"Printing your own fabric opens up an entire new world of design, especially for quilters, sewists, and other textile artists. Until now, the process of printing with dyes could seem difficult to learn and even harder to implement. But Carol Soderlund and Melanie Testa have taken all the stumbling blocks out of the way of would-be fabric dyers and printers. With step by step advice, instruction, and photographs, this book is a master class in using dyes and low-tech equipment to print your own fabric, and it begins at the beginning. If you've never handled dyes before, never designed your own print motifs, aren't even sure what supplies or space you might need, everything you want to know is here. More advanced students will value the in-depth presentation of techniques, tools, and insights into approaching fabric printing as an art and taking your work to the next level. The opportunities for fun creative expression and producing your most original and exciting fabric work ever are unlimited with Carol and Melanie's friendly help. It's time to try playful fabric printing!" -- Provided by publisher

Create bold block prints for a completely custom wardrobe--print fabrics, customize patterns, and sew garments that truly express your own style. This book offers: • Clear how-to instructions for carving motifs from soft blocks, plus 13 designs to get you started • A guide to printing on fabric and construct repeating patterns • 13 projects and full-size patterns for garments and accessories for a complete hand-printed wardrobe Infuse your everyday style with more color, more pattern, and more personality. Printmaker and textile designer Jen Hewett presents her distinctive process for block-printing yards of fabric with garment sewing in mind. Explore the process of designing and printing fabric through step-by-step instruction on carving blocks and printing pattern repeats. Hewett makes creating custom, hand-printed fabric approachable and doable. Inspired by her California home, Hewett's designs reference the plants and landscape around her through botanical motifs, organic shapes, and a bold graphic quality. Paired with a playful use of color, the pattern designs here offer the perfect place to start with block-printing. Once you've printed your fabric, it's time to sew. With sewing patterns for simple garments and accessories, you'll discover the play between fabric and finished project and work toward building a highly customizable wardrobe. With step-by-step photos, clear instructions, and full-size sewing patterns this is a complete guide to sewing clothes that truly reflect your style and personality.

The art quilt design process is thoroughly explored in this guide through journaling, technique experiments, and creating small projects using a variety of mixed medias, fiber arts, and surface designs. With the goal of creating imagery and motifs that become the focal point of a quilt, practical exercises and creative hands-on activities direct quilters from concept to finished product while developing a unique voice. Topics include such tasks as fabric manipulation, stamping, resists, layering, fabric painting, dyeing, stitching, applique, collage, machine embroidery, and beading. Insider tips and tricks for making the most of time and resources are sprinkled throughout, including the incorporation of finishing touches, special bindings, and creative fixes.

Lilly Pulitzer's pre-1985 resort wear is an American classic. This book introduces for the first time the archive of drawings that were the basis for the whimsical and timeless prints we all know and love. The brightly colored, playful prints of Lilly Pulitzer's clothing were a staple of American fashion in the 1960s, '70s, and '80s--worn by members of society from Palm Beach to Nantucket, actresses, models, and stylish housewives. One could always spot a "Lilly" with its undeniable characteristics: clean, comfortable lines; bright and vivid colors; and the fantastical design of its fabrics. Whether at the beach or a cocktail party, these simple shifts for women and girls and jackets and trousers for the gents were a preppy rite of passage. The majority of Pulitzer's fabric designs from 1962 through 1985 were based on artwork by Key West-based artist Suzie Zuzek. These designs--monkeys sipping martinis, dancing flowers, colorful seashells, op-art geometrics--were all the rage and attracted the eye of such ladies as Jackie Kennedy, Happy Rockefeller, and Dina Merrill. This book--which is a treasure trove of the iconic prints and contextualizes the purely American label--is a must-have for the libraries of those who love fashion and social history.

The simple petal shape takes center stage in this charming book, Playful Petals by Corey Yoder. Each of the 18 appliqué projects employ simple piecing techniques; the appliqué is straightforward, eliminating the need for reverse templates, additional seam allowances, and time consuming methods. The techniques are well suited for sewists of all levels.

Presents step-by-step instructions for creating surface designs on fabric using textile paints and printing ink, and includes tips on such techniques as stamping, silkscreen, image transfer, marbling, and Japanese shibori.

Transform your sketchbook to art! The artist's journal is a great place to start a library of personal marks, doodles and ideas. The reader is introduced to basics such as choosing a journal and then immediately guided into techniques such as color mixing, drawing and a variety of surface designs. The reader is encouraged to experiment and play in the journal to try out new directions for creating works of art. The art journal becomes the starting point for bigger projects. In addition to step-by-step techniques for working in a variety of media, each chapter features one or more jumping-off points to show the reader how to move out of the journal and onto an actual project. In the final chapter, Melanie steps out three journal spreads to show how many techniques learned previously are layered and worked together. By using the art journal in this way, the reader learns confidence in developing their ideas into tangible works of art.