Piecing Silk

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One of the joys of feltmaking is the many directions you can travel with it. As an artist, I have always been an assembler of imagery. This explains the large role fiber collage plays in my design work. I just love collage. It is fun to do it in felt. The way felt is made lends itself to building generations of fragments. You can layer them, build a visual narrative, create movement and depth and a feast for the eye.

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Early on I learned different ways to piece silk, seeking mostly to use every bit of this precious material. I soon realized I enjoyed both the challenge and the result. Wool is like the glue. I am now gathering smaller and smaller fabric pieces, and more of them. I will always want to use even very small cut outs of my hand painted silk. It is becoming a thing.

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In beginning a project, I focus on color first. Then I select the pieces of thin silk or cotton fabrics I want to work with. Working on a big table, I connect fabric elements with a dry, cross-hatch layout of superfine merino wool roving, 16-19 microns. It is like working with feathers. Often I leave some of the silk bare. As I wet and compress and begin working with the layout, it is fiddly and a bit fussy. My surface is fragile. This is particularly true as I add elements, create visual connections, and make more color decisions. Then I carefully turn the work over to design on the back side. Often, I am in for a surprise on the back side, and new inspiration. This way of working is slow, but in fact, the effort at this stage is where I find my joy and lose track of time. Magic happens before my eyes.