Lecture tomorrow- "The Urge to Embellish"

Hi all!

As Fall officially arrives, I welcome the idea of sitting on a warm couch with your newest embroidery project.  (In front of a space heater of course!)  Lately I have been passing the time embroidering the finishing touches for a new piece, "Feather Tree."  (Or "Candy Tree."  I haven't decided.)  I am also brainstorming ideas for a new, large scale embroidery piece.  I think that it is inspiring to look at other examples of embroidery and embellishment before taking on a new piece of work.

For all of you interested in obsessive decoration and embellishment, I invite you to join me for some inspiration tomorrow at the Illinois State Museum Chicago Gallery.  The current exhibition, " The Urge to Embellish", features nearly 100 embellished objects spanning nearly two centuries.  Some examples from the eclectic display are embroidery samplers, a stenciled bed set and a wreath made out of hair.  Most of the work is made by non-artists, giving us an insight into the human impulse to decorate.  I will be there for the free public presentation, given by curator Jim L. Zimmer, tomorrow (October 1st) which is from 12:15-1:15.  The gallery is located inside the James R. Thompson Center, 100 W. Randolph St, on the second floor.  I suggest public transportation, as it is the easiest.

Hope to see some familiar faces there!  If you can't make it to the event, fret not.  The exhibition runs through December 3oth.  Admission is FREE.

This is a great show to gear up for our Embroidery classes, coming up sooner than you think.  Next session starts October 21st, that's only three weeks away!  Take a look at the sampler (above-top), that  each student gets to create during class. 

That's all for now.  See you guys and gals at the show!
-Camille

Frilly Lace

Did you know that Lillstreet has tons of lace trim available for student use? Here's an interesting way to make any garment a little more fun. You can add lace trim to just about anything, add it to the bottom of a skirt, or cover the whole skirt in lace, or cover the back portion of a pair of underwear to make some "fancy pants".

1. Its easy, cut lace strips about 2/3 larger than the length that you're attaching it to.
2. Sew a gathering stitch all the way across the top of the lace trim (a gathering stitch is just a straight stitch set on the highest stitch length).
3. Gather the lace on the stitches by pulling on the top stitch string and sliding the fabric along that string at the same time.
4. Now pin your gathered lace to the garment. Attach the lace using a wide zig zag stitch. Set each layer of lace about a half inch above the last layer.

Fly Zippers

This week the Sewing 2 class learned how to install the perfect fly zipper.

A Pattern Is Born

Pattern design class was so thrilling last night! Amazing work was being done on every available surface, there is no way I could ever cover it all in one blog post. To remedy this exciting situation, I am going to begin a series of student spotlights, highlighting a different student's work weekly. For this, the inaugural week, I'd like to introduce Elizabeth Kumor who created a beautiful floral pattern last night, an impressive feat for a 3 hour class. Please marvel at her creation:

Added Bonus! During class we looked at the work of architect and textile designer Josef Frank. Part of his genius was using a limited color palette and creating a wide spectrum of color in his fabrics through transparencies and overlap. A technique that Elizabeth explored in her own print.

Ruby Barnes in exhibition this Friday Night!

One of our monitors, Ruby Barnes, will be part of a group exhibition this weekend at Tom Robinson Gallery in Wicker Park. Here's a sneak peek of one of her prints.

When:

Exhibition Dates: October 2 – November 14, 2009

Opening Reception: Friday, October 2, 2009, 5-9 pm

Where:

Program Venue: Tom Robinson Studio/Gallery

Street Address: 2416 W. North Ave., Chicago, IL 60647

Phone: 773-477-7913

Venue Website Address: www.tomrobinsonartist.com

Program Website Address: http://etherealfauna.blogspot.com

Akemi's Nejiri Shibori Workshop Coming Up!

Hey all you printers, stitchers, and dyers out there, Akemi Nakano Cohn's Nejiri Shibori workshop is coming up fast......one week from today. It's a great way to get a jump start on your holiday gift giving. Learn the art of Japanese twist resist and make a collection of silk scarves perfect for gift giving or even gift wrapping! Hope to see you next Saturday (October 3).

Carry On, Designers! Open Studio

Open studio in the Lillstreet Textile lab was bumping last night. Screens were burned, ideas were born and dye was pulled. I wanted to post the open studio hours, available to all registered textile students, for the fall term:

Monday 2-6
Tuesday 2-6
Wednesday 6-10
Thursday 2-6
Friday 2-6
Saturday 6-10
Sunday 10-2

If you are a currently enrolled student in the Lillstreet Textile department, please stop by and use this amazing resource!

Allison Rose created this beautiful ink drawing on vellum to burn on screens.

Shannon Thompson worked on this print inspired by Californian 50's architectural details.

Mera Mistry did double duty, working on a pattern for class (above) and also working on a personal project using photographic images from a trip to India(below).

Advanced Screenprint-A-Palooza

Advanced Screenprint (a.k.a pattern design) is off to an exciting start, featuring 7 great artists! I wanted to share some of the work that they've already done in the first two weeks. Week 1 was an introduction to simple registration techniques. For week 2 the students worked on their ideas for pattern development. It was a super fun class, involving lots of ideas, Sharpies, and India Ink. As an added bonus we looked at some prints from Marimekko for inspiration.

Week 1! Let's Register.

Week 2: Fun with ink, and creating patterns to be.

Some, like Shannon Thompson, just went for it and started printing. Here you can see her lovely inspiration for the beginnings of this pattern.

Finally, some Marimekko patterns.
This book, Marimekko: Fabrics, Fashion, Architecture is a great resource.

See you next week!

Pamela Feldman to give Keynote Address!

Pamela Feldman, who teaches natural dyeing and tapestry weaving here at Lillstreet, will soon be leaving to attend the Earth's Palette Natural Dye and Color Conference in Taos, New Mexico where she will be giving the keynote address. The title of her lecture, "Pushing the Horizon: Doing New Research in Natural Dyes" reflects on her advanced research and certification in indigo under and over dyeing.

In addition to her work at Lillstreet, Pamela also teaches at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Chicago Botanic Gardens, and is the Publisher and Editor of the Turkey Red Journal, a web publication about natural dyeing. Check it out here.

Congratulations Pamela!

Drop Spindle Class Next Saturday

Hey all you knitters and crocheters! This Saturday, Rana Siegel will be teaching a drop spindle workshop here at Lillstreet. Consider this your advanced warning. Everything (wool, materials to make your own drop spindle, yarn, etc.) is included. Hope to see you there.

Little Yellow Bird

Do you all know about a great blog called Little Yellow Bird? It's such a generous wealth of information each morning. Joetta Maue (whose work is shown here) is a Brooklyn artist who blogs almost every single day about artists (including sometimes herself) who use embroidery, lace making, and other "textile" techniques. I (Rebecca Ringquist) was so flattered to be featured this Wednesday. Click on over to her blog to check it out.

Act Now! Classes start Next Week!

There are so many great classes happening this term in the Textiles department at Lillstreet! And time is running out to sign up for them. Act Now! I especially wanted to plug my new class, it's called: "Fabric Print III: Advanced Screenprinting on Fabric". But it should probably be called, "Create awesome patterns on fabric for the home or to wear around town." The class is for experienced screenprinters (no textile experience necessary) and we will learn how to design and create patterns. Check out my etsy shop and website to see some of the types of projects we'll be doing, including: scarves, curtains, and other patterns for wearing, carrying and the home.
Hope to see you this fall!

Here is an example of a large scale pattern
Elements of the final design, sketches, inspirational photograph, and test print.

Renegade This Weekend!

Hey everybody- classes start next Monday, and I thought we were taking a break from blogging this week, but I was wrong. I walked into the studios today to find Camille, madly printing away at tables full of t-shirts for Renegade. And I remembered- Renegade is this weekend guys! Camille, Allison, perhaps others? They'll all be there with really great stuff.

And, if you go to Renegade every year, and every year you leave saying to yourself, "man, I should make stuff myself. " Well, I'd like to invite you to come and make stuff at Lillstreet this fall. Sew a litte, print a little, knit a little. There's no time like the present to sign up for a class and get started on a totally handmade Christmas. Seriously.

See you next week when we'll return with five new juicy posts. r

Owl See You This Fall

Classes are on break right now as the department gears up for fall. We hope to see you back after labor day!




Print (with thickened dye) by Kate O'Leary.