Friday, September 25, 2009

my "studio"

Let me be honest right from the start. There are so many crafts I love and they tend to take over most of the house.  Some parts of my crafts have permanent housing; others must be taken out and put away again.  There are 3 major crafts that I do most of the time--tie dyeing, jewelry making, and paper crafts.  

I will focus on tie dyeing here.  I have been tie dyeing for about 18 years.  Over the years I have developed my own processes.  I have sold in many venues--from craft fairs, wholesaling, commissioned work (team shirts, costuming, chamois, etc), to selling out of my own store.   Early on, I discovered that teaching others is such fun!

My tie dyeing studio can begin in my basement (sorry, no tours!) where all my tie dyeing equipment is stored.  There I mix up the dyes.  I also have a table under a window where I do the actual dyeing.









My kitchen table is where I plan and draw my designs.  I use actual dye to paint the colors.

Now it's off the the family room to tie up the items.  Here I am in the process of tying up chamois.  (These are soft absorbent towels that swimmers and divers use.  I custom dye them for Kast-A-Way Swimwear)



Here is Oliver, my special helper.  Actually, I think he is looking for an opportunity to sneak rubber bands!




Back down to the basement to check on the chamois which must "cure" for at least 24 hours.


some completed chamois are below















If I hand paint a design (with dye), I sit at my kitchen table.
Here is a dress painted with dragonflies and roses that was first washed, dried, soaked in a solution, dyed, cured, washed, dried, soaked in a solution, dried, painted, cured, washed, dried.

Sometimes, my "studio" is somewhere besides my home.  I teach the tie dyeing process in many places--homes, schools, churches, businesses, parks...wherever.

On the right is a Girl Scout camp where I taught this past summer.  See this post for more photos.  It was so much fun!


Below is a class taught at a school.  I rarely am able to take photos while teaching.











Here is a Girl Scout Troop proudly showing off the shirts I helped them make!
This post is for the etsy bloggers' carnival which will be posted on Monday, September 28 by Edi at Memories for Life Scrapbooks.
Here is  the direct link to Edi's post with links to all participants (actually quite a few!).

PS  Here's my blogging spot. 

photos by me © 2009 except last one which is also ©.

34 comments:

  1. Ooh, that's wonderful that you do the tie-dying! And that you teach it as well! That's awesome! I haven't done anything like that in years but I've always loved the results...so many bright colors!

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  2. Margaret, you are so talented and your tie dyeing is beautiful. I remember the post about you teaching a class at the Girl Scout camp but I had no idea you did it to this extent. The chamois are great, I love all the colors.

    Oliver looks like he would be a really good helper.

    Have a great weekend,
    Judy

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  3. Your space is so organized and your helper is so cute! I enjoyed seeing your work process for tie dying and the results are wonderful!

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  4. Wow - those chamois are gorgeous! And I love the photo of the Girl Scouts - and the one of Oliver is wonderful, of course (Tasha is very fond of rubber bands too.)

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  5. Great works and great post!! Love that you have a class for children!!

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  6. Tie-dying absolutely fascinates me, maybe because I've never done it, or seen it done. So it was wonderful to get a look at the process, done by someone who really, really knows what she's doing. Thanks!!

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  7. hi there, couldn't believe my eyes that you love tie n dye so much! in India, every womans has some tie n dyed clothes in her wardrobe, our stoles, scarves etc.. are also at times tie n dyed.. brilliant colors you use and it's great that you are Promoting this art ! loved Oliver [cat] and your studio is honestly amazing, can i come over for coffee ?hahaahaha
    love Naqvee

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  8. I really miss tye-dying... it's been a while! Your items are great!

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  9. You Have got a beautiful Studio !! I loved that !! Fantastic..Unseen Rajasthan

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  10. How very cool! I love the dress with the dragonflies, too. :)

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  11. Oh wow, you are so talented, Margaret! Makes me want to try tie-die...it's so pretty!

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  12. Excellent blog posting, thank you for sharing. Now I exhausted..where do you find the energy and motivation?

    Your work is awesome, I'm still a tye dye kinda girl!

    So, your name is Margaret...hope I remember that Splendid LOL

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  13. Great post...and I love all the great photos you shared :)

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  14. Wow, that is some serious dyeing! I like that you at least have a space in which you can do it. I tend to rove about the house as well.

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  15. You do beautiful work! Thank you for sharing a little bit about your studio and your process :)

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  16. Our kitty Chaplin, who could be close cousins to your Oliver [Chap's pic is on my blog side bar] loves to steal things like rubber bands too... Little devils!

    xxx

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  17. Those girl scouts radiate the positive vibes of your artwork girl!

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  18. Great creative use of all the areas of your home!

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  19. I like doing several crafts too! Sometimes I think I should narrow what I do and brand myself with one type of item. I'm easily bored and, anyway, what fun would that be? You seem to have found a wonderful biz with one craft! Kudos to you!

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  20. How fun! I love that you work with kids =) Great tour!

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  21. What a cute helper!

    I really like the dress with the dragonflies--you are so talented!!

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  22. very cool! I am always amazed by the designs you can get from scrunching & rubber banding :) fun studio! So, does kitty ever her rubber bands? :)

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  23. What a wonderful post! It's so much fun seeing what people are doing and where they do it. Thanks for a little taste of your life and crafting!

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  24. Please stop by my blog to receive an award!!

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  25. Your tie dye are fantastic! You're so talented and creative..

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  26. WOW!!! This is a fabulous post. I work a summer program for teens, and one of the activities is tie dying. They love it! I especially love the hand painted dress you made. Oh and your little black n white helper. I think I saw a rubber band under his left paw....

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  27. Hello Margaret

    I enjoyed learning about your activities, and the art of tie dying...
    When tied up the chamois look like firecrackers waiting for a spark...and when unwrapped they look as if they have met that spark and are exploding....

    Happy days

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  28. How wonderful to be so busy and creative. I love dragonfly dress.
    Sunny :)

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  29. looks like lots of fun! And what bright colors. Nice to be able to share, too! {:-Deb

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