I took a class at CNCH 2024 in loom-controlled shibori, taught by Dottie Weir. We wove with a tencel warp and polyester serger thread weft. Aunt Lydia’s #10 crochet cotton was used for the shibori pulling threads.

We wove the scarves on the first day after 10 minutes of instruction from Dottie.

The second day we painted the scarves with Procyon MX dyes. The scarves were put on heating pads for four hours to set the dye . AT night we washed them and hung them up to dry.

The third day we pulled the shibori threads to crimp the fabric. I did this to about ⅓ width. The partially crimped fabric was wrapped in parchment and steamed for a half hour. This melted the polyester weft thread and formed permanent creases in the fabric.

Then the knots in the shibori threads were loosened on one side and the threads were pulled as tight as they would go. The fully crimped fabric was soaked for 20 minutes in warm water and then put in a vat dye bath for two minutes.

The end result is a painted fabric that is creased and vat dyed in a shibori pattern.