frenchtown fiber

Chris Mundy and Kate House try to make art while navigating the crap life throws at them.

Friday, August 13, 2010

Printing on Fabric and Other Stuff

Cathie over at This Girl's Art asked me how I print on fabric. It's a piece-O-cake! Of course, you need an ink jet printer. I have included a link, with instructions that recommend treating the fabric. I have to admit, I've started skipping that step. I guess you can't wash it. I warn people not to wash my art quilts anyway. I think that gets me off the hook. If anyone has any compelling reason why I should treat my fabric with Bubble Jet Set before printing, I would like to hear it.

The main thing you need to do is stabilize the fabric so it can get through the printer. I use a 8.5"x11" sheet of sticker paper. I peel off the back, stick it onto the fabric, and then I trim the fabric to the edge of the paper. I have access to this kind of paper cheap. I've also heard about ironing on freezer paper, but I have not tried it. One thing I would recommend, before printing on your prepared sheet, print on a regular piece of paper to make sure things are centered the way you want them, or not too close to the edge. Just set that weird fabric that you've created paper in the print tray and print. I'm amazed at how well it works.

Out of several awful pictures of me, this was the least awful
So summer is almost over. Damn it! I love summer and it always goes so fast. Last weekend I went to Cape May to hang with friends that rent a house every year. It's really nice of them to invite us, and we always have a great time. At Cape May, one of the hot spots is a bar called the Brown Room at Congress Hall. Congress Hall is a large, old-fashioned hotel that was amazing in it's heyday, then hit the skids, then was bought by investors and restored. All the hippest ($$$) people stay there. So anyway, I like hanging out at the Brown Room. Drinks are expensive, but you get some superior people watching. There was a wedding taking place at the hotel, (there almost always is) and that makes it double fun. Sometimes when it is very crowded, we go outside and drink on the veranda.There is plenty to see out there, too. I really love to wear dresses, and I was wearing the nice one my husband bought for me this year. I keep buying more dresses. I just bought one today from a vendor that was at work! It was only $15. I was powerless to resist. There are just endless pretty dresses, I wish I could somehow discretely take pictures of the dresses I saw others wearing. Then I could "collect" dresses. Really, it's high time that I started making art quilts about dresses. That reminds me, I just registered for Fall classes. I begin on Sept 20. I'll be all jacked up until Dec 11. I took Public Relations and Intro to Western Philosophy. I've always wanted to take a philosophy course.
Really rambling here.

The next day:
As you may be able to see below, I have the same picture in here 3 times. It took 3 tries yesterday to get this picture to load. Now it is there 3 times, and I can't select any of them, or any picture on this page, to delete them. I really think that Blogger is dreadful and difficult to use. I'm not going to let them reuin my blog post. I'm going to post this anyway. What's the diff, really? Are you put off?
I'm leaving work in about an hour. I work an extra hour Monday through Thursday and get a half day on Friday. It's called Summer Hours, and it is a stroke of genius. Why can't they do this all year, all over the world? Anyway, I'm going fabric shopping. A couple of weeks ago my husband went on one of his ride a motorcycle like a crazy person weekends, and I redecorated our bedroom. I want to make a new quilt. One of those quilts that are more about blocks and strips of gorgeous fabric than about any real patchwork. (In other words, easy)
I'm also going on a date tonight with my husband. Tonight is an anniversary for us. It marks when we started "going out" the first time, when we were kids. That was THIRTY SEVEN YEARS AGO!!! I might wear my new dress.









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Quiet my ass