Some Creative Goodies

 

1. Creating wall art using Styrofoam balls.  (196) This Macrame Wall ArtDIY is so easy, you'll be doing it in no time! - YouTube

You can use liquid starch as a stiffener as an alternative.  The stiffener isn’t absolutely necessary, but it apparently does make things easier and keeps the individual strings hanging straighter and prevent them from tangling so much (from the research that I’ve done).  If you are just making one, you can use a ring, like the pictured steps below.

When you finished your first gather wraps, you can add the Styrofoam ball.

 

2. I found  the artist for the fantasy floral wrapping involving pompoms, I mentioned at the Zoom Gather and Stitch. I kept on searching and finally found a pin that credited the maker. It is also created by Mandi Smethells. (Admission: I hadn’t viewed all her posts – I’d looked at her reels for technique ideas that she generously shares, but hadn’t viewed all her stills)

 Her Instagram is on your Artist list. For anyone interested, we can discuss how something like this can be created.

 

3.  Interesting idea for wall art:  Use thicker rope and arrange it in a pleasing configuration.  Use the gathering wrap in colours of your choice to join it together where the rope touches. Unravel the ends and tie to driftwood or a dowel.   Simple, but effective. 

 

 

 

Lesson 1

Fiber Emballage

What is it?

Fiber Emballage is a form of fiber art that integrates the techniques from Macrame to create fiber art forms by wrapping of yarn and other natural materials around structural materials like rope and wire. This technique was popularized by Mandi Smethells in 2017 and has emerged as a novel trend in fiber arts. Tutorials of this technique have been recently published in the June 21st, 2018, issue of Molly Makes.

Examples of Fiber Emballage by Mandi Smethells can be found at: https://www.instagram.com/mandismoothhills/?hl=en

But if you look at it closely, emballage, or wrapping with fiber has been around for longer than seven years. Mandi just brought the technique back into popularity and made it something of a trend.  As the saying goes… what was old is new again.

We are going to start with some inspiration and look at what textile artists from around the world are doing with this interesting textile art form.

Then we will look at materials that we can use to practice emballage and begin to learn basic wrapping techniques.

 

 

 

 

Inspirational Textile Artists

Mandi Smethells                           https://www.instagram.com/mandismoothhills/?hl=en

Alicia Scardetta                             aliciascardetta.com 

Maria Elena Sotomayor                telaresytapices.blogspot.com

Michaela Kučerová                       https://www.instagram.com/made_bymishel/

Sheila Hicks                                  WORKS

Bisa Butler                                     Home |Bisa Butler Art

Julia Wright                                    Julia Wright (@julia_._wright)• Instagram photos and videos

Aude Franjou                                 Instagram

Fin & Nox                                      Instagram

Evalepri                                          Instagram

Ruben Marroquin                          Ruben Marroquin Art

Ana Mariani                                   Ana Mariani

Genevieve Bozec                           https://www.totems-et-tubes.com/

Annienke                                        ANNIENKE

Helena Emmans                             Hand dyed thread pieces —Helena Emmans

Abigail Doan                                   https://www.abigaildoan.com

Marjeane                                         MARJEANE(Marion Coudert) - Textile artist

Thomas Defalco                              Instagram

Myra Burg                                       Art For The Wall | Myra Burg Quiet Oboes |United States

Amanda McLaurin                          Amanda McLaurin - Contemporary AbstractFiber Artist

Ateliepitoresco                                Instagram

Jennifer Christie                              Instagram

Charlene Jol                                    Instagram

Tammy Kanat                                 Tammy Kanat

Anton Alverez                                 ThreadWrapping Architecture – Anton Alvarez

 

 

               

Wrapping Techniques

As far as I have been able to discover, there are three basic wrapping techniques.  They are pretty much the same, they  just vary a bit in the way they finish off and it will be up to you to choose the one that you find easiest or most appropriate to use for the job.  I find that I use different approaches for different types of projects.  Some are just easier in different circumstances and ease of wrapping seems to be what it’s all about.

 

Wrapping Technique 1

This technique I found used more in jewelry making and by Mexican and South American makers. It involves using a doubled fiber and a lark’s head knot and using glue to secure the end.

You attach the double strand of fiber to the rope by means of a lark’s head knot and then wrap the double strand of fiber around the rope.  If a variegated fiber is used this results in an interesting pattern.  The fiber is usually secured at the end with glue.

Demo Video

 

Wrapping Technique 2

Gathering Knot  or Whipping

This is used in macrame and in sailing:

The only difficulty with this technique is that you need to have some idea, in advance, of how much colour you want to wrap because you need to make a loop, the length of the desired wrap, in advance of wrapping.  Typically, you would use this for small areas of colour though there is nothing to prevent you from adding another section in the same colour in just the same way.  It is often done.

Demo Video

 

Wrapping Technique 3

The difference with this technique is that the loop is at the top end not the bottom and you start wrapping there to secure the tail, Once the tail has been secured, you pull on the tail to carefully pull the loop under the wrapping and continue wrapping the rope.  When you have finished wrapping (which can be as long as you want), you thread your loose end on a needle and hide it by inserting the needle up several layers of the wrap and then cutting off the fiber as close as you can.

(Forgive my drawing – it was last minute – I couldn’t find one)

 

Demo Video

 

Welcome to Fiber Emballage

I want to invite you to join me on my latest exploration – Fiber Emballage.  The word just rolls off the tongue.  Little did I know when I took an online video course with Domestika over a year ago that I would be sliding down another rabbit hole (story of my life, I think).

Back in the 70’s and 80’s I used to do a lot of macramé and recently I came across an interesting technique that could be added to macramé (or used independently) called emballage. I was intrigued and decided to try it out. I loved the class but thought that there had to be more possibilities to it than were presented in the class and so the slide down the rabbit hole began.  I was correct and what we are going to explore are some of the possibilities that I found during my search.

I was inspired by some truly amazing textile artists who are doing incredible work that falls under the heading of Fiber Emballage or fiber wrapping.

Here is a list of materials that you will want to gather:

Cotton Clothesline – available from the Dollar Store  ( we will practice techniques on this and it's useful as a base for fabric wrapping but because it has a core it can’t be used for a project with a frayed or tassel end like cotton rope can)

Cotton Rope  - (or Macrame cord) in various sizes (diameters) available from the Dollar Store. You will want at least one thicker size or several pieces of a smaller size that you can group together to try a chunky piece.

Cotton String - (optional)  could be cotton yarn

Hemp or Jute cord or rope – available from Dollar Store.  Comes in different sizes

Synthetic cord - (optional) – from Dollar Store  (paracord or polyester rope)

Wire – for shaping (optional)

Solid or variegated yarns – from your stash

Fancy fibers - for wrapping

Worsted weight yarns in neutral colours  - can be used as base for wrapping

Fabric strips – for wrapping or as base

Dyed scrim (optional)

Needles and thread           

Glue (optional)

Scissors

 

Materials List Video

Lesson 6

 Pre-packaged paper mâché

Last class several people, including me, mentioned having pre-packaged paper mâché. Celluclay by Amaco is one brand but Activa is another. These packaged products advertise that you just need to add water and you end up with a paper mâché clay that you can then mold into the shapes that you want.

I decided to put my product to the test.  I had one product from my local dollar store and a package of Celluclay.  I decided to give both a try.  The dollar store product had absolutely no instructions at all, so I used the ones that came with my other product and decided to apply them to both.  That worked reasonably well, though the $store product seemed to require less water or didn’t have any sort of binder in the product itself.  When dry, my vessel felt more like a cast paper product than a firm, papier mâché product.  I would add glue to my water the next time I use my $store paper pulp.

Basically, you add your pulp to water and mix until you have a thick pulp and no air bubbles.  You want all the paper pulp to be wet and to have absorbed the water, but you don’t want it to feel sloppy.  You want it to stick together in a ball, like dough.  I kneaded mine with my fist after mixing it with my fork. I wanted my fibres to mix together and mesh. The Celluclay gave precise measurements of water to pulp. I found that product dusty and would recommend good ventilation or wearing a mask so that you don’t breathe in the powder.

Video: Making the Pre-Packaged Paper Pulp Product

Once you have your dough, you can prepare your mold in the same way that you have for your other vessels and begin applying the paper mâché.  You will find that it is a bit moist and therefore does seem a bit more susceptible to gravity.  It will also take longer to dry. If you plan to texture it in any way, it is best to wait until it has begun to firm/dry up a bit before doing that.  I waited several hours before planning and working on my handle areas on my first vessel.

Video: Making a Vessel with Pre-PackagedPaper Pulp

My second experiment with pre-packaged pulp was with Celluclay and that proved to be a little firmer, though still not quite as firm as the DIY paper mâché.  To be honest, I may not have been as accurate in following the directions as I could have been but the vessel did seem strong when released from the mold.