A finished item!

At last I have the first completed item for my show unfortunately I forgot to do a before photo but this is the finished article . A stool circa 1950 with wooden legs bought from a charity shop in Cambourne for the princely sum of £3. Upholstered in digitally printed ramie and hemp fabric by my local upholsterer (Perhan Upholstery is in Treverva a mile away )from my own "hydrangea and map" design. The design was developed from a drawing done at Trebah Garden close to where I live in Cornwall.All very eco and beautiful as well .

Lloyd loom chair

I may have found the chair to go in my show in the summer . I was looking for a 1950s chair but the prices and the distance to collect had been prohibitive but the other day I came across this one on Ebay which just happened to be in Falmouth . It is genuine 1930s with a date stamp on the base . Slightly worse for wear but only a bit of paint missing and a few strands of what I thought was wickerwork( but turns out to be wire covered in paper ) damaged .
This one suits me as it is light to transport and will probably be enough to show off one or two of my fabrics .
Lloyd loom weave is woven from twisted kraft paper and wire invented by Marshall Burns Lloyd in 1917 to replace hand woven wicker or cane furniture . The company in Spalding resurrected the process in 1981 the original factory having been destroyed during the war in the 1940s and are still running today using sustainable timber supplies for their frames . One of the few remining British quality furniture makers they launched their all weather range last year .All in all it ticks lots of boxes re the eco side of things . I just need now to decide how to cover it .

new lampshade

combining laser cut paper with fabric
sample1
light on
light off
Still needs working but an interesting combination.

quote for the day

"When things are too defined it leaves few possibilities in life."

Toord Bontje View on Colour 23 p46

Hemp

The possibilities of using hemp paper for my laser cut lampshades led me to finding this website www.thehempshop.co.uk/why-hemp.php with a variety of hemp products for sale .I have ordered some to try out . I have also been perusing the book Hemp Horizons by John W. Roulac which discusse the origins , use and current attitudes to hemp production.

Why Hemp ?

Hemp is a member of one of the most advanced plant families on earth, capable of using the sun's energy more efficiently than virtually any other. Originating from Asia, it has been cultivated by mankind for more than 6000 years and until the late 16th century was our planet's largest agricultural crop and most important industry. Almost every part of the plant was used to provide the overall majority of our fibre, fabric, lighting oil, paper and medicinal needs, as well as being a primary source of essential food oil and protein for humans and animals. Hemp flourishes without the the use of pesticides (having few natural enemies) and grows so fast that it literally leaves other plants in the shade. This means herbicides are not required either, making hemp ideal for organic farming. Cotton, on the other hand, uses vast amounts of chemicals both in its growing and processing. Hemp produces up to three or four times more pulp per acre than timber, and produces higher quality paper. There are no environmentally damaging bleaching processes in hemp paper production and it recycles many more times than wood pulp. At present we are over-reliant on dwindling fossil fuel reserves and are still busy chopping down forests at an alarming rate. Hemp is a sustainable alternative and also one of he most effective convertors of CO2 to oxygen - cleaning the air, improving the soil and helping to fight global warming. Apart from living in a healthier environment, using hemp is beneficial to the individual in many ways. Hemp fibres are porous so they allow your skin to breathe, whilst also being softer, stronger and more durable than cotton. Hemp seed is one of the most complete sources of vegetable nutrition known to man; it is 33% high quality protein and a rich source of essential fatty acids (EFAs) including Omega-3, Omega-6 and Omega-9 which are present in the ideal ratio for absorbing into the body. Hemp seed oil also has amazing skin care properties, moisturising and replenishing it with those important EFAs. Clinical trials have shown that Omega-3 and Omega-6 in hemp oil helps dry skin defects and are beneficial for the treatment of eczema and psoriasis.

New textile blog

Vic sent me this link to a textile blog with particular reference to Design Miamis laser cut tent . Laser cut into vinyl and covering the top of the building referencing a lace edged tablecloth which ironically will be in Milan from which I have had to withdraw .Ah well !
Design Miami/ and FENDI Present
Craft Punk
Design Performances

Spazio FENDI
22-24 April 2009
16:00h-20:00h Daily
Free to the public

In response to new currents in design practice and the present state of the world, Craft Punk is a celebration of tenacious creative expression, unruly experimentation, and brilliantly low-tech design processes.

Work in progress

My work over the last two weeks has been to attempt to combine my fabric with the screen panels . I had developed the new cut but only executed it in card intending to construct a table top version for the university stand at the Milan Furniture Fair and display it alongside my fabrics .It was then decided that I needed to combine the two. Unfortunately I was unable to complete the assignment in time for various reasons , the main one being time, as it was a complex process requiring time to resolve satisfactorily . However I learned a lot through the process.
Initially I had ordered MDF to make the screen but then canceled the order as I had not realized the problems with the content of formaldehyde used in the construction process.I changed the order to oak ply and found that the price of this has almost doubled since last July due to the fact that it is imported from the USA and the whole global financial impact on manufacturing , the pound /dollar thing etc etc ( where does that leave its carbon foot print ?).

The construction of a double lampshade ,one inside the other(one fabric and one paper or steamed wood laser cut ), was also considered but timewise would have proved difficult.I am still considering the possibility of using the cut on paper and bonding it to fabric to make into a lamp shade as the latest email from the lampshade manufacturer said that they do have a paper substrate that artists sometimes use when they want to decorate both sides of the shade. Amazing what you find out when you refuse to use pvc or plastic.
One week gone .
The other possibility were panels with fabric on one side then laser cut almost like samples or decorative hung pieces . (Another design constraint it had to be hung.).The hydrangea design was the fabric choice althought in retrospect this does not work with the oak pattern but to develop a new fabric design that would again was time bound.
I developed an etched pattern that reflected the hydrangea fabric that was glued to the other side of the ply with (in the end after various experiments)carpet glue spray .The fabric was initially linen but the flaws of the wood show through .Also the colour of the fabric , the pink,varies depending on whether it is linen or the Ramie mix and whether it is washed or not . Washing makes it too pale .
Weighting down the slightly warped ply caused problems . The initial laser cut cut the outside first and so the wood sprang up and I had to get help rearranging the cut . The ramie /hemp mix works but then when it came to laser cutting the cut setting did not allow for the thickness of the new fabric .I then realised that one panel was not going to be enough and that given the time and my lack of energy I was not going to resolve it in time to produce three panels that I was happy to present. Also the money constrictions as the fabric is costing £34 a metre to buy and print .
Lots to resolve.


image 1: Card screen with fabrics.

image 2 :Etched oak ply with laser cut edges.

image 3:Laser cut panel part cut due to thickness of fabric.

image 4 :Four samples of fabric all with the same design digitally printed on linen / linenwashed / ramie / ramie washed .