How to Print Sashiko Stencils on Fabric

If you have been swept away with the Sashiko stitching craze (like me) you are probably looking for easy ways to transfer designs onto your fabric without the hassle of tracing out grids, or buying expensive templates.

I have found a fabulous way to transfer your design onto fabric using an ink jet printer (these are the ones generally used at home with ink that is water soluble) and freezer paper. Freezer paper is the old fashioned way to wrap and store meat in the freezer and can be readily found in the supermarket. If you have trouble finding it, you can make your own (and I'll go into these steps in another post).

You willl need:

• Freezer paper
• Scissors
• Fabric (any light weight fabric will work)
• Iron
• Printer 

Step 1
Iron your fabric first to remove any wrinkles. You can work with any light weight fabric and I often use muslin (calico) because it is a good weight and it prints well. I often dye my fabrics before printing to create extra depth and interest, however plain fabrics work well too. The above sample was printed on indigo dyed muslin and the black ink contrasts well against the deep blue.

Step 2
Cut out a section of freezer paper to the same size of your printer paper (either 8.5"x11" or A4). I use a piece of printer paper as a guide or you could use card stock for something more durable.

Step 3
Place the freezer paper shiny side (plastic) down towards the fabric and iron it. The plastic will melt and adhere to the fabric.

Step 4

Cut around the paper making sure you have no frayed edges and that you are cutting close to the paper edge. 

Step 5

Place your fabric/paper into the printer facing the correct way. ie with my printer HP Envy 4000 I place it fabric side down with the paper side visible on the top. This ensures that the print goes on the fabric and not the other side. (if you get confused and accidentally place it the other way around, simply flip it and run it though the printer again)

Step 6

Press print! It should run through the printer ok and out comes an image printed on your fabric.

Step 7

You can peel off the paper and start sewing your design.

Step 8

I use a water base ink so that I can wash off the printed design after I have finished embroidering the pattern, however there are waterproof inks available if you wanted to have a permanent design.

These are some examples of fabrics that have been printed using my inkjet printer. The one below you can see wasn't completely ironed onto the freezer paper and was wrinkled going through the printer. But it still went through ok without getting stuck!

You can find lots of sashiko stencils online to download onto your computer to print.

Happy Stitching!

Winter Craft Courses at NSCCD

I will be teaching a number of classes at the Nova Scotia Centre for Craft and Design as part of their Winter 2017 program. 

Irresistible Dye Techniques
Image of dyed fabric by Sarah 

Simply Irresistible Dye Techniques

Mondays, January 23 – February 27 

6:30-9:30 (18 hours/6 weeks)

$185 + materials fee $50 payable to the instructor on first day of class

Class Size: 6 (no experience necessary)

Registration Closes January 16

Simply Irresistible covers a variety of resist dye techniques including the Japanese art of shibori (stitching, wrapping, and knotting), and ombré gradient methods using indigo. We will create silk wool and cotton samples using natural dyes and experiment with alternative dye methods such as rust. Thermo-treated techniques to create three dimensional works through the use of heat are demonstrated. 

Prints Charming Screen Printing
Image of screen print by Willa

Prints Charming

Saturdays, February 11 – March 4

1:00-4:00 (12 hours/4 weeks)

$125 + materials fee $50 payable to the instructor on first day of class

Class Size: 6 (no experience necessary)

Registration Closes February 6

Design and print your own fabrics! In this course we will use screenprinting, block printing and various resist methods. This course will encourage artistic exploration of ideas using basic colour theory to mix your own colours and experiment with transparent and opaque print pastes. The skills developed in this course can be applied in the studio or on the kitchen table. 

Design and Print your own tea towel
image of block print by Natasha

Design and Print Your Own Tea Towel 

Saturday & Sunday, January 28 & 29

1:00-4:00 (6 hours/2 days)

$60 + materials fee $50 payable to the instructor on first day of class

Class Size: 6 (no experience necessary)

Registration Closes January 23

NEW! In this two-day course students will explore shapes, colours, and layering using simple stencils to create their own personalized tea towels. 

Furoshiki wrapping cloth
Image of design by Kate 

Furoshiki (Japanese wrapping cloth)

Saturday & Sunday, April 1 & 2 

1:00-4:00 (6 hours/2 days)

$60 + materials fee $50 payable to the instructor on first day of class

Class Size: 6 (no experience necessary)

Registration Closes March 27

Students can make their own reusable and recyclable Japanese wrapping cloths, both beautiful and functional used for a lunch bag, ecowrapping technique, or clothing garment. Students will experiment with different resist dying techniques using indigo dye on silk and cotton fabric. 

Zen Stitching
Image of design by Ingeborg

Zen Stitching: Embroidery as Textile Art

Sundays, February 26 and March 5 

1:00-4:00 (6 hours/2 days)

$60 + materials fee $30 payable to the instructor on first day of class

Class Size: 6 (no experience necessary)

Registration Closes February 19

NEW!  Embroidery can be a traditional, sustainable, a simple repetitive act, allowing time for reflection and bringing a meaningful and thoughtful approach to textile practice. In this two-day course students will explore ways in which to slow down by using simple techniques, reusing and re-inventing materials and limiting equipment. Take the time to think about the practical and decorative techniques of mending.

To enrol in any of these courses, call Alexis, the Studio Coordinator, at 902-492-2524

Or register in person! Come see us at 1061 (Mary E Black Gallery) or 1096 (The Studios) Marginal Rd.

Shibori - the art of binding fabric

Most of us are familiar with the beautiful effects of the ancient Japanese art of shibori. Fabric is dipped in rich indigo blue with white organic patterns created as a result of the binding and resist methods applied to the cloth.

The Simply Irresistible Dye class have been experimenting with the indigo dye vat throughout the duration of the course. With an array delightful designs to share with the class we all 'ooh and ahh' as we discuss how we achieved the desired affect.

Fabric folded and a resist is formed using wooden sticks

It struck me that the binding of the fabric is also an art form, often under appreciated and overlooked as the shibori fabric (the end result) which is what we strive to achieve.  

The wooden blocks used to create a resist have also been dyed by the indigo and become beautiful artefacts in the process, retaining the memory of where the bands were placed to hold the wood in place.

The lines show where elastic bands were used
to hold the wood in place on the fabric. 

These binding techniques could be applied to my fascination and exploration of 222 grips for a stone.

Dying with Rust

The fun continues in the Irresistible Dye Class I teach at the Nova Scotia Centre for Craft and Design.   This week we explored dying with rust. Its quite a simple process and it achieves some fabulous results. 

To start we laid down a large plastic bag and upon this we placed our fabric that had been sprayed with a 50/50 water vinegar solution.  

Fabric with rusty huddles from an old loom laid upon it

Then we placed the rusty objects on the fabric and covered the rusty pieces with another bit of fabric. This was all wrapped in the plastic bag to prevent the fabric from drying out, the dampness encourages the objects to rust onto the fabric.

The rusty fabric after a week of soaking

We left the fabric for a week, and the above is what happened in the space of 7 days.

Each layer of fabric reacts differently to the process

Tori displaying her rust dyed fabrics 

For more images of the results of our rust dying visit the Irresistible Dye Facebook page.

Madder

This week in the Irresistible Dye class we experimented with the natural dye, Madder. 

Madder (Rubia tincture) root is one of the oldest natural dyes and has been used for many centuries in Turkey, Iran and India for the production of beautiful carpets and wall hangings. The deep rich colour, also known as Turkey red, was a closely guarded secret in this region for centuries.  

Delightful array of colours. The dye reacts differently with silk, wool and cotton.

 Madder extract produces a wide range of reds from orange, brick, blood and fiery reds. And the colour is dependant on the mordant used to fix the colour.

Alum = brick red
Tin = bright orange
Chrome = burgundy
Iron = brown

We used alum and achieved a wide array of colours as can be seen in the photos. The deeper stronger colours were achieved using protein fibres (wool and silk) with beautiful salmon colours on the cotton.

Fabric in the dye bath which was kept at 60 degrees celsius 

After dying with the madder, the fabric was removed from the dye bath and we added some iron mordant. The added iron darkens the dye bath to achieve rich chocolate brown colours.  Known as an after-mordant, it is a fun way to extend the life of the dye bath and achieve some varying colours. We let the fabric sit in the cooling dye bath (the dye was taken off the heat at this stage) for about an hour before washing in cold water. 

left: wool, cotton, silk with madder and iron
right: wool, cotton and silk with madder and alum

We have a Facebook page for the class which everyone can upload their images of the experience too. 

Irresistible Dye Techniques - Flour Paste Resist

It was the last of the six week Irresistible Dying Class at NSCCD on Tuesday and we saw a number of ideas and experiments through to completion. 

We had fun experimenting with cochineal dye (natural red dye that comes from a beetle) and the different colours it will create depending on the different mordants used to fix the dye. Alum created a scarlet pink/red, where as vinegar created a plum purple. 

Shiori resist using cochineal dye and discharge techniques

We dyed using different shibori resist techniques, and then combined these with the application of discharge dying (which is the removal of colour) using bleach.

silk resist dyed using cochineal and indigo natural dyes

Sophie explored stencilling a flour paste resist onto cotton. After it had dried she then brushed screen printing ink over the resist.

And making the flour resist was very easy, and much quicker than the Japanese rice paste method.

Flour Paste Resist

Ingredients

150g plain cooking flour

200ml (¾ cup) cold water

150ml (2/3 cup) liquid gum arabic

Method

Mix the cold water and flour in a mixing pot, stirring well. Heat the mixture on the stovetop, stirring continuously until a thick paste is formed.

Allow to cool slightly, then sire in the liquid gum arabic.

Strain any lumps through a sieve (very important if you want to pipe the design onto the fabric. not so important if you are painting or stencilling the design)

Sophie with her flour resist design

A detail of the flour resist

Using a similar resist method, this time gel glue on cotton, the class created an interesting resist which when dried was dipped into shibori. 

gel glue resist with indigo

We also had fun experimenting dying with rust, which is so beautiful in colour, and so easy to do. 

Dying with rust.

I have put together a pinterest board of ideas and techniques here if you would like further inspiration and ideas.