Final Idea 2

This piece is, again, a customised basic top featuring panels of light fabric. I will have to consult with Sara on which fabric would be best as I had pictured some sort of chiffon but I don't know if that would be too light to be branded without completely falling apart. Possibly it will have a mix of current top/vintage material or vice versa. I like the idea of this being a very floaty, feminine piece with very obvious burns/stains standing out. I wanted to do a graduated pattern mixing two techniques I've blogged previously; small rusted pin holes and then larger branded circles using pearl wire at the bottom. I chose these two techniques as I was particularly pleased with their results. Again, I will have to consult with Sara about how best to apply the panels to the top or if we would have to reconsider the shape of the panels.

A close up of the panels graduated pattern.

Final Ideas Sketch

One of my final piece ideas which consists of a dark top of some description - whether vintage or contemporary is yet to be seen - which would feature collars or clusters of cross stitch loops pulling the fabric tight to highlight marks made with bleach. The patterns could run across the top of the item of clothing and be highlighted by the loops or the mark making could only be applied to the pulled fabric. I like the idea of attaching the cross stitch hoops using vintage or unusually coloured threads to pick up the variety of colours the bleaching will create. I'm not yet decided on the type of clothing yet as I'm hoping that we shall stumble across a beautiful unusual item that will be instantly recognisable as the right one to use - as seems to have happened previously with Re-worked. This design could be reversed in that the top could be light with the application of colour, but the idea of the bleach stripping the fabric as a destructive tool really appeals to the project.

2 more...

via Pinterest

I actually tried doing some burn marks with irons in the early stages of Re-worked without much success as the iron has a safety setting so that it switches off if it gets too hot so my marks were very faint. It was suggested to use some old style irons (perhaps antique) heated up and again using this for branding. I love this image as it shows the variety of marks that can be made from the same type of object.

Another pin on Pinterest to catch my eye was this image (above) by a fellow blogger: Julia Weber

This is a container full of pennies which have been soaked in vinegar for a week which creates a lovely blue stain which this blogger has used for wood. I've been trying to include more colours in the mark making of Re-worked and I think this a lovely way of creating a marking element.

Inspiration Spot

Leggings by Sianic Wear.

A final spot of inspiration - bleach on leggings. Love this use of mark making using "destructive" materials. Still working on final piece drawings which I hope to share soon for the project!