Final Piece.

This post is going to be all about the stages I took to create my final piece. It overall was a long process. The image below is what I decided to re-create as my final piece.

This image below was my first outcome for my final piece however as you can clearly see the puff binder has a completely different shade of colourant. Therefore after a long decision, levelling up my time left and what remands to be done, I decided to start over. The whole process frustrated me ALOT, however I knew it had to be done I wad NOT pleased with the colour difference of the puff binder and I knew I could produce something better.

This next image is what I took in the print room, the image shows my cotton A3 piece of fabric,  the procion dye Orange MX2R which I used to dye the fabric, my sample of the design I'm re-creating and my notebook which has the notes of what pigments dyes i have used and procion dyes.



The image below shows the puff binder I have mixed for the puff binder print; I used the colourants Pink 5BTL and Orange O, to mix a binder that is close to the colour of the binder I used on my original sample. As you can see I tested the puff binder on a scrap piece of dyed fabric; when it was puffed up it was extremely close to the original puff binder colour. As it was so close I decided to leave it as I didn't want to add more colourant and make the puff binder colour completely different and waste it. I am glad I tested the binder before it was printed and exposed to heat, in case it again was a complete different shade.

The next stage was to print my design onto the coloured fabric, as you can see by the image I have used two colours to print with, the match what I did in my sample design; the pigment dyes I used were Red BB and Black SNG. When I used the squeegee to print the colours through the screen, the end print was just what I wanted, the pigments I used mixed together making the print not as harsh as a single colour. I used these colours because the Red BB matched the fabric colour scale but still stood out, and the Black SNG made the print visible under the puff binder.

Before I carried out the puff binder I did another sample, experimenting where I could apply the puff binder to my piece, I took inspiration from one of my other samples (tiling - on previous posts); this is where I section part of my screen so that only a certain part of my design will be printed. I chose to used the middle (horizontally) part of my design, as this was only a sample I didn't repeat the puff print. After I washed my screen I exposed what I had just printed to the heat gun, after looking at the failed final piece I produced and this sample I decided to section this part for printing on my final piece. 

This next image is the second major stage of completing my final piece, it shows that I have pigment printed using the Red BB and Black SNG pigment dyes onto the dyed cotton fabric. I managed to match the edge of design up to create a repeated pattern from left to right, some parts its not exact but not noticeable unless identified. However some parts of the design smudged as you may see in the top right section of the print. Overall I was happy with how the colours printed together.

The image below shows the tester I did with the coloured puff binder, next to my printed fabric. Before I printed the design using the puff binder I placed the tester piece next to the printed fabric to ensure the colour will match both the dyed fabric and the pigment dyes I have printed with. 

The next two images are of the first section of the puff binder printed onto the fabric. After I printed this first section I had to wash my screen to avoid it becoming blocked and then puff up the binder. I had to puff the binder up before printing the next section as once the binder is exposed to heat you can see the design clearer to line up the next section. As you may be able to see, I have decided to print the binder off section to add a 3d effect to the chosen section.

This is when it had been exposed to the heat.

This image is of the final printed piece. I think the middle piece that has been overlaid with puff binder works really well with the whole design. I am happy with the colours I have used as they all work well together. I had some issues lining up the design to repeat the puff binder print, I had to use my tracing to help, but (may to be seen on image) some section off the puff binder are to completely lined up correctly. Also to the left of the fabric you can see how the puff binder printed to heavy and when exposed to heat pulled in the edge.  However I am overall happy with this outcome and due to time left on this project I had to work with what I had. 

Below shows the how the puff binder rises when exposed to heat. I am glad I used puff binder within my final piece because it has gave my design texture and made it become more tactile. 

Free Machining.

After I had completed the printing process I began to add another process to my final piece. I decided to use the free machining technique as in previous weeks I had just learnt how to carry out this process; also the sections I wanted to add extra to were appropriate for the use of this process. 

Below shows the thread I used when free machining onto my final piece. I decided to use a metallic thread to make sure the thread stands out amongst the prints and colours used.

The next 2 images are showing the sections I decided to free machine onto. The first image is showing  one of the balloons I free machined around; I decided to do this area simply to add texture and cover up the lining of the design that didn't print as well as I wanted it to. The image to the right shows the second area I used this technique on. This to me was a good area to free machine onto and fill in; one reason was  because it adds extra texture next to the puff binder print, and the second reason is because it is a larger area to show the free machining process within the design. 

During free machining I made a mistake; the mistake I made was not straightening out the fabric which meant the fabric was folded under so when I started machining a section the fabric became sewn together. Evidently even though this irritated me ALOT at the time, it was only the corner that had become attached into the design, therefore I was able to cut the fabric tightly to where it was sewn into  the back of the machined area. The image below is showing the fabric attached to the machined area, this is on the back of the fabric and as you can see it is only a small section. 

These next two images show where I had to cut the fabric; luckily it was only a small section in the bottom right corner of my fabric and design that had become attached. 

Below are two images from separate angles showing the overall final piece I created. It shows it has been dyed, printed onto using two methods and then free machined onto. Overall I was pleased with the outcome of my final piece; I know personally I could of produced something better but with the time I had left I couldn't start over therefore I managed to create something I am proud with.