All Images / Mike Ahern
Once again the cottage was a hive of activity at the weekend with the swirling of fabric dye, followed by the buzz of my sewing machine - yeah I can sew! It felt so good to be making my own home accessories again.
The Spring-fuelled excitement was all about creating a new cushion for the lounge, which was born out of my decision to introduce some blue accent colouring to this space for Spring/Summer (it's a south facing room and blues take on a slightly mediterranean look when bathed in sunlight). In terms of pattern, I opted for the stunning and ancient Japanese Shibori technique and its beautiful watercolour-effect.
There are many different versions of Shibori, but here I have used the Kanoko technique, which is basically a tie-dye process. Here I have taken a large square of fabric and neatly folded it into squares until I was left with one small square. I then placed a small square of wood on top and another underneath (I used some old coasters). Finally I bound the fabric and squares together using elastic bands (as shown in images 2 & 3 'above').
I then soaked the package in water before immersing in navy fabric dye for around 10 minutes. Afterwards I removed it from the dye, left the fabric to drain and oxidize for a few minutes before carefully unwrapping and rinsing with cold water.
I have to admit that I was pretty thrilled with the final result, which I quickly ran through the sewing machine with a thick textured white cotton backing for the perfect contrasting white versus navy cushion.
Have you used this technique before and if so, what was your experience?
Have you used this technique before and if so, what was your experience?
