Stills

Artist Laurinda Stockwell moved from New Jersey to New Mexico last year and now has a wonderful studio and gallery/showroom with her husband, Mark Sharrock. This talented lady has worked in many mediums and exhibited in numerous galleries here in the states as well as internationally. Growing up on a hog farm in Ohio, like most rural kids, she spent lots of time outdoors and observing nature. That has informed her work throughout her career, and wildlife plays a large role in all of her art.

A wonderful grouping of owls on her gallery wall.

A detail of a beautifully drafted owl in mixed media.

Laurinda has worked in painting, sculpture, and jewelry.

Part of Laurinda’s current work in photography on metal.

In Laurinda’s Artist’s Statement about her series, Stills, she says, “I collect and photograph objects that suggest a narrative. By arranging these objects together they become landscapes to me. Chosen objects evoke an emotional power and I arrange and photograph them to suggest a story. I’m particularly interested in the push and pull between humans and the natural world. It’s always a power struggle between the desire to make our own destiny and the overwhelming power of climate and other natural forces.

I print these images on a metallic surface to suggest the 19^th century historic processes such as tintypes and daguerreotypes. My prints become objects themselves with this luminous material and are informed by early photography as well as 19^th century interests in natural history and Darwin.”

Laurinda is one of those artists who continues to explore new mediums and finds excitement and passion in the very act of exploration. To see more of her work, go to laurindastockwell.artspan.com.

Be sure to visit StudioLizzy on Etsy and on Facebook.

Tutorial: Dyeing With Natural Dyes

Today’s salon is a tutorial on dyeing with plant dyes. All dyes from natural sources are gentle on the environment, as the used dye can be disposed of down any drain without concern for chemicals leaching into pipes or water resources. Plants and soils have provided color to fabric for thousands of years and nothing can surpass the rich tones that nature has given us

.

Today’s dye is from Cutch, which is the heartwood of the Acacia catechu tree, that is found in parts of India and Burma. Most hand dyeing is used on yarns before weaving. However, we use purchased fabric because our use is not for weaving purposes. The fiber of the cloth on which the plant dye is used, along with natural mineral additives like iron, will determine the final color. We are using an organic cotton muslin that, because it was a grey-good or unbleached right off the loom, must be scoured and bleached before dyeing. Bleached fabric can be purchased, in which case these two steps are eliminated.

This picture shows our scoured and bleached piece of fabric next to the grey-good piece, so you can see how bright and white our piece is before dyeing.

 Our dyeing set-up is in the garage with a large stainless steel kettle and single burner.

 Scouring removes all of the impurities and oil that are natural to a plant fiber, but can effect color addition. The cotton is immersed into scouring liquid and soda ash that have been added to hot water in our kettle. (For detailed instructions, follow directions from your dye vendor). After that bath is completed and the fabric is thoroughly rinsed, bleach the fabric with your solution of choice, and dry in the sun.

Your fabric is now ready for mordanting. Mordant is the natural fixative that allows the dye to bond to the fiber permanently, do that colors don’t run the first time that beautiful shirt is washed. Mordants come from natural mineral sources, depending on the fiber that is used in the fabric. For cotton, alum acetate is used and after mordanting, the fabric may be kept damp in a zip-loc bag until ready to die. (For detailed mordanting instructions, follow directions from your dye vendor).

Now for the fun part: dyeing! Natural dyes come in either dried plant for or powdered form. We’re using the powder which must be weighed in exact measurement for the depth of color that we want. All amounts of dye prep solutions and dyes themselves are determined by the dry weight of fabric, or WOF, so all fabric must be weighed before it’s immersed into any liquid. A scale that will show less than a gram is required because very small amounts of dye are generally used. We want a light Cutch, so we’re measuring the amount of dye required for the dry weight of our fabric and a light hue.

 A small amount of boiling water is mixed with the dye before the dye is added to the kettle of water that has reached 100° F. Stir the dye into the bath.

 Add the damp mordanted cloth into the dye bath and stir constantly until the temperature (using an immersion thermometer) reaches the recommended heat level. The fabric needs to be continuously moved in the dye bath to ensure even color absorption, so this is where a chair and good book come into play! Stirring fabric can take up to an hour after the water temperature has reached its required heat.

 At the end of the dyeing process, turn off the heat source and allow the fabric to cool in the dye bath for several hours or overnight. Then wash in warm water and mild soap, and allow to dry out of the sun.

Your beautiful fabric is ready to iron and use! I keep it rolled prior to cutting so that I don’t have to iron out wrinkles once again. Although hand dyeing is a labor intensive process, like all creative endeavors, it’s fun and tremendously satisfying to combine dyes or add a mineral to create your very own color that has never existed exactly like that anywhere else!

The Cutch dye, scouring, and mordanting powders were purchased from Earthues^TM www.earthues.com.

Art in Wood

A visit this week was made to friend Mark Sharrock’s woodshop and showroom. Mark is a retired firefighter who moved with his wife, artist Laurinda Stockwell, to Santa Fe last year. Mark is an artist who works in wood; beautiful wood. He brought with him from New Jersey gorgeous fruitwoods, apple and pear, and uses wonderful hardwoods such as hickory and maple to created furniture pieces that lets the wood speak for itself. His pieces vary from rustic to contemporary in beautiful simplicity that showcase the texture and depth of wood in its purest form.

The inner bark of hickory sits at the end of a stair waiting to fill the back and seat of a rocking chair.

Waiting to become a work of art is its own still life.

                                     

A detail of a chair arm allows the art of nature to reveal itself. 

The combination of wood and metal brings tables into modernism that is timeless (“Cats” by Laurinda Stockwell).

Mark’s work may be viewed at his showroom by appointment. msharrock49@gmail.com. 908/500-6392.

For more handmade, visit StudioLizzy on Etsy. And visit www.facebook.com/StudioLizzy.

Why Handmade?

Why Handmade? In a world of mostly mass produced goods primarily from countries outside one’s own, the word handmade has taken on special significance. Mass produced items are almost clones of each other, while every handmade piece is unique. It may be made from the same pattern or template, but because each is made individually, no two are exactly alike.

  

A plate by Luna Garcia www.lunagarcia.com has edges that aren't perfectly cylindrical, which demonstrates the beauty of hands on the wheel. Each plate, dish, or cup is significant in its differences from all others, and makes the whole a treasure of craftsmanship.

And so it is with a block print. Hand manipulation of a linoleum or wood block makes each print just slightly different from the next, even though the same block is used. Check any block printed fabric and once in awhile you might find a tiny spot of ink that strayed from the carved-away portion of the block. That’s not an imperfection: that’s just part of the hand vs. machine printed aspect of it. So each block print is unique although the same block and maybe the same fabric and color of ink is used.

Although handmade may cost a few more dollars than their assembly line siblings, each has the possibility of attaining a level of craftsmanship that makes it a work of art.

I’d love to hear other thoughts on what handmade means to you. And be sure to check my Etsy shop at StudioLizzy for more handmade pieces by me and by thousands of other artists.

Follow me on Twitter at Cynthia Cavanaugh@StudioLizzy and on www.facebook.com/StudioLizzy.

10% of all Studio Lizzy sales dollars are donated to the Espanola Valley Humane Society www.evalleyshelter.org. Please adopt.

Welcome to Studio Lizzy Salon

Welcome to Studio Lizzy’s blog. Studio Lizzy at has joined the Etsy family and I’m very excited about introducing my pillow covers to the internet. Although this blog will be about all things creative, I’ll share a bit about Lizzy by Cynthia Cavanaugh^TM . I’m a former textile designer who has finally stepped back into one of my great passions. I’ve been drawing all my life, and now I’ve created a character named Lizzy who is screen-printed onto cotton fabric in different scenes of her life. She’s fun and modern, and I have lots of plans for her future. Right now, she’s the foundation for my  bold, contemporary pillow covers with contrasting black and white borders and backing in various prints.

 I also started carving linoleum blocks for printing, and so I’ve created the Lara line of pillow covers. This line uses some of my hand-dyed Indian muslin (I use only plant dyes), which is a beautiful nubby contrast to the smooth black cotton sateen that surrounds it. Carving my own blocks and printing gives me the chance to explore designs from all cultures of the world. With an undergraduate degree in Anthropology, I’m most fascinated by art and cultures far removed from my own. The first group of Lara pillows reflects the timeless beauty of Japan in a forward, modern setting. Each cover is closed on the back with a vintage or handmade button.

Please visit Studio Lizzy for the complete line as well as the limited edition Maya purses, my own artist designed bags that you’ll see nowhere else.

Now, about this blog. I’m calling it a salon because I would like it to be a forum for exploration and discussion of creativity. I’ll highlight what other artists are doing in their own mediums, and periodically I’ll pose a question that I hope will begin some great conversations about art, popular culture, and almost anything except religion and politics. Creative topics are endless and I hope to hear ideas from everyone, no matter what field you’re in or what your passions are.

Please join me at:
www.etsy.com/shop/StudioLizzy
Facebook: www.facebook.com/StudioLizzy
Twitter: Cynthia Cavanaugh@StudioLizzy

Because Lizzy cares about the world around her, 10% of Lizzy’s sales dollars are donated to the Espanola Valley Humane Society www.evalleyshelter.org. Please adopt.