The other day when I was putting together a leaf
collage. I noticed that my fused fabric box was not up to scratch.
It did not have any sheets of fused fabric and most of it was little tiny scraps of colours that I don't use very often.
Also, I was watching
Laura Wasilowski and
Frieda Anderson on
Sewing with Nancy (
here) and was inspired to do a few small collages. My collages can't really be called whimsical like theirs can, but the technique is basically the same, with a few different fabrics and other additions. I do like to put hand embellishments on, like Laura, and machine embroider, like Frieda, but generally my colour sense is a bit more subdued. Probably because I am, too.
So, I decided to embark upon a day (and night) fusing fabric to build my stock back up and also to use up a roll of fusible that I hate at the same time (Then I can buy a nicer roll to replace it!)
First, I chose my fabrics, a lot of textures and solids, not too many prints, which is also different from LW and FA.
Here is a first batch of greens, ready to fuse on the sheet below them. I fuse about a metre square at a time.
And the greens all laid out ready to fuse. I tack the pieces down lightly with the tip of the iron, and deal with any creases first.
Then I cover with release paper and iron more fully. (In the case of this terrible fusible batch, this means a fair bit of ironing to fuse it)
When cool, (I usually leave it overnight), I peel back the whole sheet. The longer you leave it before peeling, the less likely it is for it to stick to itself.
After I am done, which in this case was ten and a half metres later, I am left with lots of large release sheets to use. This is only half of them, since the rest are still curing underneath. If I need small pieces for release paper, I use Silicone coated baking paper from the supermarket (in Australia), rather than cutting up the big sheets, which are very useful.
Of course, the main reason for doing this is to end up with lots and lots of fused fabric, like this.
And to fill up my fused fabric box, of course. It looks much more healthy now!
Perfect for me to get into and cut up into pieces for new collages, lol.
Sometimes, to be creative requires a bit of preparation
