Thrift shopping and discharge bleaching

We were in Detroit for the week and shopped at the DAV thrift store in Westland. They have great selections there! I found these to add to my collection of cellulose men's black shirts:

Washed and dryed and ready to be deconstructed. I love that word, deconstructed: " to adapt or separate the elements of for use in an ironic or radically new way; uses his masterly tailoring skills to deconstruct the classic." 

I like cutting up the fabric in the most efficient way possible, saving long seam allowances for weaving. By the time we finally get moved and my loom is restored I will have the collection I want to weave a rag rug. And then I'm off with that too. I can't wait for that. As for now I will use the small pieces for experimentation, determining how well each fabric responds to the bleach. The biggest whole pieces of each shirt are awaiting final decisions, and that pile is growing. 

I don't know why the type is now itallic. I want it to stop. It doesn't.

Here is some of what I am doing with discharge, using a number of different fabrics. I'm coloring on the discharged areas with fabric markers:

Memories of Wild Roses is being assembled using my hand carved stamps, hand dyed fabrics and a couple of manufactured pieces of yardage that I spray painted or colored with fabric markers. Here is a sampling of what I recently discharged:  

Here are my hand carved wood stamps, holding up well to both bleach and paint:

I did add another layer of depth to both stamps, and the next round of discharge will feature hopefully an even cleaner image.

I am loving this work.

The flowers are a lovely Mother's Day bouquet from my son, Ian Russell. The best son ever. The cactus behind it started at 8" and was a gift from a friend. It is now is almost 3 feet. Once we get past the frost date it will go out for the summer and get a new pot with some yummy dirt. 

More discharge using rubber stamps I have:

Next I want to press leaves, print, paint and hammer them onto some great sugar sack fabrics that will stand up to it. Outdoors though. I'll post again when I get the next batch of deconstructed shirts discharged. I put a newer edge on my wild rose stamps I'm thinking of getting a black batting. This piece will be raw edge and the batting may show through and become an issue. There are so many shades of black going on that it would be smart, I think. So thats decided. 

I haven't touched my sewing machine for weeks but now I have a great reason: twins are on the way for my beloved girl, Gretchen, and her husband Robert. They are 2 darling people whose lives' work is about service. They are beautiful people. It took a while but they are ready and are being blessed with a small army! So, baby quilts. It's gonna be a motivated summer!

Wishing you joy,

Sue