Exercise 4.1 Yarns inspired by stitch and marks

Aims:

• Expand knowledge and application of materials into yarn concepts

• Interpret and experiment with different ideas to translate linear qualities into yarn outcomes.

The brief here was to translate drawn and stitched lines into three-dimensional lines in the form of yarns.

After reviewing my stitch work from Part Two and the drawings and mark-making from Part One, I decided to use related pieces from both these parts of the course to inform my yarn-making.

I chose these pieces as they were linked and used an interesting colour palette, due to the slightly jarring optical effect of the red and grey/green colour when seen next to each other. I felt this group of source materials already had yarn-like qualities, which I felt I could develop further:

Included in this group was a piece of stitch work on cream muslin that I had produced in response to these pieces but had not presented earlier, as I had chosen to go in a different direction when preparing Assignment 2:

I felt that the key colours of red and grey/green would make a strong colour palette for this series of yarns and I was looking forward to seeing what different combinations of colour and texture I could create from a limited palette.

I found a selection of yarns, fabrics and other materials that I thought represented aspects of these linked drawings and stitch on paper. The aspects I wanted to bring out were:

• lines and knots

• overlapping lines

• intersections

• use of red, grey, green colour palette

• networks and grids

• punctuation

• regular/irregular repeat

• twisting

• under and over.

Materials included:

• wool and mixed blend yarns

• beads

• jewellery wire

• acrylic and wool felt

• nylon netting

• linen fabric

• polyester sewing thread.

Here are my sketches, descriptions and annotations on these yarns:

Here are my sketches, descriptions and annotations on these yarns:

For a more experimental yarn concept I tried loosely layering wool yarn in layers of different colours, add rectangles of nylon net and fixing all together with clear glue and allowing to dry:

This was intended to be a looser interpretation of the intersecting lines in the original drawings and stitch work.

I then tried to develop a larger scale translation of an earlier yarn:

Using a larger scale of base yarn, folded rectangles of red/orange felt, stapled to hold the yarn in place and attempting to give the idea of the intersecting lines of the network from the earlier drawing:

For the 100 cm length yarns I decided to

1. Take the use of jewellery wire further, combining it with a soft grey wool yarn and red glass beads with a variation in colour, crocheting into a length punctuated with the beads to echo the knots and stitches of the source materials;

2. Ply together a chunky grey wool/acrylic yarn, a 4-ply red merino wool yarn and the silver jewellery wire, twisting into zigzag spirals to suggest the movement of the network of lines on the earlier paper and stitch work;

3. Layer strips of grey jersey, red nylon netting and chunky grey wool/acrylic yarn, which was gathered and knotted at irregular intervals to call to mind the crumpled and rippled surface of the glued paper stitched sample.

Sketches and notes on the above yarns: