A young designer studying fashion in Los Angeles contacted me last week, to rust several yards of silk for her for a special fashion project she's working on. Most of my rust work has been on cotton, so just this week I rusted these silk fabrics. The one above is crepe de chine, and it turned out just beautifully.
This second piece was a lark, really...a silk chiffon scarf that I dyed about a year ago, that I rusted this week. The blue is actually a lot more teal than it looks in the photo. But the rust on top of the dye is really something, isn't it!Hoping to get back to quilting in the next couple days. I bought a second sewing machine today -- a Singer Confidence Quilter -- since I don't expect to see my Bernina again for close to a month...if I'm lucky, some say :( There's a lesson in here somewhere, but I'm not sure what it is...let's see, could it be "Don't buy foreign made electronic equipment if you live in a small town and there's only one dealer and their regular repair person has retired or is out on extended medical leave"? The next closest dealer is 200 miles away, round trip. I'm certainly not up for two of those trips, seeing that my machine may require parts from Switzerland.
What I think I dislike just as much as having to wait, is the local Janome dealer, who tried to talk me into an off-brand, made in China machine, told me I'd likely have to wait 2-3 months to get my Bernina back from the other dealer, and threw in that he couldn't, or wouldn't work on certain Singer models, so I likely made a mistake in buying that. I detest being on the receiving end of retail fear mongering. Although it is a difficult proposition buying equipment such as a sewing machine in an area where there's no competition to speak of and a lack of qualified repair personnel.
Whatever. I'm counting on my new Singer to work just fine. And it's got everything I need -- drop feed, needle up/down button, and a free motion embroidery foot. If you've got one of these and you're not happy with it, please don't tell me!
11 comments:
These are both just splendid!I just recycled a Quilting Arts issue with an article about rusting fabric--knew I wouldn't be likely to do it, so didn't save it, but wanted to because it is so beautiful!
Brava!
These are luscious. What did you use for rusting?
I am sure the new machine will do just fine and be a great sidekick to your Bernina when it comes home.
The rusted fabrics are beautiful. I absolutely love the blue one and would like to snap it up. Lovely!
Gorgeous fabrics, Connie! I haven't done any rusting for over a year... just too many things going on.
I'm blessed to have a wonderful shop here in Flag that has a great sewing machine repair man... he turns them around in no time. Of course, mine isn't a computerized model... but they specialize in selling Berninas, so chances are he is up to speed on repairint them as well. I'm sure your backup will get you through, even if it isn't a fancy one! And I'm with you... I will walk away from high-pressure, fear-mongering salesmen no matter what they are selling.
They are beautiful!!
These are two of my favorite things to do. I love that color with the rust. thanks for sharing this.
If there is one thing I have learned in the past few years it's that having a second machine is sooo worth it!
Here's hoping your sewing machine woes are behind you.
And I'm with you, the teal with rust scarf is astonishing. I've had no luck whatsoever yet with rust but I won't be giving up on it just yet. Nicely done!
Absolutely stunning.
that teal and rust silk is jaw droppingly beautiful, Connie.
I am totally inspired. The patterns and colours are wonderful. I will gather up my rusty things tomorrow and create some magic.
Cheers
Joan
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