Hand printed fabrics.. The samples!

Things are pushing too quickly at uni for my liking at the moment; I feel rushed into making a 'final piece' when really all I want to do is sit down and concentrate on making these digital pattern repeats much more interesting before I waste money burning a screen with a print that's pretty cool, but not my best work! Anyway - these are the samples for my first fabric collection.

For the next project I want to develop my frames print by printing without thimbles and also altering the sizes of the frames themselves! But I'm forgetting about that at the moment to concentrate on getting meters of these printed up and making some little creations :)

Here are my designs so far!

The start of a fabric print

Lino cut - block printing using Lino & ink

Buttons print onto a screen ready for screenprinted onto a fine linen fabric

My first fabric prints are coming together! I have burnt one screen so far; from a drawing from my sketchbook of Buttons, in a continuous line drawing. I like this design because it combines polkadot & stripe.

The repeat pattern took me a whole day in the digital labs to produce so that i was happy with it. then i printed it onto A3 acetate and made my screen from that!

I have been away from university for this whole week but im excited to go back and get screenmaking again! Hoping to have all four fabrics printed by the end of the week, and maybe some products made. I think ill just make a cushion and a lampshade or something c: 

World of Wool featured project

For my last project at university, i made these felt pods. It started as a feltmaking workshop, just making flat pieces of felt. I developed this technique and created some 3D shapes.. which then developed to be these little felted pods! They were designed for a brief called 'Inside Outside', and designed for placement in Centerparcs. They are made of completely sustainable materials and made in a sustainable way. I also dyed the felt myself using natural sources; plum skins, spinach leaves, betroot and onion skins. It was great fun and im proud of my little pods - And the company that provided me with the tops asked if i could submit a tutorial.

So here it is. Februarys featured project! They even put together a little kit for people who want to make it - how cute!!

There are currently only two featured project on the website. If you would like to apply to submit your own project, simply log onto the website and find the form!






A screenshot from the project page on the World of Wool website!


Click here to be taken to the feature project - How to make a felted pod

This link opens in a new window :)

Thanks for looking!

Louise x

Digital Sketchbook

Here are some of my drawings which i have created into digital drawings through the use of both photoshop and illustrator, through layers, opacity and also live trace. These are now in the repeat-pattern stage and i will post some pictures once designs are finalised of course! Im very excited about this.

Louise Richardson first four fabric collection - The back to basics range -sewing notions. February 2013!

Buttons which can work as both the stripe and the dot texture. Im thinking more fabric design in the sketch. Live traced on Illustrator.

Layered image of wax resist watercolour study of pinking shear line suitable for stripe, and my embroidery scissors and a thimble!

My mannequin and a small unusual button collection ive got going on..

This tape measure took me so long.. so so long..

thimbles! I like the different sizes :)

1, 10, 1000 - the beginning

New University Project!

1, 10, 1000

For this project we have to decide whether we want to be:

1. An artist; creating bespoke, one off pieces which are very high quality, expensive to make & also expensive to buy, at the high end of the market.

10, A Craftsperson; creating a batch of products, using batch production methods, not overly expensive to make, and sell as a high quality set of products at a reasonable price on the market.

1000, A Designer; producing designs which are suitable for mass production techniques. Made using mass production techinques. Dont need to actually create 1000 products but use methods that make it possible! 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

I am torn between Designer and Craftsperson. I think i am a craftsperson, but as i intend to screenprint and create, one day, alot of fabric. that is a designer! But i want to design it and print it myself, all of it, therefore.. i am a craftsperson.. see the confusion?!

This project, for me, is about creating a quirky fabric. Four fabrics, that create my first fabric collection!! Ive been in fabric shops weekly for about 3 years now.. and i certainly have my favourites. I think the best ones are the contemporary ones from designers like michael miller, clarke&clarke, all the classics! For me, these designers bring things back to basics in brilliantly quirky ways; This is michael millers collection theme called Ahoy Matey. As you can see, 2 of the eight fabrics and the same design, the rope. Just a simple rope pattern with circles as a feature of the stripe. This is a great example of where my first theme, Back to basics, has come from.

Click to enlarge this beautiful ahoy matey collection from MM

So, now i have a starting point for drawings, i wanted to look at actual themes. Clearly this theme is the pirate theme that is so popular for little boys at the moment - MM create most of their fabrics for quilt use - something i intend to do to - but perhaps more heavier fabrics that are suitable for more durable craft use.

My chosen theme, was Sewing Notions. I sew most days. if im not sewing, im thinking about sewing. I spend way too much of my student loan on things i just *need* - new rotary cutters, bias tape makers, pinking shears - you name it, ive pretty much got it when it comes to fabric crafts! With that decided, i started a little sketchbook (yes a tiny sketchbook - my tutor was NOT impressed!) over christmas drawing all the things i use on a daily basis.

I am currently at the stage of making my drawings into digital images on Adobe Illustrator, and making them into screenprints. I burnt my screen yesterday and it will be ready and waiting for me in the racks tomorrow - where ill do some test prints and try to get a picture on the blog!

Thanks for reading!

Louise :)

New blog

Test post

This Summer

Unfortunately, this summer i wont be getting a job, as im babysitting my for mother half of the time and ive got holidays booked and other things everywhere, it would be so hard for me to get a job, so ive decided to give up on that idea, and just craft my summer away, attend a few craft fairs and work towards my big event of the year, Art on the Prom, in september.

We drove back to Nottingham to collect the lastof my crap from my student halls. 

My products in the NTU shop, Made.