

Printing from the block as purchased, rather patchy and thin.

The printing block sitting on a piece of sandpaper securely taped to my bench before.....

....massaging it on the sandpaper. The edges are now much more defined.

Ahh.. that's better - printing after it had been sanded.

Here are the last two photos from my visit to Syria and Egypt. They are two of my favourites because they show a different aspect of these fascinating countries, along with balance and simplicity. For those who might be interested to learn more about this tour, here again are the contacts:
Jenny Bowker
Tarek Mousa


I turned my back on the pyramids in Giza, Egypt, and spotted this humble construction nestled in the sandhills. The bird on the pole obligued by staying there while I fumbled for my camera.

Socks on the washing line are just the same anywhere in the world. Except these socks were behind the Bag(h)dad 55 cafe on the journey to Palmyra, Syria.

It is amazing what a spot of rain can do! I won't ask you to guess what these are - they are of course lupin seedlings in my vege garden. They do look abit like layers of stitching though, don't you think?

Carpet Makers

Today I am showing my new printing pad which I needed to sort so as to take the bigger printing blocks more successfully. When finished I can wash and change the top towelling layer and wipe down the plastic underneath. It works very well. Also I am nearly at the last of my Syrian/Egyptian photos; next week I will show a couple of my very favourites....

Basis of printing pad. A plastic tray (with pen to show size) and two pieces of thick foam trimmed to size.

All is covered with two layers of strong plastic which is taped securely underneath.

Covered with old towelling which has been secured underneath with safety pins.

Ready to start. Finished pad with printing block on top. Note that I have written 'horizontal' and 'vertical' on the top of the block; this may be obvious but it is easy to mis-print when doing a big piece.

Not a very good photo but shows used printing pad with sponge roller on top.

Printing using my two blocks shown in the previous blog, plus the sponge roller. Circles of freezer paper added to create resisted circles. These are part of a full circular skirt, printed as quarters using Procion MX dye and Manutex (sodium alginate).

We visited a carpet making workshop in Egypt. Young people start working here and usually continue for life. The carpets are all handwoven or hooked, and are quite spectacular.

At last, a clean and tidy workspace. Young apprentice in the foreground who will have attended morning school and then spend a few hours each afternoon in the workshop. He has a future.

This chappie has been in the carpet workshop since his early teens and has reached such an expertise that he is now entitled (by the Govt) to sign his carpets with his own name.

Next Blog: Favourite Photos

Tassel Makers

My piece on the The Three Brother Tombs has reached that point where it is almost finished, except I can't help feeling it needs zapping. I have several ideas but need to keep it out of sight for awhile and then re-visit. This is not unusual. I consider it to be a healthy part of the process and usually find that when I do do whatever I think needs to happen next, the result has been very much worth the 'time-out'.

There is always something else to move on to and I have been experimenting with a couple of my printing blocks. These are made from wooden blocks (expertly supplied and cut by wood joiner son). The yellow is a very dense foam which has been carefully cut into strips. These have been stuck on to the block with double-sided carpet tape, obtainable from carpet shops. The block surface is first covered with the tape, then (in this case) the strips accurately placed. The carpet tape is so strong that it is impossible to re-claim a piece of foam wrongly placed as it will be damaged while removing. In fact one has to be careful not to inadvertently touch the tape as it will become a permanent fixture. The whole thing certainly stands the printing processes and washes.

The two blocks I have been using. Next week I will show you how I have made my printing pad.

Two experiments using the blocks and left-over dye and pigment. The left side has had circles of freezer paper ironed on to the cloth to act as a resist. Some sponge rolling on the right and below a carved wooden block. I hope to show you more about this particular block later.

Left over bits of Procion MX dye activated (with soda ash)and Manutex (sodium alginate), all colours combined. More useful than discarding the dye...


Same thing with textile pigment

More photos, this time of the tassel makers. They will make any size, colour tassel, for any decor. I have been asked about the smells in both Syria and Egypt, and I am pleased to say there was no evidence of any. The weather in Syria was surprisingly cold, but not wet; it was very early spring. Egypt was warmer.

Making tassels. Once again the cleanliness of this work area left alot to be desired, but the men seemed happy.

Display of tassels in the shop. Note the very large green one, next to Jackie

Plying gold threads on to spools, just in the photo at the lower edge, ready for including in tassels

Next Blog: Carpet Makers

Syrian Dye Workshop

Last week I visited my local TheNewDowse gallery here in Lower Hutt. I hadn't been for awhile what with being away etc. I wasn't even sure whether exhibitions had changed since I last visited and didn't find out before I went, prefering to discover with an open mind. There had been changes, and one exhibition was about graffiti and skateboard art. Neither of these two would have enthused me beforehand, but I was enthralled and toured that gallery twice. I left feeling very excited about all the creativity I had experienced. Great stuff! No you won't see me applying graffiti or skating down the footpath.... or will you....?

My Three Brother Tomb piece is progressing. Now that the background areas have been dyed I am focusing on the details, starting with the Enternal Life symbol, Ankh. The central area which has been giving me some grief has now also resolved itself. More details next week.

This is the start of the symbol for Eternal Life, Ankh. I have masked it off with freezer paper

The background colours have been removed with discharge paste

And here it is, finished after several processes to get it right

In Damascus, Syria, we visited a dye workshop accessible by a narrow, crowded alleyway. They dyed yarns and everything looked like it needed some TLC but hey, it is Syria, and it all works for them. I hope you are enjoying these snippets from my travels.

Yarn skeins being lifted from the dye bath. This batch obviously variegated.

Overhead view of the dye area. It all looks as if it could do with a jolly good clean up!

Another view from the top. Note man removing washed skeins from the machine. I presume that the skeins must be secured in the machine otherwise they would come out all tangled.

Dyed skeins drying in the sun

Next Blog: The Tassel Makers

Where do camels stay overnight.....

Further progress on my new piece (the camel reference follows). This piece is based on the Three Brother's Tomb which is located underground in Palmyra, Syria. The main shape is the floor plan which I had to memorize as of course no photos are allowed in many of these enclosed sites. At this stage I am still working on the background levels. More next time.....

The start of the mummies. Pigment painted on and instead of heatsetting the pigment (as one is meant to do), I washed the whole piece again shortly after painting. This removed some of the pigment and softened the effect of the lines.

The outside colour has been softened with discharge paste (still not happy with the colours and patterns within that main shape).

...and then I over-painted the discharged area with a Procion MX and Manutex mix; and the mummies were discharged.

And more from Syria, Damascus in fact. Damascus claims to be the oldest continuously occupied city in the world.

Big door, little door, familiar in today's industrial buildings, but this door was for camels and men.

Inside the camel inn; rather posh but Damascus was a major stop on the journey. Camels, and their wares, occupied the main central area overnight and their owners were locked in the rooms around this space so that no pilfering could take place during the night ie the guests were locked in at night, rather than locking out intruders as we do today!

The camel inn, somewhat cleaner than perhaps in earlier days, had an exhibition which included several quilts. Here is a detail of one executed entirely in sequins.

Next Blog: Syrian Dye Workshop