Orange, Red, and Gold Hand-Painted Silk Scarf Using a Shibori Technique

     If I had kept track of the time spent making this 60" x 11" scarf, you might be surprised. It was more complicated than you would guess. This is the first time I have made a scarf using the arashi shibori technique (arashi means "storm" in Japanese--maybe referring to the wavy patterns' resemblance to thin clouds). A library book called Shibori by Elfriede Moller was my guide, although I modified her technique some. Here are a few scarves I made with other kinds of shibori techniques.

     Using a chunky foot-long piece of PVC pipe, I attached the 11" end of the blank white silk scarf near the top with masking tape. The two corners did not overlap; this allowed for just one layer of the scarf to wrap around the pipe. Then, with pale crochet cotton tied around the pipe and secured with tape (this can be done with thicker string or any thread as well), I wound the crochet thread around the scarf on the pipe many times in a random pattern. After a section was wound with thread, it was scrunched up and the next section wound--until the entire length of silk was tightly gathered on the pipe. The tape had to come off so that it did not block the dyes.

Close-up detail

    Tying off the end of the thread, I then wet the silk well so that it was soaked through but not dripping wet. This helps the dye to spread, to blend, and to penetrate the folds. Then, with a dropper and sometimes a brush, I pushed a few colors of French silk dyes into the fabric. The technique allows for many variations; the internet has a number of examples if you'd like to see more. My goal was to color the entire scarf, but other artists leave white areas. The silk can also be folded and then wound onto the pipe. Depending on the pattern of the folding, the wavy stripes can run in more than one direction when the piece is completed (here is one example).

Close-up of the other side

     Once the piece is dry (24 hours or more), you can snip the string or thread and enjoy the big reveal. I used four dye colors, but found that one dominated the resulting scarf. The colors are called grenat (a brownish red), ruby, orange (a blend I made of coral and a bit of yellow), and a sort of gold (a blend of yellow and a bit of rich sienna). As you can see, the coral blend took over many areas--not really surprising since it has proven to be quite strong other times I've used it. Yet, the result did surprise me. So this project was a learning experience and an adventure that will help guide the next time I use the arashi shibori technique.

Question of the day: Do you enjoy experimenting with crafts or other projects--even when you don't know how they will turn out?