EDUCATION 5203

Artifact #1  My Blog that continues to support Textile Art and Design 7

Assignment 5:  Dyeing

I chose to tie-dye a cotton t-shirt.  Both the t-shirt and the dye kit were purchased at Wal-Mart for a total cost of $9.00 - $3.00 t-shirt and $6.00 dye kit.   

Step 1:  Begin with dye. I selected a store bought kit.

The kit.

2.The t-shirt -100% cotton written on the label.

3.  

 The kit includes a plastic drop sheet and gloves for protection.  Elastics are also included.

4.  Like nearly every project I undertake, I used the kitchen table.  Covered it in plastic and away I go.

5.  

 The water bucket to drench the t-shirt.

6.  

 Mixing the dye solutions (just add tap water).

7.  

 Submerse the t !

8.  

 Begin to swirl the centre of the t - going for the spiral shape end result .... hopefully!  You just never know how this is going to go; also part of the FUN!

9.  

 Completed spiral.

10.  Begin adding elastic bands to section off parts to be tie -dyed.  

11.  Start adding color to the "pieces of the pie".  

 One.

 Two, three,  ...

 Four colours.  Green (mix blue and yellow).

12.  

 Satisfied I added enough color. Let it sit overnight.

13.  

 Undo rubber bands.

14.  

 Rinse in cold tap water.

15.  

 Machine wash before you wear it. 

16.  After it dries.  VOILA!!!!

 GREAT RESULTS!

 COOL DESIGN.

17.  BEAUTIFUL GIRLS ... I mean, tie-dyed shirts :)  

 Models courtesy of Tse Family.  :)  

This tie-dye project worked out better than I anticipated.  Easy to do, bright colours, and not too time consuming.  Would recommend this to anybody wanting to tie-dye. 

Two sources for dying fabrics are:

1.http://www.bestdye.com/Tie-Dye-Instructions.php

2.http://www.favecrafts.com/Tie-Dye/Tie-Dye-Techniques-and-Patterns

Assignment 6:  Discharging colour

I selected a random T-shirt that was about to be recycled to experiment with colour discharge.

I tested BLEACH on the t-shirt ...

 The test proved positive and I decided to              continue. Next I cut out a rectangular piece of this fabric to plan out my color discharge project.

Here are all the supplies I used.  Household bleach (discharge agent), a cup to dip in, pencils (removal approach) to form my shapes, and wooden skewers.  I placed cardboard on the tabletop and worked over it.

 The first sketch.  

Pencil eraser to form dotted pattern.

Skewers to draw lines.

 Making progress.

 Enjoying the moment!  Dipping the pencil eraser in bleach to continue to make flowers.

VOILA!!!  Happy with the end results.  Reminds me of the fireworks for Canada Day.  Bleach worked very successfully in this application.  The tiniest drop will show as a mistake and since this was my first time doing this, I guess practice will help.  Encouraging!!! I might have to try something else :) 

Two sources to teach/learn about colour discharge are:

1.Paula Burch website:   http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/FAQ/discharge_chemicals.shtml

Paula Burch,  All About Hand Dyeing.

2. Williams, P.  website:   http://www.emich.edu/textiles/PDFs/bleach.pdf

Activity for Grade 7:  

Dye two pieces of cloth (swatches) using two separate mediums, eg. tea, kool aid, or a store bought dye.  Make a chart to compare your results showing before and after to discover which looks the brightest and which worked the best.

Reference:  Burch,P. (2014, July 2).  All about hand dyeing.  Retrieved from http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/FAQ/discharge_chemicals.shtml

Williams, P.  (2014, July 2).  Discharging dye with bleach.  Retrieved from:   http://www.emich.edu/textiles/PDFs/bleach.pdf 

 

Assignment 4:  Textile Structures
Yarns may be woven, knitted, or pressed together to make a fabric.  The method used affects the strength, appearance, feel, and care requirements of the fabric.  Woven fabrics are made by interlocking the yarns at right angles.  Examples of weaves are:  plain weaves, twill weaves, satin weaves, and the one below; a pile weave.  (Westfall, M.G., 2008, p. 51).

1.  Woven:

Corduroy is called a pile weave because it is created by adding extra yarns to a plain or twill weave.  Corduroy has a "nap" and must be kept in mind when cutting the fabric.  Other pile weaves are:  terry cloth, velvet, and velveteen.  Corduroy makes for excellent warmth in clothing because of its smooth properties.  This pile will rub off however, and therefore does not make it the best choice for places where fabric is going to worn in the same spot, e.g. a seat cover will get crushed over time with extended use.


2.  Knits:                       

The second most common type of fabric are knits. A typical t-shirt is a knit fabric spun from cotton or combinations of polyester and cotton or other fibres.  This picture is a pique-knit and it will stretch in every direction that it is pulled, unlike a weave which will usually only pull on the bias.  Knits add ease for wearing and warmth which makes them perfect for bedding, cozy blankets, sweaters, jackets, hats, scarves, mitts, etc.  Knits do stretch a fair amount and therefore are not suitable for furniture coverings and drapes.  

3.  Felted:
                                                   

Felting is  defined as a  consolidation of certain fibrous materials by the application of heat, moisture, and mechanical action, causing the interlocking, or matting, of fibres possessing felting properties. Such fibres include wool, fur, and certain hair fibres that mat together under appropriate conditions because of their peculiar structure and high degree of crimp (waviness). (Encyclopedia Britanica, 2014).   Wool can produce felting even when mixed with other fibres. Unlike bonded fabrics, felts do not require an adhesive substance for their production.  
     Felt has been used in hat making for a very long time as well as in slippers and in some padding in furniture.  For my next project, I would like to try felting at home a felted scenery or even try putting together slippers. 



4.  Pressed or rolled (synthetics)

Bonded leather, shown in the swatches above,  is a leather that takes pieces of leather and presses or rolls them together (composite) to fabric that is bonded or glued to a fabric backing.  This leather is cheap, it will chip off the backing, break,  and sometimes cracks over time making it less durable.   This leather is used in almost every application as real leather.  It will not "breathe" like real leather (which is composed of full pieces of animal hide verses smaller pieces put together) but looks and resembles leather. It will not last as long as real leather as it is thinner and shinier due to the many finishes that are added to give it shine.

Two sources useful for teaching and learning about textile structures are:
1.  Liddell, Louise and Samuels, C.  (2008, p 297).  Clothes and Your Appearance.   The Goodheart-Wilcox Company Ltd.
2.  Encyclopedia Britanica, 2014 internet source.

Activity for Grade 7:  Collect samples of fabrics that have been woven or knitted by different methods.  Identify the methods used.
Examine several fabric samples.  Display various samples of felt, nonwoven fabrics, bonded fabrics, and quilted fabrics.  Also display pictures of their end uses.  Make a bulletin board displaying such.


References:
Photos:
1.  http://image.made-in-china.com/4f0j00gBVThDPWYlov/Bonded-Leather-for-Shoes-JA-35676-.jpg
2.  http://pimg.tradeindia.com/00441859/b/2/Pique-Knit-Fabric.jpg
3.   http://www.outbackfibers.com/profusion/examples/felbi1.jpg
4.  http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/Bonded_leather.jpg

Encyclopedia Britanica, 2014.  retrieved from internet
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/204062/felting

Westfall, M. G., 2008. Successful Sewing. (pp. 50-51). The Goodheart- Willcox Company, Inc.

Assignment 3 Fibres:  Types, behaviours, uses and cares.

Since there are four types of fibres, namely:  cellulose, protein, silk, and synthetics, a simple burn test is used to determine how a fibre behaves.  Based on the behavior you can usually tell what type of fibre is present (or make a close educated guess).  I conducted the burn test on five random samples.  I gave my best guess and next to each I placed the results of the burn tests.

If you are conducing this at home, think safety first.

The garden hose?  Fire extinguisher?  Not really necessary... I resorted to a bowl of water - keep it simple!  Over the kitchen sink would work even better - I enjoyed the beautiful outdoor day and sat on my deck.  

1. SAMPLE 1.  My guess is cotton.  I know it's corduroy which I believe to be cotton.

Before.

During. Burns quickly.

After

The corduroy burned rather quickly with a white smoke.  It did not give off any noticeable objectionable odor.  I dipped the swatch immediately in water; the burnt fabric does resemble burnt paper and it did not melt or form beads.  This burn test would suggest that the corduroy swatch I tested is COTTON. 

*  Corduroy lends itself to many applications.  In spite of its pile weave (it has an obvious nap), it is often used in clothing (warm soft texture) and on coverings of furniture.  The cotton will pill off eventually (wears off with regular use) but it is easy to launder.  As for furnishings, the pile does wear down over time and staining is problematic (cotton absorbs very well - good luck getting off the coffee or wine!) 

2.  SAMPLE #2:  Agian, I believe this to be a cotton weave.  It is a gingham with flowers woven in. 

 Let's see:     Tongs holding swatch.         Add a flame.

 

  

Burned rapidly and curled.  Gave off an odor.

Final burnt swatch has black round hard beads.  My results indicate that this sample is a type of synthetic, possibly mixed with cotton.  Most likely POLYESTER.  

*This gingham and floral fabric will do well in garments - shirts, aprons, skirts, blouses, or sundresses.  It could also hold up for a window dressing (valance or short curtain).  The fabric is easy care - simply wash and dry, iron, and hang.  It will not shrink and the colors should hold up many washes.  

SAMPLE #3:  My third sample is from my clothespin bag.  It is outdoor fabric intended for lawn furniture.  I'm guessing this to be a synthetic fibre.  

 Swatch #3

 

The results here show a slow even burn with an orange flame.  The fabric curled slightly onto itself and had a slight odor.   The final burnt fabric had very small hard beads that melted together to form a hard line.  My best guess here is that this is NYLON.  

*  This fabric will work excellent on any outdoor furniture.  It does not absorb water well and will therefore hold up to the elements better.  The bright colors will last longer in the sun because of the synthetic fibres.  

SAMPLE #4:  This swatch looks like Vinyl to me.  So I'm gonna guess it's just that - Vinyl.  

This burn test indicates the presence of a petroleum product.  The flame burned and then it self extinguished.  It gave off the smell of burning plastic and the ends curled into a hard shiny mass (hard to tell with my amateur photography).  This test indicates VINYL with a blend of nylon or polyester-type fabric. 

* Vinyl is used in many applications. Car interiors, shoes, purses, luggage, bench covers etc.  Stain removal is easy because it is a PVC product and will not absorb readily - just wipe clean.  It should also last a long time as it is a man-made fabric and moths etc will not like it!

SAMPLE #5:   This sample swatch looks like organza to me.  

My burn test results indicate that this is a type of Polyester.  The fabric curled and shrunk to the flame.  The bead it left is hard and coiled.  If this were organza (typically made of silk) it will leave a dark bead which could easily be crushed - this did not.  My best educated guess compared to other burn test results suggest that this swatch is polyester and perhaps mixed with some nylon.  

*This fabric would work well for drapery sheers.  It will hang well and is fairly wrinkle resistant.  Washing and drying could be done with normal laundering; touch ups with a warm iron will work well.

5.  Two sources that would be useful in instruction on fibre identification, behaviours, uses and care are the NS grade 7 teacher's reference books:  

Teach Yourself Visually Sewing.   By Debbie Colgrove and Clothes and Your Appearance by Louise Liddell and Carolee Samuels.

6.  Grade 7 activity:   A short experiment .  Place a tablespoon of water on each of two plates  Place a linen sample on one plate and a nylon sample on the other.  Discover which absorbed more water.    Write a chart to compare the qualities of 2 selected fabrics.  

References:

All photos:  Patricia Tse, 2014