Instant Colour Lesson

At the workshop we did with Joy Smith last Sunday, we discussed colour. Joy showed us lots of examples and we discussed how intensity can be changed by colours nearby, by texture (textured weaving)  and by the type of yarn used - whether it is fuzzy, twisted, smooth, shiny, etc (which I suppose is also texture).
Then we looked at the colours I was weaving.  I am trying to do a sample that graduates from yellow to blue, just like the patchwork one I did recently. I had some colours but had to go to the Australian Tapestry Workshop to buy some to carry the colours through.  I thought I had chosen a reasonable range, they didn't look like the colour change was too marked.

When I wove the colours though, the fourth one from the right was very different.  The change was much too noticeable.  Instant lesson on how the weaving can affect the perception of the colour. 

I then blended the the two colours, to see if I could lessen the large jump in tone. I started with two strands of the lighter colour, one of the darker.  Then I changed it to two of the darker and one of the lighter.  This was in the midst of counting the passes and half passes that make up the change in colour.

It is 6 half passes of colour 1, 1 of colour 2, 5 of colour 1, 2 of colour 2, 4 of colour 1, 3 of colour 2, 3 of colour 1, 4 of colour 2, 2 of colour 1, 5 of colour 2, 1 of colour 1, 6 of colour 2.  Then start with the new colour. The notes I had were written in half passes, so that is how I have counted it.

But I had hoped to do a sample with no blending, seeing I tend to blend my colours all the time. I have put it aside for the time being.  I will visit the shop again and see if I can find a colour to go between these two, allowing me to use flat colours.  I will pull out the blended wool if I can find the shade I want. If not, I suppose I will just have to keep going and see how the other colours go.  I keep telling myself it is only a sample and that is what it is for. 

There will be a bit of a hiatus before I get back to it - the workshops have finished and I have a machine embroidery assignment due soon. Then I will try again.

Seeing it is a sample, I have decided not to worry too much about the pulling in on the sides.  Joy tells me it is probably because of the way I pull the shed forward as well as using only one bobbin across the piece. Who knew that I might need to use a few bobbins on this small a piece?

New Optical Illusion attempt

As I have posted before, I love visiting the Mighty Optical Illusion site. I have been doing some research on colour and found these pages but then did a different search and came across this site also.  I thought I might be able to adapt one of the images using textiles.

It sort of works, one end of the solid dark pink fabric appears slightly darker than the other.  But it didn't turn out as well as I had hoped.  This may be because I decided to also try the colourwash quilting effect, which I have not done before, and my colours are not as solid as in the original image.
My sewing was not all that good either, the squares didn't line up particularly evenly.  I'm not too bothered by that, I can use the quilt top anyway. It is not finished, I will have to make it wider and perhaps put in some more sashing. Then I will quilt it and see what effect that has on the illusion.

I may try again at a later date, perhaps I will use smaller squares.  I used 2" squares (quilting is the only time I use imperial measurements as most of the tools are designed for that). I also only used fabrics that I had as I decided not to buy any, except for the solid colour as I have very few solids. I decided to only use each piece of fabric once which was another limitation.  I did cheat a little and make some of the pieces 4"x2", mainly to carry a colour from one shade to another.
At the moment it is on my to-do pile, also known as the UFO (Unfinished Objects) pile.

I am currently attending a series of tapestry workshops.  We were discussing possible designs and I thought I might try this design as a tapestry.
We discussed how I might go about it, what size warp to use, how to move from one colour to another, etc.  It will be quite a challenge for me as I tend to put texture in my tapestries and there would be none in this - so far. If I do it as finely as we discussed, and have no texture, the weaving will have to be very even, every little mistake will show. I am not intending to do it very big, so I think I will challenge myself to do a lovely even piece of weaving.
I have tried an optical illusion tapestry before and had to learn how to do lots of wraps and sewing of slits.  I'm hoping to avoid that this time, I think I might do the rectangle without slits, using interlocking, yet another technique for me to practise. So lots of thinking is happening, now I just have to get to the doing!

I don't have the right colours in my wool collection and will have to go to buy some.  I was almost out the door today but then thought that I really should try to finish The Old House first.
However, it is school holidays as the moment and some of my regular commitments are not on, so I may go the the Australian Tapestry Workshop later in the week, just so I can have the colours there, ready to start.
If I go this week, I will be able to see the Kate Derum award exhibition again.  It finishes on Friday.