look1/proto#2

 sunday afternoon at the LAB, sewing and modifying my second prototype for look 1. 

I made the pattern from the 1st drape, modified some things and cut it out of new cotton knit fabric...

 I thought perhaps it could give me a better idea of how the realpiece would look/feel.

 The "minisleeve" took me forever, and I am still not convinced- but today I have a meeting with my prof, and i needed to moove on. So here is it THUS FAR:

                

prototyping II

This past wednesday I was still off from my internship because my boss was still in London presenting her line at Estetica. 

So...

 I went to the LAB to try and get a head start with the draping/patternmaking of my prototypes! I AM 80% done... I need to drape some sleeves and pattern my second look. well... thats maybe like 60%.. LOL!

here are some imgs of the back/side of  look #2.

                                   

have a good one!

swatch development

these are the newly developed swatches. more bubbles, this time KNIT with the yarn that I'm actually using for the garments... its 100% muesling free merino wool and a 100%organically grown cotton.

last night I watched about an hour and a half of "GONE WITH THE WIND" while I practiced my boullion knots. I used DMC "mouline special" in forest green, terracotta, and brown. I think it looked great just with the brown knots, but got carried away and kept going. Please remember these "fabrics" will not be white in the end.

this was my original attempt at DYING (with rit dyes just to test)... these are not made with the wool yarn, so the de-poof after traveling from/to school. THIS is why I'm in dying-crisis!

dying questions

I'm becoming a bit obsessed with this DYE_journey. I've always been a fan of textile arts and dying/fabric painting in particular is something I've practiced since very young.

I never knew I would have to ask myself if dying was an option or not- because of the environmental consecuences it has. I guess, I just never thought about it until now.
THERE IS SO MUCH TO LEARN!

I've continued my quest for the "perfect" dyes for this project. I'm just too deep into the hole to retract and change the entire concept: 

• TO BEGIN WITH... my inspiration is about "critical weathering", moss and roots.. those things are intensely green, brown and "dirty"... not a lot of white going on...
• I've ALREADY bought my ecologically friendly (100%organically grown cotton + 100% muesling free merino wool), "natural" yarns (meaning, not colored)
• developed swatches
• and fallen too in ♥ with what I'm doing

PLUS, I think that design shouldnt "suffer" because of sustainability, and that there is no need to be "FANATICAL" or "ESTREMIST" to consider yourself  "responsible". The whole idea is to work in a whollistic way, and considering all steps of the process as an opportunity for making "better", ethically concious desitions. There are so many ways we can CHANGE the negative impact we have: 

• by working with sustainable materials (recycled, organically produced, fairly-traded...)
• producing things using nicer, slower, less industrial, artigianal methods
• thinking about reducing our waste, and the unnecessary
• questioning the message we are trying to convey 
• pondering about the maintenance and end of life of the products we create...

(just some examples)

so...

since I am using very nice materials, making everything BY HAND (with the help of a mecanical/not elecrical machine), 
to make what I hope will be some beautifull works of art that will both be WORN and EXhibited, are NOT "TRENDY" and will thus last a LIFETIME...

I think it will be okay to use some [non hazardous, non toxic, non chrome, low impact, heavy-metal free ACID dyesm that conform to the Organic Trade Association's Standards x Organic Fiber processing] that I found through ETSY: 

Greener Shades<sup>TM


any comments???</sup>

coming to terms with DYE-ing

I know one cannot believe eveything the world wide web provides, but in my efforts to work in a more sustainable/ethically responsible way, most of my accessible re-sources are online.

After several  failed attempts to dye my organic cotton and muesling free wool- knit swatches using natural materials (spinach, tumerric and curry spices, coffee) I think its time to admit that they are not going to provide me with the colors I'm needing for THIS specific project. 

[The curry spice gives a beautiful INTENSE mustard color that I will definitely play with in a near future-despite the pungent "spice" scent it leaves behind. My roommate said it was a bit overwelming-aka:not pleasant-!]

so... I'm off to finding other possibilities within the "environmentally-friendly" realm. 

I've started looking up "low impact dyes" and according to kidbean.com: 

Low-impact dyes are petroleum-based, synthetic dyes with a higher than average absorption rate (70%-80%, depending on the color). This means less water is required in the rinse process and less dye runs off in the water; therefore, the dyes have a lower impact on the environment. Low-impact dyes also typically do not contain heavy metals (like chrome, copper and zinc), nor do they require toxic chemical mordants to fix them to the fiber. 

Even though they are made from synthetic materials, low-impact dyes are generally considered eco-friendly and often preferable to natural dyes because:

• natural dyes often require a much larger quantity of dye (often close to or equal to the weight of the fiber itself), which may mean a much greater environmental impact
• natural dyes often require a much larger volume of water for the dye process
• natural dyes require the use of chemical mordants to fix the dye to the fiber
• natural dyes are available in fewer colors than low-impact dyes

AND (http://organicclothing.blogs.com/my_weblog/2005/10/dyes_and_chemic.html):

1. Low-impact fiber-reactive dyes.  Fiber-reactive dyes are a synthetic dye that chemically bonds directly to the clothing fiber molecules. They were first used commercially in 1956.  The fixation or absorption rate of low-impact dyes is at least 70%, creating less waste water runoff and therefore a lower impact on the environment. Recent advances have created fiber-reactive dyes with colors that are brighter and richer, and they provide excellent colorfast properties. They contain no heavy metals or other known toxic substances, and they meet all European Union criteria for being an eco-friendly pigment.  But, the actual dyes in almost all low-impact fiber-reactive dyes are still made from synthetic petrochemicals.
2. Natural dyes. "Contrary to popular opinion, natural dyes are often neither safer nor more ecologically sound than synthetic dyes. They are less permanent, more difficult to apply, wash out more easily, and often involve the use of highly toxic mordants.  However, not all mordants are equally toxic, and the idea of natural dyestuffs is aesthetically pleasing." according to Paula Burch, PhD.  Mordants help make the dye colorfast by chemically bonding the dye to the fabric. Dr. Burch reports that "Some natural dyes, such as the hematein derived from logwood, are themselves significantly poisonous. Of course, the color possibilities are far more limited than synthetic dyes."

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

CAN I COMPROMISE?

I'm thinking that my next collections might be all white, beige and brown--- this dying process is beginning to make things VERY COMPLICATED!

♥

proto-typing

did you know that there is so much more work to these garments/art pieces than meets the eye?

did you know that the best part of being a "designer" is the PROCESS OF CREATION? 

did you know that every aspect of development has endles possibilities, that when you are on a roll -too many ideas come to mind at once- and it's difficult to focus, keep a straight face and concentrate on FINISHING something- I just want to play all day!

here are some pictures of my "drapes" for 2 of my thesis collection "garments"

bubble-ING away!

happy saturday.feliz sabado. buon sabato....

 (beh, ormai è domenica!!!)

today I woke up at the crack of dawn for a meeting and brunch at greydog

- YUMmmy (french toast w fruit, eggs over easy+ homefries)-

 and then

headed to New Jersey to the Silk-City warehouse/outlet sale, which takes place every first saturday of the month... ONLY that they were not there (perhaps due to sucky weather, but they could've at least put a sign up on the door)...

dissapointed, we came back to NYC, and to FIT's knitting lab- where I decided to test my thicker yarns on the 3gg brother machine...

 I EMBARKED ON A BUBBLE-Y adventure. The results were really cool...

below: some pics of the swatches I've developed so far.

I've been playing with "bubble" size, placement, shape, technique and YARN CONTENT.

my conclusions for the day:

1. will need to use some wool to help the cotton keep its shape
2. there are not many fine gauge sustainable  yarns
3. might need to knit each bubble individually - to individually dye them, to indivdually place them on a form, to FORM- a conglomerate of magic moss-y bubbles!
4. this is going to be a lot of work and a "couture-ish" adventure, but I'm really enjoying it and willing to give it a go go!

bubble swatches togetha'

the 1st bubble ever- I like the idea of making indiv. ones         

this is probably the winner- merino wool +100% cotton

i like the juxtaposition/conglomeration, and irregularity!

              holding needles on "E", knit just one part                                                              this one is w shortrowing-like socks

Lion Brand Recycled Cotton- from Tshirts

 see how they protrude!

 here I added some merino wool- it started to have a better effect! I also combined 2 techniques

  this was the first swatch I made once I figured out the technique- but I was still using the 100%cotton yarn + 6gg brother machine
 the shapes were good, but they didnt stay "poofy".

"thesis" collection: sketches/initial concept boards

saludos cariños!
I promised more images and here they are: I am sharing with you the initial mood/concept boards and 1st sketches for the "thesis" collection I am working on.

I posted some swatch development images before- and will post more soon- but here is the real juicy stuff:

translated into form

raw inspiration: mossyness/critical weathering

whalá! still under development/research-- but ideas are flowing. I plan on doing 1 & 3 (left -right)

swatching bubbles!

ciaooooo!!!

I am posting some PICTURES today!!! I know the last few times I've blabbered a lot and not entertained you with visual candy...

 but today-I've got something to share.

The semester is going pretty well -so far- (only 2 days into it). I'm excited, my teachers are excited, I've got an  internship at a happy place, and I'm starting work officially today (hostessing at a tapas bar called TIA POL, with people that are so passionate about food, I ♥ it!)

I had a break between classes/meetings and decided to check if the knitting lab was open

- AND IT WAS-!!!

 so... I continued testing some knitting techniques for my thesis collection.

 I've been trying to achieve the effect of BUBBLES -or should I say- MOSS mounds, and have been really satisfied with the results so far. I'm going to keep experimenting with the sizes and "roundiness/pointeness" of the shapes, and I think the weight of the fabric is not quite right yet... but in terms of technique- I like where its going.

enjoy:

this is the entire swatch , knit on a brother machine, single bed, with 100% cotton yarn

 1st part: using shortrowing, like sock's heels and toes, various sizes

attempt 2: using shortrowing and another technique with various tensions

Its like knitting socks... well- like knitting toes and heels -SEPARATELY-

On thursday, I'm consulting with another professor, so I might have more samples...

 I also plan to dye these to test the natural/non toxic earth pigments.

 I'm thinking about getting from 

Kremer Pigments 

247 West 29th Street 

NYC

happy WEDNESDAY. 

feliz MIERCOLES.

buon MERCOLEDI

♥♥♥!!!