The manual recommends Experimental Textiles by Kim Thittichai as a source for this section of the course.
I already had hot textiles, her earlier book, and didn’t see a significant amount of different techniques in her new publication so I used the book I had. However, I notice that Experimental Textiles has a large gallery section showcasing not only her work but that of others working in a similar vein which is interesting.
Kim is very accomplished in using heat to distress and texturize surfaces. She is excellent at colouring and layering and her samples are innovative, contemporary and compelling. As multiple techniques are used in each of her works they can be viewed again and again with new details being discovered each time.
All the samples come from very different start points – be it Tyvek, pelmet Vilene, Lutradur, plastic or cellophane – and end up with quite diverse conclusions, but use much of the same techniques to achieve these results. Again, she has included pieces from other artists, describing their processes.
Fragile Fabrics by Jan Beaney & Jean Littlejohn, Book 23 of their Double Trouble slim-line series, arrived just in time for this assignment.
I have this entire set and can’t fault one of them. Always jam-packed with info and generous with colour photos I find them an invaluable resource.
This one concentrates on creating transparency and fragility within both hand and machined pieces.
Although only consisting of 24 pages it is a very comprehensive guide to constructing a variety of outcomes and also refers the reader back to Book 17, Grids to Stitch, which I also used.
Contemporary Knitting by Ruth Lee. Much as I think she does wonderful things, I’m not sure I managed to translate anything into my own work.
If you are a knitter and want to expand into textural and dimensional art pieces then this is a very informative book but my leaning and interest lies elsewhere.
I did the best I could for the knitted nets workshop but knitting and crochet just don’t create any Wow! factor in me and I find outcomes hard to visualise.
Stitching the Textured Surface by Lynda Monk and Carol McFee. I wouldn’t say my copy is now dog-eared but it has been extensively used. Every page is an inspiration, step-by-step photos ensure processes are fully understood and reading is clear and straightforward with many aspects in bullet-point form.
My butterfly sample, in workshop 7, was made using many of the suggestions and processes from this book. Whilst some of the techniques could be said to overlap with what Kim Thittichai offers I’ve found it valuable to have both books in my library as their work interpretations are very different.
With regard to knotted net techniques, I used the manual and also trolled youtube watching numerous fishing videos on repairing nets and creating cargo nets with shuttles.
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