Book Review, 40 years late... and so new!

Oh Yay, old textile printing books! Taught a class entitled Paint it! Stamp it!, which gave me the chance to delve into several books bequeathed to me after the University of Iowa's Fiber Art program was shut down in 1991. Fabric Printing by Lotti Lauterburg (Reinhold Publishing, New York, 1959) covers potatoes, rubber blocks, linocuts and batik, with various "projects" in a setting that looks like it could come from a current modernist shelter magazine. I haven't found this volume for sale, but you might find it deep in a library collection or fiber artists' yard sale.

My favorite is a small square shaped book by Nora Proud, Textile Printing and Dyeing, (BT Batsford, London 1965), still available used online. She does a lot of potato printing overlaid on tie-dyed cloth. Also explored: string relief blocks, linocuts, resists. Design considerations and discussions are useful. Interesting example of natural objects and the prints that resulted from drawings made from them. Extremely interesting discussion of printing projects for children and disabled young people, both individual and group projects. Stencils with screens, reduction stencils (print, tear away, print some more, tear more away etc.)

Block Printing on Textiles by Janet Erickson is by an artist with an interesting Wikipedia page. Her book is expensive, but a glance through it will give you views of the artist spreading out her fabric on the floor and using her feet to stamp the wood block prints. She uses a lot of relief print techniques.

And lastly, there's Richard M. Procter and Jennifer F. Lew's Surface Design for Fabric (University of Washington Press, 1984), also available used online. The newest of the four books, it nonetheless has variations on techniques we use a great deal now, but fresh approaches. Good design considerations. Lots of written resource information, including sewing techniques.

What to do with leftover dye...

I like to mix thickened dyes and refrigerate them until ready for use. This eliminates some of the potential exposure to dry dye particles. Activator, which is used to make the dye react chemically with the fiber on the molecular level, is added just before use. Thickened dye that's been stored doesn't last forever, and sometimes I'm left with a batch and also a lack of focus on other painting possibilities. The solution: paint stripes! Paint doodle pillow fabrics! Don't underestimate the power of color-- endorphins awake! No need to discard...

empty dye containers, intense colors even when diluted by a pint of water.
In this expended form, there is little impact on water systems, according to various books I've read.

Doodle pillow fabrics

Karl Etoffe & Max Tessuti, a fine couture shop in lovely Freiburg

Karl Etoffe & Max Tessuti is a clothing design shop featuring the work of Gudrun von Kalckreuth. This charming shop recently celebrated its 25th anniversary and has two locations. Freiburg, Germany, a truly lovely city, is where I discovered it. I was charmed by this shop: exquisite designs in layered silks and other fabrics, often with mixed patterns but oh, so well done. It's interesting to see the aesthetic taste of another country. Take a look at these pictures, and then visit the store website, where you'll find many kinds of fabrics by choosing the "Stoffe" button, and many kinds of designs, by choosing the "Modelle" button. If you're visiting Freiburg, stop by the shop at Marienstrasse 14 in the old part of the city.

bicycles are everywhere in this city, which is also home to a large university

The website asks if we love fabric. A rough translation:
"Our philosophy: outstanding quality, beautiful fabrics, interesting structures, fantasy-full designs, all put together in a color coordinated way, and as clothing designs that work together. We appeal to creative women but also men... Our model: (designs) for living.

Customers can look down a half flight, into the work space. Shown in back: patterns

One of the staff members looks through a sample book at the front desk.

This section of Freiburg contains many small boutique-type shops and is home to a number of museums. Gerberau and Fischerau are streets dating to the 1300s and are next to this channel of water from the Dreisam River; in earlier times, this water was used for leather tanning and fisheries.