Inspiration and Frustration

I'm really busy these days. I'm still remodeling a house, and even though I'm not doing much of the physical labor, it's still nearly a full-time job (it's fun, though--better than a dollhouse!). I'm still working on my jeans circle quilt (a bit more than one-third done with the main stitching now). And I'm doing the mom thing (dropping off, picking up, helping with homework, volunteering at the schools...). Some days I'm lucky just to get a shower!

Today was a little different. I took a carload of kids on a shopping/exploring field trip up to Japantown in San Francisco.


We hit the Pika Pika photo shop, where the kids all crammed into a single photo booth for a goofy group picture, Kinokuniya Stationery and Gift, where I got some cool origami paper (but not as much as I wanted!), and Ichiban Kan, where I got some small plastic boxes and sticky notes, and most of the kids got various trinkets. We also went to the Soko Hardware store across the street, where I got a single-burner electric stove (doesn't everyone need one of those for heating batik wax?), and some of the kids got things like ceramics and paper lanterns. But my best treasures came from the Kinokuniya Bookstore, where I found two gorgeous shibori books for my reference collection.

I got Shibori for Textile Artists by Janice Gunner and Shibori by Yoshiko Wada. I had previously checked out the hardback copy of the Wada book from my local library (multiple times!), so I know it's good, and getting it in paperback was an easy choice. I hadn't seen the Gunner book before, but it looked interesting, so I got it. I looked at it later after I got home, and it's even nicer than I had thought initially.

So now I've got lots of fresh inspiration in my hot little hands, and not much time right now to go act on it! Shibori can be quite time consuming, too, especially for the stitch resist type (the simple shirt below took me a few hours to stitch).


Ah, such sweet frustration!

Inspiration All Around

Inspiration is often an elusive beast. I can sometimes go for months without doing very much tie-dye, just because I don't feel inspired by anything new to try out. And then there are other times when I'll be tying and/or dyeing every day or two, because I just can't wait to see the next set of results.


I get a lot of inspiration from other people, as many artists do. My friend with the tie-dyed couch has been a great inspiration lately, partly because of what he has been trying out himself with his own tie-dye (he's big on marbles), and partly because of his sheer "no matter what, it's gonna turn out great!" joie-de-tie-dye. I wish he could bottle that stuff!

Another friend gets inspiration for her oil paintings, and moral support to just keep working at it, from groups of other artists online (see her blog for more inspiration). The Internet has really made it easier to find support and inspiration from far-flung places--you don't have to host a salon in Paris anymore.

When you need an inspirational boost, books and videos can really be useful. Both the video "The Art of Tie-Dye" with Michael Fowler, and the video "Learn How to Tie Dye: Complete 3 Volume Set" with Tom and Martine, show some really inspirational pieces, even if you don't want to just follow their "cookbook" steps. The "Tie Dye, Back By Popular Demand" book by Virginia Gleser is an inspirational starting point too. Dharma provides even more inspiration on their website with their "Featured Artists" section.

But for complete "this is why I do it" inspiration, kids are the best. My daughters enjoy wearing tie-dye, and are quite happy to suggest what they'd like to add to their wardrobes! One of them likes to dye her own, and both of them are always happy to "adopt" shirts, sheets and other tie-dyed treasures that emerge from my work area in the garage.

First graders, Girl Scout troops, and other groups of kids are also good. The abundant energy and the wild abandon with which kids dye their pieces just charges the entire atmosphere. It's hard not to absorb their enthusiasm and want to dive in to do a few more pieces of my own.


While it's a lot of work, some of the volunteers (including me) who do the annual first-grade tie-dye project with the local school almost fight over getting to take the shirts home to wash en masse. Getting to look at all those wild shirts at once really gets the creative juices going.


But that's enough for now. I've got to go get my next batch in the wash...

What Do I Need and Where Do I Get It? Tie-Dye Resources

It's always nice to have some lists handy of where to get stuff.

Dyes

• The key thing here: if you are doing tie-dye on cotton (or some other natural fibers), use Procion-MX dyes (several suppliers offer their own brands of Procion-MX dyes). Never never never use "all-purpose" dyes like RIT that are available in supermarkets and craft stores.
• In case you're wondering, I get all my dyes, chemicals, and most of my supplies (squeeze bottles, etc.) from Dharma Trading Company (Dharma is one of the main suppliers for professional textile crafts. They are in San Rafael, CA, so if you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, even standard shipping only takes a couple of days if you order from their website).

White Stuff

• I get most of my white stuff from Dharma. Those doggie shirts are soooo cute!
• Your local Goodwill store is a great place to get white things you can't find at Dharma. Who cares if there is a little stain on it?
• Watch stores like Target and Mervyn's for end-of-season sales on basics like white kids' shirts (turtlenecks, the latest beaded-neckline styles, and so on). Even if it's not on sale, there are often cheap white clothes available that will look great tie-dyed!
• IKEA is a great source for white stuff for the home, especially couches with slipcovers! It's a good place to get white sheets, too.

Books

Some of my favorite books on tie-dye:

• "Tie Dye To Die For & Batik You Can't Resist!" available from Dharma
• "Tie Dye, Back By Popular Demand" by Virginia Gleser available from Dharma or (sometimes) Harmony (she is the Harmony matriarch)

Videos/DVDs

Both of these DVDs are really useful and well worth getting.

• "Learn How to Tie Dye: Complete 3 Volume Set" available from Dharma or Amazon
• "The Art of Tie-Dye"available from Dharma or Amazon

Links

See the blog sidebar for my constantly-growing collection of useful links.